Brayle
I have done 1/8" before. It may take a few tries to get everything right.
Otherwise, like Baking says, You can bend PVC pipe by filling it with something and heating it uniformly in the area of the bend. I have used sand before for this.
If you feel ambitious and don't want to spend...
Depending whether or not you have access to a cnc, you should be able to build a wooden vaccum form mold for under $5000. Possibly as low as $1000. if you are willing to put in some of your own effort.
The 2 halves would be vaccum formed, then you would need to use a saw and router to remove the...
I don't know how much I can help you with strategy, but I am always looking for shops to build molds for me. I am in the fast paced world of prototype molds.
Most of the tooling is low cost inserts. Part sizes are usually under 4" square.
My site is www.prototypemold.com if you want more...
Are you looking into:
Blow Molding?
Vaccum Forming?
Roto-Molding?
or Injection Molding?
This is what I do for a living.
The equipment and the molds are not cheap. Do you have your own product line in mind, or molding for other customers?
Resins are many, but some of the most popular are...
I store steel molds for years using rust preventative from Northern Supply 1-800-365-6565
You can get short term or long term rust protection.
Crown brand or Slide brand can be found here.
Good luck.
I do prototypes, and what we usually do is get a buffing wheel and maybe some buffing compound. You can get a nice smooth part quite quickly.
Good luck.
Try Kannametal
I have used their speeds and feeds charts for years. I no longer do the machining, now I make plastic prototypes, so it has been a while since I have used their handy slide rule charts. They worked great for me. Remember that NO MATTER where you get the information, it is always...