# Vacuum chamber size question.



## jxdubbs (Sep 12, 2018)

I'm getting a vacuum chamber from TurnTex I know I'm getting the 4" round. I can afford the 14" or 16" tall. My question is what size is good. I've never stabilized before. I just don't want to get something to small or to big. Idk if it matters rather way.

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## Kenny Durrant (Sep 13, 2018)

This isn't the answer your looking for but it will give you something to think about. The logical thing is that the bigger the better. You can put a few blanks in a big container but you cant put a bunch in a small container. With that the bigger the chamber the more C.J. you will need to fill it up which can get pricey. A good way to offset that is marbles. If you have a lot of space you need to fill and don't have the juice or don't want to use that much fill it with marbles. You can wash and reuse them so they're a one time expense. So I guess you'll just have to make a judgment call on how much stabilizing you want to do.


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## MRDucks2 (Sep 13, 2018)

I do not have a large chamber, but neither do I typically do large batches. I find using plastic containers sized to the number of blanks I am stabilizing inside of the chamber minimizes CJ required and clean-up. 


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## jxdubbs (Sep 13, 2018)

Kenny Durrant said:


> This isn't the answer your looking for but it will give you something to think about. The logical thing is that the bigger the better. You can put a few blanks in a big container but you cant put a bunch in a small container. With that the bigger the chamber the more C.J. you will need to fill it up which can get pricey. A good way to offset that is marbles. If you have a lot of space you need to fill and don't have the juice or don't want to use that much fill it with marbles. You can wash and reuse them so they're a one time expense. So I guess you'll just have to make a judgment call on how much stabilizing you want to do.


Thanks Kenny... I would have never thought of marbles to fill it. That's such a terrific idea! I was probably thinking about half a gallon of c.j. to start.

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## jxdubbs (Sep 13, 2018)

MRDucks2 said:


> I do not have a large chamber, but neither do I typically do large batches. I find using plastic containers sized to the number of blanks I am stabilizing inside of the chamber minimizes CJ required and clean-up.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Penturners.org mobile app


I'd probably be only to put one container in at one time because of the diameter. Unless I can stack it. But I don't think stacking would work. 

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## MRDucks2 (Sep 13, 2018)

jxdubbs said:


> MRDucks2 said:
> 
> 
> > I do not have a large chamber, but neither do I typically do large batches. I find using plastic containers sized to the number of blanks I am stabilizing inside of the chamber minimizes CJ required and clean-up.
> ...





Here is what I was doing:
http://www.penturners.org/forum/f43/low-mess-stabilizing-small-pot-154724/


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## tomtedesco (Sep 13, 2018)

Which ever one you choose leave ample room on the top for bubbles.  DO NOT allow bubbles to enter your pump.


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## wolf creek knives (Sep 13, 2018)

jxdubbs said:


> I'm getting a vacuum chamber from TurnTex I know I'm getting the 4" round. I can afford the 14" or 16" tall. My question is what size is good. I've never stabilized before. I just don't want to get something to small or to big. Idk if it matters rather way.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk



I've got the 4" x 10" chamber and it works great for what I do.  I can stabilize enough blanks to keep me busy for some time.  I guess the real question comes down to how many blanks you plan to stabilize.  The last batch I did I got 13- 3/4" square pieces into the chamber and they all turned out nice.


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## Brian G (Sep 13, 2018)

As noted above, you can fit about 13-14 3/4" square blanks in the 4" diameter chamber.  If you want to double the number by stacking another set on top of the first, I suggest going with the 16".

The extra 2" of head space will be helpful because you need to make sure the stabilizing liquid is well above the top of the blanks, and that you have enough room for the bubbling liquid so it doesn't run into your pump.

I've had to disassemble and clean the innards of my pump twice.  Both times I thought I was being careful, but the cloudy oil in the window argued otherwise.  Now I'm extra careful.

You could also purchase or make your own inline "juice proof" trap.


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## greenacres2 (Sep 13, 2018)

I ended up at 6" x 16", and for most batches use a smaller container inside that.  Plastic jars are plentiful at Goodwill store for real cheap, and I still have the space to do a large batch if I need to.  
earl


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## Sprung (Sep 16, 2018)

Buy as big as you can afford - I've seen a lot of people start out with a small chamber and within a very short amount of time they're upgrading to something larger. You can always stabilize smaller batches in a larger chamber or put very small batches in a smaller container inside the larger chamber. But you can't stabilize larger pieces in a smaller chamber.


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## jxdubbs (Sep 16, 2018)

Brian G said:


> As noted above, you can fit about 13-14 3/4" square blanks in the 4" diameter chamber.  If you want to double the number by stacking another set on top of the first, I suggest going with the 16".
> 
> The extra 2" of head space will be helpful because you need to make sure the stabilizing liquid is well above the top of the blanks, and that you have enough room for the bubbling liquid so it doesn't run into your pump.
> 
> ...


I think I might look into that trap. That's for the suggestion! 

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## jxdubbs (Sep 16, 2018)

I ended up going with the 4"x16" thank you for helping me out. 

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