Need help, plastics fabricator

[Whitmore]

Gents, as you have read , I am in the middle of a new inlet air consept for our trucks , anyway my guy that I went to to build them says he could build these and sell them but they would have to be of stainless steal construction because battery acid would eat aluminun, this would make the price too high and out of reach for most so we talked about it and some heavy plastic would do the job too and would be alot more affordable to us all .



This is where I need your help... ... ... ... where or who can I get to build these units out of plastic ???



See the original thread here



https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=55971



thanks Kevin



Just a note, this bomb will still be used in conjunction with the BHAF , as we all know the BHAF is proven to be the cats meow for flow, so this bomb is for cooler temps.

 

[KPhillips]

It wouldn't be that hard, if you or your guy wanted to do it yourselves. The most expensive part would be buying a heating element used to bend the plastic (that is if he or you already have a band saw and a drill press).



The heating element used to bend plastic is basically a device that has a straight piece of a heating element in it encased withing a metal housing so you mark your line where you want to bend and then lay the plastic over that area for ashort period of time and start bending it... . the hard part is finding where to buy the heating element. You could probably make one... .



otherwise, your best bet will be to find a local plastics supplier in your area. Most of the time they will perform servicers like these, you could just cut the plastic, drill it, etc. ahead of time, mark the pices and take it to them and ask them to bend each 90 degrees on the mark you have provided...

 

[Lynn_Schwartz]

Specialty Plastics Fabricator

Kevin - Give Don Miller Jr. of Miller Plastics in Pittsburgh, PA (Coraopolis) a call. I think the number is 412-695-3600. They do a lot of work with high temperature plastics that carry chemicals etc. They have a great varity of fabrication equipment and do a lot of standard stuff. Don Miller Sr. is semi retired but is still working and is somewhat of a fabriction genius when it comes to plastics (IMHO). They are personal friends and you can tell them that you got their name from me. Regards, Lynn

 

[JWhitcomb]

Are you looking for just bends or compound vaccum formed parts?

 

[Whitmore]

What I need is more than just simple bends and cuts, I need strength ribs and reinforced ancor point to be of different thicknesses, but thanks for the input, I can see me out in the garage building lots of these units till the wee hours of the morning , I just aint got time for it either, besides I want to move on to other projects as well.



Lynn, thanks for the tip on Don Miller but I need a different number, that one is no longer in use... ... ... . can ya fix me up bub... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ..... Kevin

 

[JWhitcomb]

Sounds to me like you need vac forming and there will be NRE up front (non refundable engineering) which can be costly. I do work for a firm that does only plastic work for the chip industry but they would want you to commit to a high number of units before they would consider it. Good luck

 

[Lynn_Schwartz]

I'm looking

Kevin - I left a message at Don Miller Sr. 's home and they will get back to me pretty soon if they are at home. I think the area code must have changed when they moved their shop. they have vacuum forming equipment as Jwhitcomb suggests and a lot of other stuff. Much of their equiment is computer controlled and they can run batches of stuff 24 hours a day. They have never advertized (to my knowledge) as they usually have all the business they want but I believe what you are asking for would be duck soup for them. Jwhitcomb's comment about committing to a large quantity for setup and engineering is right on. This is something you should discuss with Don up front. When I hear form the Millers I will PM you. Regards, Lynn

 

[Whitmore]

Lynn, thats exactly what I am looking for, Looking foward to the PM... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Kevin

 

[illflem]

Kevin, give Scott -- email address removed -- an email. He's the one who makes the Scotty air units and a heck of a nice guy. I know he spent much time searching for the right place to make his units. In fact I heard he's working on something similar to what you have planned.

 

[Whitmore]

Thanks Bill

I e-mailed Scott and now have 4 potential builders for the mod , we will see what shakes out and who can work it the best and go from there... ... ... ... I am like a kid in the candy store ... ..... Kevin

 

[Lynn_Schwartz]

Miller Plastic Products

Kevin - I found them - check your PM's regards, Lynn