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Finnluxury
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Hi!
We have decide in our company to start making a silicone vacuum bags. There is several reasons why we have end up to make these compared to the basic single use bags. One of the most important reason is that we have complex moulds shapes and we start to make bigger quantities of our products. So having a silicone bags is a real time saver, compared to basic single use vacuum bag that needs a lot of careful placement. Also savings in the material is another good reason for using silicone vacuum bags. After 6 parts, its cheaper to use silicone bags, and cost saving can be around 80%.
Last night I bought EZ-Spray junior spraygun and EZ-Spray silicone 20.This is a sprayable silicone which cures quickly to soft rubbers with high elongation and tear strength. Cures in about 20 minutes. Newly fabricated vacuum bags can be removed from the tool assembly in a matter of minutes and be put into production service immediately.
So have anyone else here made a Silicone vacuum bags?
There is two different ways to seal the bag to the moulds to make air tight seal. One option is to make a sealing channel to the mould, that the silicone goes inside the channel, and this way forms an airtight seal. Another option is to make a vacuum channel, that sucks the silicone bag tightly to mould flange and keeps the vacuum without any leakings. I am still thinking which method to choose.
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Hanaldo
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Group: Forum Members
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Silicone vacuum bags work fine with carbon infusion, you just need to use flow mesh and factor that thickness in when making the bag. This is as simple as just infusing your first parts in the regular fashion with conventional vacuum film, then making the silicone bag prior to demoulding or removing the consumables. In the videos they are likely using CSM that has flow media incorporated into it, which is quite common.
For your sealing method, I actually recommend combining both the channel in the mould, AND then channel in the bag. I've never had success using one or the other, but a combination does work well. Just make sure not to use too much reinforcement when you make the channel in the bag, as if it is too stiff then the channel won't draw down and seal against the mould surface.
Also yes, silicone bagging is SIGNIFICANTLY quicker once you've worked it out. It is literally a case of throwing the bag on, getting the sealing channel in place and pulling vac. It's a 1 minute process, every single time. The bag seals itself consistently so theres no need to leak check, bridging is never a concern... It is definitely a great way to save time on production runs. But it does take a bit of time and effort to get it working nicely.
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Finnluxury
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Group: Forum Members
Posts: 50,
Visits: 448
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+xSilicone vacuum bags work fine with carbon infusion, you just need to use flow mesh and factor that thickness in when making the bag. This is as simple as just infusing your first parts in the regular fashion with conventional vacuum film, then making the silicone bag prior to demoulding or removing the consumables. In the videos they are likely using CSM that has flow media incorporated into it, which is quite common. For your sealing method, I actually recommend combining both the channel in the mould, AND then channel in the bag. I've never had success using one or the other, but a combination does work well. Just make sure not to use too much reinforcement when you make the channel in the bag, as if it is too stiff then the channel won't draw down and seal against the mould surface. Also yes, silicone bagging is SIGNIFICANTLY quicker once you've worked it out. It is literally a case of throwing the bag on, getting the sealing channel in place and pulling vac. It's a 1 minute process, every single time. The bag seals itself consistently so theres no need to leak check, bridging is never a concern... It is definitely a great way to save time on production runs. But it does take a bit of time and effort to get it working nicely. Hi! Do U have the channel in the mould at inner or outer side of the mould flange? I were thinking that I could have mould channel at inner side of flange, and then the bag channel at outer side of the flange. Have u tested is there difference which one is outer and which one in inner side? Would u have any photos to share? 
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Hanaldo
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Group: Forum Members
Posts: 2.5K,
Visits: 28K
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+x+xSilicone vacuum bags work fine with carbon infusion, you just need to use flow mesh and factor that thickness in when making the bag. This is as simple as just infusing your first parts in the regular fashion with conventional vacuum film, then making the silicone bag prior to demoulding or removing the consumables. In the videos they are likely using CSM that has flow media incorporated into it, which is quite common. For your sealing method, I actually recommend combining both the channel in the mould, AND then channel in the bag. I've never had success using one or the other, but a combination does work well. Just make sure not to use too much reinforcement when you make the channel in the bag, as if it is too stiff then the channel won't draw down and seal against the mould surface. Also yes, silicone bagging is SIGNIFICANTLY quicker once you've worked it out. It is literally a case of throwing the bag on, getting the sealing channel in place and pulling vac. It's a 1 minute process, every single time. The bag seals itself consistently so theres no need to leak check, bridging is never a concern... It is definitely a great way to save time on production runs. But it does take a bit of time and effort to get it working nicely. Hi! Do U have the channel in the mould at inner or outer side of the mould flange? I were thinking that I could have mould channel at inner side of flange, and then the bag channel at outer side of the flange. Have u tested is there difference which one is outer and which one in inner side? Would u have any photos to share? I keep the mould channel on the outside of the mould, reason being that it works as more of a locator than a seal. Ill try to find some photos for you
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Finnluxury
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Group: Forum Members
Posts: 50,
Visits: 448
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+x+x+xSilicone vacuum bags work fine with carbon infusion, you just need to use flow mesh and factor that thickness in when making the bag. This is as simple as just infusing your first parts in the regular fashion with conventional vacuum film, then making the silicone bag prior to demoulding or removing the consumables. In the videos they are likely using CSM that has flow media incorporated into it, which is quite common. For your sealing method, I actually recommend combining both the channel in the mould, AND then channel in the bag. I've never had success using one or the other, but a combination does work well. Just make sure not to use too much reinforcement when you make the channel in the bag, as if it is too stiff then the channel won't draw down and seal against the mould surface. Also yes, silicone bagging is SIGNIFICANTLY quicker once you've worked it out. It is literally a case of throwing the bag on, getting the sealing channel in place and pulling vac. It's a 1 minute process, every single time. The bag seals itself consistently so theres no need to leak check, bridging is never a concern... It is definitely a great way to save time on production runs. But it does take a bit of time and effort to get it working nicely. Hi! Do U have the channel in the mould at inner or outer side of the mould flange? I were thinking that I could have mould channel at inner side of flange, and then the bag channel at outer side of the flange. Have u tested is there difference which one is outer and which one in inner side? Would u have any photos to share? I keep the mould channel on the outside of the mould, reason being that it works as more of a locator than a seal. Ill try to find some photos for you I would be really happy to see some photos. I just received the spray gun and other materials today. Can't wait to get test these materials.
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Finnluxury
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Group: Forum Members
Posts: 50,
Visits: 448
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+x+x+xSilicone vacuum bags work fine with carbon infusion, you just need to use flow mesh and factor that thickness in when making the bag. This is as simple as just infusing your first parts in the regular fashion with conventional vacuum film, then making the silicone bag prior to demoulding or removing the consumables. In the videos they are likely using CSM that has flow media incorporated into it, which is quite common. For your sealing method, I actually recommend combining both the channel in the mould, AND then channel in the bag. I've never had success using one or the other, but a combination does work well. Just make sure not to use too much reinforcement when you make the channel in the bag, as if it is too stiff then the channel won't draw down and seal against the mould surface. Also yes, silicone bagging is SIGNIFICANTLY quicker once you've worked it out. It is literally a case of throwing the bag on, getting the sealing channel in place and pulling vac. It's a 1 minute process, every single time. The bag seals itself consistently so theres no need to leak check, bridging is never a concern... It is definitely a great way to save time on production runs. But it does take a bit of time and effort to get it working nicely. Hi! Do U have the channel in the mould at inner or outer side of the mould flange? I were thinking that I could have mould channel at inner side of flange, and then the bag channel at outer side of the flange. Have u tested is there difference which one is outer and which one in inner side? Would u have any photos to share? I keep the mould channel on the outside of the mould, reason being that it works as more of a locator than a seal. Ill try to find some photos for you Did u happend to find any photos?
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Hanaldo
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Group: Forum Members
Posts: 2.5K,
Visits: 28K
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+x+x+x+xSilicone vacuum bags work fine with carbon infusion, you just need to use flow mesh and factor that thickness in when making the bag. This is as simple as just infusing your first parts in the regular fashion with conventional vacuum film, then making the silicone bag prior to demoulding or removing the consumables. In the videos they are likely using CSM that has flow media incorporated into it, which is quite common. For your sealing method, I actually recommend combining both the channel in the mould, AND then channel in the bag. I've never had success using one or the other, but a combination does work well. Just make sure not to use too much reinforcement when you make the channel in the bag, as if it is too stiff then the channel won't draw down and seal against the mould surface. Also yes, silicone bagging is SIGNIFICANTLY quicker once you've worked it out. It is literally a case of throwing the bag on, getting the sealing channel in place and pulling vac. It's a 1 minute process, every single time. The bag seals itself consistently so theres no need to leak check, bridging is never a concern... It is definitely a great way to save time on production runs. But it does take a bit of time and effort to get it working nicely. Hi! Do U have the channel in the mould at inner or outer side of the mould flange? I were thinking that I could have mould channel at inner side of flange, and then the bag channel at outer side of the flange. Have u tested is there difference which one is outer and which one in inner side? Would u have any photos to share? I keep the mould channel on the outside of the mould, reason being that it works as more of a locator than a seal. Ill try to find some photos for you Did u happend to find any photos? I unfortunately haven't got any mate, but I'll try to take some for you by this weekend.
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