[kievari]

Hi,
I'm going to first time buy a vacuum pump and make a small vacuum table DIY. I have not enough knowledge to choose the pump, but by some googling I found this one on ebay:
called:
2.5 CFM 1 Stage Rotary Vane Deep Vacuum Pump Refrigerant AC Air Condition HVAC

Link:
2 5 CFM 1 Stage Rotary Vane Deep Vacuum Pump Refrigerant AC Air Condition HVAC | eBay

My use case is to have it holding corian dupont for small lithophane works (say, maximum 20cm x 30cm).

Is this pump enough powerfull for the job I described please?

[ger21]

You want an oil less pump, as that pump will fill you room with an oily mist.

You want a pump with at least 2-3CFM, and one that can pull at least 25"Hg vacuum.

[aarggh]

I have a couple of those, and they are good at pulling a vacuum, but as Gerry pointed out, they do mist enough oil it can be a problem.

I've since bought a couple of oilless diaphragm vacuum pumps secondhand off ebay that work really well. I find they don't quite pull down as hard as the others, but they still reach a minimum of 25-26Hg.

cheers, Ian

[G59]

Get yourself a diaphragm vacuum pump. They are oil less. For light duty or light cuts in aluminum, 25-26Hg will be OK. For aggressive cuts I suggest 28-29 Hg. Of course keep in mind that total surface area is really what is determining the clamping force on your parts. So small pieces = you want lots of vacuum.

[kievari]

Thanks everybody, I'd go for an oil less low noise two stage pump with at least 2-3CFM, and one that can pull at least 25"Hg vacuum, what I learned from you ;-)