Thanks for the kind comments. I hope that some good discussion will result from this post that will give more modelers the confidence to try vac-forming. It is really simple and has a great many applications for scale modeling.

1. Yes I have done clear parts and they are a bit more involved. The plug has to be much, much better for doing clear parts as any imperfections are readily visible in a clear part. There was an article in RCM on a method for doing clear parts that I have not tried but I want to. I will give it a shot and do another post on it as time permits.

2. Yes again. Probably 90 percent of what I do needs to have a "pedestal" of some type to block the part up off of the forming bed. I will try and post some pics of some of my plugs in the next day or two showing this.

3. Occasionally I do lubricate the plug, usually with vegetable oil or similar. A very thin layer is all that is necessary. Mostly it depends on what the plug is made from and what kind of plastic is being formed. Some of the plastics are more "sticky" than others. I try to make my plugs from materials that do not need any type of finish as the plastic is very prone to sticking to any type of paint or primer. You cannot use lubricant with clear parts at all as it creates imperfections that will show up (even though they are invisible on opaque parts). Honestly, I have not tried too many different types of lubricant so there may be some that I'm unaware of. For example, I've not yet tried mold release or wax but I have some on hand and may run some expirements.

I will post back with another quick explanation of what materials I have found best for making molds in the next few days. Thanks again for the kind comments and best regards, Chad.