I'll try to get few pictures to describe the vacuum seeder I made from white 1/2"PVC. I have a few different wands that I made to conform to different cell pack trays, the most popular for me is the 12x24 cell pack (wand has 12 pipette tips glued into a 1/2" PVC pipe). The wands aren't hard to make.. just lay the PVC over one tray and use a sharpie,etc. to mark the PVC piece at the center of each cell in the row( a carpenter would probably measure). Then also mark a straight line along the PVC length so all your holes will be in a straight line. Drill holes at the intersecting marks with a drill bit that will allow plastic pipette tips to fit snugly into the holes. Before gluing the pipette tips into the holes snip the ends off each tip to correspond to seed diameter(but keep in mind that you only want a single seed to suck fast to the opening surface). I also drill a 5/8" hole into the one end of the PVC on the opposite side as the pipette holes. This is the vacuum release hole that you place your thumb over to draw seeds and release to drop seeds into the cells. The far end of the PVC should be fitted with a PVC cap; the handle end will have a "T" fitting with a valve to regulate vacuum and reducers to a barbed hose fitting.I don't glue any of these fittings so it can be pulled apart easily. You can use any length of hose leading to the vacuum pump. I'd also recommend a filter on th pump just in case a few seeds or dirt get in the line.

You can draw seeds from a folded cardboard but a PVC trough with a stand to stradle your tray works best. This is a bit more dangerous to make because it involves cutting a piece of PVC pipe lenghtwise twice to form a trough. I use a cordless reciprocating saw for all the cutting. After culling a 5/8" wide slit the entire length of the pipe, fit each end with a PVC elbow (stuffed with paper towel), a short piece of PVC and a PVC "T". The "T" is the base stand for the seed holder.

The seeding operation fairly simple. You dump seeds into the trough and position it over the end of the first row of cells in the flat(it acts as a position marker too). Turn on the vacuum pump and with your thumb over the handle hole gently move the wand tips around the seeds so each tip has a seed sucked fast. Raise the wand to oner the first row of cells and release the vacuum with your thumb to drop the seeds. If the seeds don't release readily you may need to regulate the line vacuum by opening the valve a little on the line "T" fitting. Slide the trough over that row of cells and repeat the step for the next row. If your seed numbers in the trough get low you may need to either shke the tray a little or move the wand back and forth a little to make sure each tip has a seed. My biggest problem is that too often two or even three seeds may have sucked to a few tips. I used to go over the filled trays with a tweezers to remove extra seeds but that step defeats the purpose of saving time with the vacuum seeder. You can easily cull the duplicate plants after they germinate. I usually can seed a
12x24 cell flat in 5 minutes or less. Once you sow all of one seed type pull the elbow off the end of the trough and slide extra seeds back into the seed bag.

I'll try to get pictures in a few days. I also should mention that I purchased everything except the vacuum pump and pipette tips at Lowes. The vacuum pump I had purchased a while back on Ebay, The pipette tips are discards from my work. You should be able to get them from any laboratory supply catalog.

Thanks so much for the info...I'm going to give it a try...Will also look for a vacuum pump on ebay...Thanks again!

google the words "Gro-Mor Wand Seeder " click on www.hummert.com (I think) - they have a picture of it.
1-800-325-3055 in st louis, mo
( WWW.GROWORGANIC.COM has a GLASER hand seeder$100- from Werner Glaser Mfg Co in Switzerland that is a hand operated "automatic" )
The manufacturer is listed in Elliott Colemans book New Organic Grower as:
pro grow supply corp, brookfield WI
1-800-331-0590 (www,progrow-supply.com ) but I could not find it on their website- just looked; they were closed for the day when i called.

I AM LOOKING FOR ANY AND ALL HAND SEEDERS
heirloomketchup@aol.com