Making a Plastic Press

In another post I showed how to use a tortilla press to compress melted HDPE plastic in flat disks to use for making things. I made a bit more elaborate press to get bigger pieces while keeping them flat and as thin as possible, between 1/8 - 1/4 inch. The key ingredient is a bottle jack.

The melted plastic is inserted between the laminated boards in the bottom.

I had to secure a metal bar under the press boards. I drilled holes in the bar to run the carriage bolts through it. The carriage bolts have a square section under the cap so I used a hacksaw to cut across the holes, then push the carriage bolts through so they go in flush with the holes.

With this press I can make disks up to 8 inches and very flat!