New to electronics. Toaster Oven disassembly question

[E-Ren89]

I have little to no experience with electronics. However I would like that to change. I have a love of building and making things.
My newest project is to make a Vacuum Forming Machine. A tutorial I found through instructables.com shows how to make one using the heating components of an old toaster oven.

As you can see in the photos, I have disassembled this old Toastmaster Toaster oven. However I am not sure how to continue on. I do not want to break anything. I have to get the four rods out along with any wires needed to transfer to the oven box of what I am making. I was hoping you guys can help me out and guide me through the necessary steps? I believe it is a simple task even a beginner with no prior knowledge or experience can take on, I just need to be shown what to do.

Thanks

 

[E-Ren89]

As far as what it should look like, here are reference photos I am following from the instructions. This is how they should be installed in the box. Here is one of the box and then with the elements inside after

 

[dknguyen]

Depending on how much of the controls you are building, all you might need are the heating elements themselves. Do you need the temperature controls or timer on the oven? Or will you provide you own (i.e. you have a different relay and temperature sensor in your end design, as well as a timer or you don't need the timer at all).

Need clearer photo of the front panel's dials, but it looks like the top dial is a timer and the bottom one is the temperature. If this is true, and you don't need the timer you can just remove everything connected to the top dial and connect where the two brass bars connect to the bottom knob with large wire.

You may also need to look at how the door mechanism (the one that shuts the oven off when the door is open) works and bypass it.

Not sure what the toaster slider does but just remove it and fix the other end into the way you want everything to be at permanently.

 

[E-Ren89]

Well since I wont need to adjust the temperature like cooking, I was thinking maybe just a simple on off switch. I don't know if I want to keep these dials from the toaster oven. However I am not sure how to go about that whole thing as well given my lack of experience.

 

[dknguyen]

Well since I wont need to adjust the temperature like cooking, I was thinking maybe just a simple on off switch. I don't know if I want to keep these dials from the toaster oven. However I am not sure how to go about that whole thing as well given my lack of experience.View attachment 110049

Hmmm, I'm under the impression you don't know how ovens heating works. So I'll just explain it first and you come back telling me what it is you want. A regular toaster oven always has it's heating elements at full-blast or off and just turns off whenever the temperature gets too high and turns on whenever the temperature gets too low.

There's no "always-on but at a temperature X% of maximum temperature" unless you have a really fancy oven. With just an on/off switch your oven is going to get real hot, unless you actually do need it that hot.

Answer me a question because never use the function on my oven, but what does the bottom knob actually do? Or the bagel button for that matter.

 

[E-Ren89]

I honestly don't know about those other knobs hah. I was just simply given this oven. But as far as how vacuum form machines work, is you heat a sheet of plastic in a sandwich style frame and when it starts to sag (you learn the right amount by trial and error) you drop it onto the platen that holds the form, while simultaneously opening up the valve to the vacuum. The heating phase takes maybe a minute at full blast so no temperature control is needed. It's pretty simple. So that is why I do not necessarily need it to adjust the temperature or control it in any way.

 

[Mickster]

I have no prior knowledge of vacuum forming, so I looked it up.
Unless you are doing something different than the process shown in this Youtube video:

...is there any specialist requirement to modify the toaster oven you currently have (top & bottom elements), to all top elements/bottom elements, as is shown in your 2nd post?

 

[dknguyen]

I honestly don't know about those other knobs hah. I was just simply given this oven. But as far as how vacuum form machines work, is you heat a sheet of plastic in a sandwich style frame and when it starts to sag (you learn the right amount by trial and error) you drop it onto the platen that holds the form, while simultaneously opening up the valve to the vacuum. The heating phase takes maybe a minute at full blast so no temperature control is needed. It's pretty simple. So that is why I do not necessarily need it to adjust the temperature or control it in any way.

If that's the case you can just take the heating elements and leave everything else behind. Keep the wires on the heating elements though...they have high temperature connections that you don't want to have to redo if you don't have to (crimping or special high-temperature solder). Just try and see if they're wired in series or parallel with each other when you take them out, though you can probably figure this out later if you forgot to check the first time around.

 

[E-Ren89]

I did manage to get all the pieces out. I am trying to determine my next step. How I will swap out the dials for a different switch. Seeing as I have no knowledge of that and with so many cables it is pretty intimidating for me even though it may actually be a very easy task. Though that is why I chose to reach out with this thread.

 

[dknguyen]

If you don't need temperature control you should be able to just cut the wires off and wire them to your own switch. There shouldn't be anything special about those heating elements. Run 120VAC straight through them and they get hot at maximum heat. Just remember how the heating elements are wired in series and parallel with each other. Watch the shock hazard.