Resources:

• GE Polymershapes
  GE Polymershapes merged Cadillac Plastic, Commercial Plastics and GE together. Whether they sell to individuals is unclear but at least the site serves as a handy reference guide for plastic materials.
• TAP Plastics
  With many branches in northern california, TAP is a convenient place to visit when you need the odd size piece right away.
• Caswell Plating Supplies (313) 597-5140
  In addition to a complete line of hobby metal plating supplies, Caswell also sells an extensive line of buffing and polishing supplies.
• The Prop Builder's Molding and Casting Handbook, Thurston James
  Available at Douglass and Sturgess (see Casting urethane resin), this book covers many different casting materials and techniques. Intended as a comprehensive guide for stage props, it also includes a section on vacuum-forming and construction of a vacuum-forming station.
• How To Build Your Own Stormtrooper
  Jeff used techniques similar to ours to construct his stormtroopers. In his site, he presents a comprehensive tutorial on vacuforming--including constructing your own vacuforming platform.

Specialized Tools:

• Hot Box
  Industrial vacformers cost many thousands of dollars but you can build your own for a lot less. Coiled nichrome wire like those used in electric dryers serve as the heating element. You will need a 220v connection and proper care should be exercised when building your own high power electrical device.
• Vacforming Bed
  A raised wooden platform covered in foam rubber with a hole in the center connected to a shop vac. The more powerful the shop vac the tighter a pull you can get. Filling the shop vac with bricks to minimize empty space will improve the draw.
• Vacuum Pump
  If you already have a vacuum pump to evacuate silicon rubber (see Casting urethane resin) you can make it serve double duty in your vacforming setup as well. Most vacuum pumps don't have the throughput to connect directly to a vacforming bed. Connect it to a 30- or 60-gallon air tank instead; while the plastic is heating up on the hot box the vacuum pump can evacuate the air tank. Then when the part's ready to pull use the air tank as your suction source.

Both the X-Wing and Tie Fighter helmets pictured started life as flat sheets of styrene plastic. They were heated and vacuum-formed over an ultracal mold to the shapes you now see. While prototyping and cleaning the molds requires many hours of labor, once the molds are finished the individual pieces don't take as long to produce. The X-Wing helmet was painted while the Tie Fighter helmet was buffed to the high lustre shown.