The Vac-u-form, was a toy invented by

Eddy Goldfarb Eddy Goldfarb (born Adolph Goldfarb; September 5, 1921) is an American toy inventor. The creator of over 800 toys, he is best known for inventing Yakity Yak Talking Teeth, Battling Tops, KerPlunk, Stompers, and Vac-U-Form. He is the subject of ...

and released by

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational corporation, multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company headquartered in El Segundo, California. Founded in Los Angeles by Harold Matson and the husband-and-wife duo of Ruth Handler, ...

in the 1960s around 1961 with the trademark filed on October 8, 1962. Based on the industrial process of

vacuum forming Vacuum forming is a simplified version of thermoforming, where a sheet of plastic in various forms of High Impact Polystyrene Sheet (HIPS) for low impact products, or ABS for bathroom shower trays, and HDPE for exterior vehicle parts, plus vari ...

, a rectangular piece of plastic was clamped in a holder and heated over a metal plate. When the plastic was soft, the holder was swung to the other side, over a mold of the object to be formed. Then quickly and repeatedly pressing down on a spring-loaded handle on the side of the unit created a vacuum, sucking the plastic down over the mold and shaping it to fit. When the plastic cooled it solidified, creating an impression of the item. Various molds came with the kit. Several expansion kits were also available for molding various other shapes. In actual use almost any small object that could withstand the temperature of the heated plastic sheet for a few seconds could be used as a mold. Plastic refill sheets came in a variety of colors. Mattel's VAC-U-FORM toy is well made and many are still in use today both as a toy and for small size part production in conjunction with other hobbies such as making R/C aircraft cowlings and other parts. Because very hot surfaces were easily accessible to a child (or adult) playing with the toy, it probably could not be sold today due to safety restrictions. ToyMax (Cedarhurst, NY) produced a similar product called the "VAC-U-FORMER" in the early 1990s with the trademark filed on April 24, 1992. The ToyMax product is similar in concept to the Mattel product. In an attempt to conform to more modern safety concerns of the period several product changes were incorporated to improve safety over the Mattel product. The hotplate was replaced with a light bulb in style similar to an

Easy-Bake Oven The Easy-Bake Oven is a working toy oven introduced in 1963 and manufactured by Kenner and later by Hasbro. The original toy used a pair of ordinary incandescent light bulbs as a heat source; current versions use a true heating element. Kenner ...

. The mold and forming area were covered so the hot plastic was protected from direct contact during the molding and cooling stages. Both the Mattel and ToyMax products, as well as refill plastic sheets, can easily be found on

eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...

and

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...

, as well as other vintage toy web sites.

References

External links

* * Art and craft toys 1960s toys Mattel {{toy-stub