Chris Christenberry Posted January 2, 2021 Share Posted January 2, 2021 It's been almost a year since I tried to stabilize anything in Cactus Juice. Started a new knife recently and dried my handle material for 48 hours. Put it in the Cactus Juice after it cooled and turned on my vacuum pump............which immediately smoked!!!!! I'm tearing it down to see what happened, but I think the shaft of the pump is frozen. Rusted tight, I think. When I started taking it apart, the oil had a lot of water in it..............which shouldn't be there, obviously. Here I am with wood in stabilizer and no pump! Any suggestions? Is there such a thing as an inexpensive vacuum pump? I know older refrigerators had pumps in them but I couldn't find one when I first started this journey. I inherited this pump when my Dad died. (used in his jewelry business) A vacuum pump is obviously not going to get a lot of use in my shop so I don't need a $500 one. I doubt I'll be making more than 10 knives a year, at most. Can anyone recommend an inexpensive pump that will stabilize these knife blanks. Chris www.chrischristenberry.com WHEW!!! If I could only know now what I "thought" I knew back then.................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Middleton Posted January 3, 2021 Share Posted January 3, 2021 I've used two salvaged pumps. One from a refrigerator, and one from a dehumidifier. The refrigerator pump has worked much better for me. It doesn't seem to overheat unless there is a vacuum leak in the chamber. I've looked at buying a purpose built unit, but I just can't justify the cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragoncutlery Posted January 3, 2021 Share Posted January 3, 2021 If its a vain type there pretty hard to kill if you have any issues taking it apart or puting it back together curtis at turn tex can probably walk you threw it also 48 hours might be enough to dry some woods but i have what i thought would be a quick dry maple and im on day 3 in the oven i run it for 8 hours then weight it on a scale wright down the weight on the wood and back in again and basicaly check it when i get up when i get home for work ect untill the weight stops chainging then cool in a plastic baggie so it doesnt pick up moisture from the air wich it will to some extent even in the bag one of my concerns is cactus juice has a 1 year shelf life once mixed some times it goes over but i would run a test before devoting quality wood to a possible expired product curtis has all this info and more on his website and has from time to time offerd rebuilt pumps on the site as well Brandon Sawisch bladesmith eagles may soar but weasels don't get sucked in to jet engines Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragoncutlery Posted January 3, 2021 Share Posted January 3, 2021 Another tip if you dont need a full stabilise say more of for color or what have you a good soak can get enough juice in to help with the way the wood finishes and get the color all the way to the core some woods are faster than others at uptake so proceed with caution but no pump doesnt exactly mean the woods a wash Brandon Sawisch bladesmith eagles may soar but weasels don't get sucked in to jet engines Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Christenberry Posted January 3, 2021 Author Share Posted January 3, 2021 Thanks, guys. Chris www.chrischristenberry.com WHEW!!! If I could only know now what I "thought" I knew back then.................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Carter Posted January 3, 2021 Share Posted January 3, 2021 I too repurpose refrigerator pumps. They work good. I currently have one from an old A/C unit that I use to evacuate the A/C systems in my cars when I fix them. The A/C unit pump is twice the size and weight of a refrigerator pump so I wouldn't go after one of those unless it's all that is available. Surely there's got to be someone local getting rid of an old refrigerator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Christenberry Posted January 3, 2021 Author Share Posted January 3, 2021 I got home from church today and tore the pump down to the last piece. Even though the motor "smoked", I turned it off fast enough that it doesn't seem to be affected. Shaft turns easily by hand and when switched on it runs like a champ. WHEW! The vanes were rusted into their slots. Have no idea how moisture got into the pump oil, but rust proves it was there. I tore up a gasket getting it apart, so that's another thing I'll have to address before I get it back together. Also, there's a spring that holds a seal on the shaft that's broken. Not sure I'll be able to replace that. This is an old pump and when I took it in a couple of years ago, no-one would work on it. One thing that bothers me..........................Bolts are supposed to be tightened............at least that's my take on them. When I tighten all the bolts down on the pump body, the shaft won't turn. Can't figure out why that is. If I loosen the bolts just a bit I can turn the shaft. Have tried moving the body of the pump around to see if the shaft is in a bind, but can't seem to find the key to the problem. This is a nice double-vane pump...........actually 4 vanes, 2 on each side of the shaft. Hate to not be able to use it. But I'll keep my eyes open for a refrigerator pump. Chris www.chrischristenberry.com WHEW!!! If I could only know now what I "thought" I knew back then.................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Myers Posted January 4, 2021 Share Posted January 4, 2021 If you have one near you, harbour freight has a couple of models. You do take your chances with that store, but they will usually exchange or refund with a minimum of fuss Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragoncutlery Posted January 4, 2021 Share Posted January 4, 2021 If you can figure a meshurment from the spring mcmaster carr prolly has something close as for the binding i would shoot an email to curtis at turn tex with the make a model he might have a tip for assembly Brandon Sawisch bladesmith eagles may soar but weasels don't get sucked in to jet engines Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kreg Whitehead Posted January 4, 2021 Share Posted January 4, 2021 (edited) I have been using minwax wood hardener and "canning" them in mason jars. I can tell its penetrating because I can watch the liquid level go down over the course of a week. Edit.....note the wood hardener starts to boil way before the water. I guess you would call it boil....it starts micro bubble like crazy. Can hear the vacuum when I pop the lid. Edited January 4, 2021 by Kreg Whitehead Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C Craft Posted January 4, 2021 Share Posted January 4, 2021 On 1/2/2021 at 8:13 PM, Alex Middleton said: I've used two salvaged pumps. One from a refrigerator, and one from a dehumidifier. The refrigerator pump has worked much better for me. It doesn't seem to overheat unless there is a vacuum leak in the chamber. I've looked at buying a purpose built unit, but I just can't justify the cost. On 1/3/2021 at 10:39 AM, Paul Carter said: I too repurpose refrigerator pumps. They work good. I currently have one from an old A/C unit that I use to evacuate the A/C systems in my cars when I fix them. The A/C unit pump is twice the size and weight of a refrigerator pump so I wouldn't go after one of those unless it's all that is available. Surely there's got to be someone local getting rid of an old refrigerator. I have thought about this before using a salvage pump but I have questions!! Most of the time you have an old AC or refrigerator go bad it is the compressor. So how do you know if you have a good one?? So I have to ask how do you salvage old compressor pumps to use as a vacuum pump?? Anyone have a tutorial on salvaging an old compressor pump?? 1 C Craft Customs ~~~ With every custom knife I build I try to accomplish three things. I want that knife to look so good you just have to pick it up, feel so good in your hand you can't wait to try it, and once you use it, you never want to put it down ! If I capture those three factors in each knife I build, I am assured the knife will become a piece that is used and treasured by its owner! ~~~ C Craft Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Christenberry Posted January 4, 2021 Author Share Posted January 4, 2021 Okay.................I'm sure everyone has been waiting on pins and needles to find out what happened with my pump. So I tore it all the way down, cleaned all the rust out of it and had to make a new gasket for the oil reservoir. Buttoned it all up and it's working like a champ. Pretty proud of myself because I've never been inside a vacuum pump before.................or at least one this small. (The one at my manufacturing company had a 36" cast iron flywheel and two cylinder pistons that were about 5" in diameter. The storage tank on it was 250 gallon.) Anyway, my little one is up and running and sucking the air out of the blank like crazy. I'm back in business! You can go back to your regular programing now. 1 Chris www.chrischristenberry.com WHEW!!! If I could only know now what I "thought" I knew back then.................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Christenberry Posted January 4, 2021 Author Share Posted January 4, 2021 9 minutes ago, C Craft said: Anyone have a tutorial on salvaging an old compressor pump?? Cut the copper tubing and cut the wires. Oh yea, ya have to unbolt it from the fridge. I used to salvage them from every refrigerator I saw laying by the road. Had 10 of 'em at one point, but tossed them when I was cleaning out a bunch of junk one time. Chris www.chrischristenberry.com WHEW!!! If I could only know now what I "thought" I knew back then.................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C Craft Posted January 4, 2021 Share Posted January 4, 2021 5 minutes ago, Chris Christenberry said: Cut the copper tubing and cut the wires. Oh yea, ya have to unbolt it from the fridge. I used to salvage them from every refrigerator I saw laying by the road. Had 10 of 'em at one point, but tossed them when I was cleaning out a bunch of junk one time. How do you know you have a good one?? Is it just a matter of plugging it in and if it comes on it is winner?? C Craft Customs ~~~ With every custom knife I build I try to accomplish three things. I want that knife to look so good you just have to pick it up, feel so good in your hand you can't wait to try it, and once you use it, you never want to put it down ! If I capture those three factors in each knife I build, I am assured the knife will become a piece that is used and treasured by its owner! ~~~ C Craft Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Middleton Posted January 4, 2021 Share Posted January 4, 2021 Pretty much. As you're taking it apart pay attention to the wiring. The little one hat I salvaged from the dehumidifier had a separate start capacitor that I had to wire in to get it to fire up. Also, it's kind of a crapshoot as to which side is the draw, and which side is the exhaust. You just have to plug it in to find out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Christenberry Posted January 5, 2021 Author Share Posted January 5, 2021 Alex is spot on. Fire it up and if it sucks it's working. Simple, actually. Chris www.chrischristenberry.com WHEW!!! If I could only know now what I "thought" I knew back then.................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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