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Quote:
Originally Posted by qoou
awesome. perhaps you can try cutting it with diffrent tools and post the results on what left a better edge what tool you used how to clean up the edges. something on bending it would be kool too. would sort of fit this thred. hope its not too small. dont burn yourself in the process ok dude. safety first.
i just got a new carbide cutter for my dremel that ive been dieing to try out.
http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/f...?t=2145&page=2Quote:
Originally Posted by Cannibal23
My work log shows a bit of cutting, bending, and flame polishing (watch the video). A guide is coming to my site, www.powerpackedpc.com, very shortly. I have a lot of professional acrylics experience so if you have any questions I can help you with that, I can be your insider, lol.
sweet!
This is a great tutorial everyone, learned alot from reading it. I did my first experimenting with plexi this weekend and I just sort of walked in blind, I wasn't aware of this tutorial yet. Anyway, I found it was quite easy to work with and has limitless possibilities. I thought I would share with you how I cut mine and also raise some questions I have. First off, I forget what names you were using for which tools ( I am sure you are using the correct terms, I just get mixed up) but I use what I call a jig-saw (the one with the thin, reciprocating blade which was pictured earlier) for cutting many wood types. I use the scroll saw (hand held version of a jig-saw-is my terminology correct?) also for many woods. But for plex, I preferred the band saw for open edge cuts (we have a metal cutting blade on, an old one that doesn't matter if it gets ruined so I can cut anything with it), but found for enclosed circular cuts especially small ones, the coping saw was perfect. It's a little old school and if you haven't seen one, this is what it looks like:
The blade is about half as thick as a hack saw and the depth is usually quite shallow (my blade is maybe 2mm tops). I used it to cut I/O ports on a custom plate for the rear panel of my media center by drilling small holes and you detach the blade at one end, feed it through the hole and re-attach then you're ready to go. If doing fine, close, tiny cuts and are not comfortable using a dremel for fear of over cutting I would say this is a great option. Here is my plate:
For fine tuning even beyond the coping saw, I just used typical metal files:
Now for some questions to the plexi-pros:
I wanted to know first off, if I only have clear plexi but wanted to tint it, is there an easy way of doing this? My only thoughts were colored magic marker (not likely to look spectacular), some type of thin paint, window tinting (limited colors range and I hear it doesn't stick), or glueing on a colored transparency. Any ideas on how I could do this without buying colored plexi?
Also, if you are etching on plexi and lets say drawing a letter in a word, do your grooves need to be square with the surface to look right? Or can the be concave with the surface and still look ok?
Lastly, where can you buy large sheets of it? I think i looked at lowes and Home Depot and neither had it, I had to get some from tybrennis online. But if I needed a large sheet, the shipping would be way too much?
Thanks a bunch all!
Hey,Quote:
Originally Posted by jdbnsn
Magic marker will leave marker lines and look like crap. Paint is very hard to get to stick to acrylic, especially if you can't rough up the surface, since you are trying to mantain transparency. I have heard of people using window tinting, but this is not very efficient, you are limited to only what you can fit into your kitchen pot, and is hard to come by (or atleast is for me). If you are just making a case window or something, you could use a tinted film and glue it beyond the window, so the glue isn't visible.
Honestly, the easiest and probably cheapest way to get colored plexi is to just buy it as such. Here are some good suppliers I have had success with in the past:
http://www.tapplastics.com/
http://www.mcmaster.com/
http://www.delviesplastics.com/
I don't know how big of a sheet you want, but if it is too big to be UPSed, it will have to go freight, which is pricey unless buying in bulk. I personally recomend going to google maps and trying to find some plastics suppliers in your area, sign shops and fabricators usually will give away scraps or sell them very cheaply, become a regular there and they will gladly cut all your acrylic or give you some scraps.
www.maps.google.com
Type in "plastics your-city-here" or something of the sort.
Good luck.
That's a great idea, thanks again Tybrenis!
Jon
Glad I could help.
Or you can do it the TribalOverkill (look at the first few pages of Blackout) way and go to an autoparts dealer and get some adhesive window tint. Its a film that you apply and then sticks to the window. Its the same thing I'm using for my mod and hopefully will work :D
We had discussed this earlier and there is some question as to how well it sticks. Please let me know how it works for you because if it works good, I may go this route too. Thanks!Quote:
Originally Posted by Aero
Jon
