What's the best way to cut plexiglass? And drill it? I have a big ass piece and want to make a custom wind jammer for the cruiser. But I was told if I cut it, it will crack. Is that true?

HELP!!

:D:D:D

I have used a vertical band saw to cut acrilic. You may want to try a jig saw or band saw.....not sure though.

Run some masking tape on both sides of the plastic where you want to cut it.

This keeps the foot of the saw from scrathing the plastic as well as loweres the chance of cracking.

use a blad with a high tooth count.

Always had good lock with a jig saw, or hack saw blade.
I recommend laying down masking tape if it doesnt already have the paper/poly wrap on it. Do all the cuts, remove tape/paper and then finish edges with light sand paper - careful not to scratch the glass.
To make it look the best take a flame (propane or any torch) and quickly wave it over your cut and sanded edge, this will smooth and brighten it.
your done.

I used an ordinary foxtail saw (for wood) to cut plexi once. No problem with cracks, but that plexi was almost 1/2" thick though...

its a bitch, I tried several way slast year when cutting a hole in teh sied of my greenhouse ( 10 feet int eh hair hanging upside down)

the jigsaw vibrated like hell and the entire sheet was bouncing around, I ended up using a die grinder and a carbide rotary bit, like butter. but hard to keep a straight line.

you need a sturdy straight edge, score it with a linoleum knife, break over a couple of dowels..... easy ( they do sell " special " plastic cutting knives but as long as it's not too sharp it won't tend to wander)

Oh wait a minute this sounds like a job for that rotozip tool:D

i use a Jig saw and a fine tooth blade

HAHAHA That's what my wife said. To which I responded, "How come I didn't one for christmas then?" ;) :laughing:

Originally posted by Rocktoad
Oh wait a minute this sounds like a job for that rotozip tool:D

I have cut plexiglass with a table saw. get a FINE tooth blade. it works great. just go REALLY slow. duct tape on either side would be a good idea too. more strength than masking tape.

What else i just thought of, Tap Plasctic's uses Table saws and Jig saws as well to cut thiers

Been a while since I made anything out of plexiglass, but definately use a high tooth count, don't cut too fast.

For drilling, use a press. Go slow and don't use too much pressure, you'll crack it.

Used to make custom rat cages for psych lab in college.

you want to scratch the material away rather than cut it away so use the dullest bits you have

Thick stuff you can use a fine tooth blade on and cut it, thin stuff I have had better luck with the green 3M thin cutoff wheels. Where gloves and goggles. That plastic is hot!!!

I've had luck with a Dremmel tool and cutting discs

anyone tried a router like they use for arborite counter tops?

Ive cut hundreds of feet of the crap using a table saw with a fine tooth carbide blade

I've seen my grandpa put an old dull table saw blade into the saw so that it ran backwards. He used it to cut sheet metal, that was cool, but I think that it could work for plastic too. :)

I've cut plexiglass in every way shape and form. The best is a 60 to 80 tooth blade. The trick is reverse your blade, weather on a table saw or in a circular or wormdrive saw. With the blade in backwards the teeth don't chip out the edges so much. It generates higher heat and melts the plexy as it cuts. If you need to use a jig-saw use the fine STRAIGT tooth at lower speeds. If you have the rpm's up too high as you cut, the two edges will melt back together as you travel down your line. This happens because the blade is so thin.

Maddog hit the nail on the head. It isn't steel don't force.
I cut it with a Jig Saw with high tooth count and pretty slow speed. Go real slow and let the blade do the work and you won't have a problem with cracks. Same with drilling sharp drill, slow speed and very light pressure.

If you have alot of holes to drill- you might consider getting a plexi bit from your local plastics house. The bit have a different angle bevel on the tip- more pointy. Regular bits act like a wedge and crack the plex when cutting plex.
You could also grind one you have- I've done that in a pinch

Originally posted by Johann
If you have alot of holes to drill- you might consider getting a plexi bit from your local plastics house. The bit have a different angle bevel on the tip- more pointy. Regular bits act like a wedge and crack the plex when cutting plex.
You could also grind one you have- I've done that in a pinch

I've used the bits they sell at Tap Plastics and they work great.

plasma cutter

MAddog has it right. You can also use a plywood blade in a skill or table saw, the key is to put the blade on backwards.
-Jeremy

Jig saw with fine tooth blade for curves, slow speed. For straight cuts use a table saw with a plywood panel blade.
Clean the edges with a dull flat bladed object, like the back of a butter knife, right after you make the cut. You can further clean up the edges with a fine toothed file, or sandpaper. If you want to go all out you can use a buffing wheel and polish the edges like glass. Used to make custom cabinets out of plexiglass for a Museum. It can be a challenge to work with, and expensive......
Best plastic to get is Lexan, this stuff is indestructable, but its not cheap.........:skull:

Originally posted by ranger
Jig saw with fine tooth blade for curves, slow speed. For straight cuts use a table saw with a plywood panel blade.
Clean the edges with a dull flat bladed object, like the back of a butter knife, right after you make the cut. You can further clean up the edges with a fine toothed file, or sandpaper. If you want to go all out you can use a buffing wheel and polish the edges like glass. Used to make custom cabinets out of plexiglass for a Museum. It can be a challenge to work with, and expensive......
Best plastic to get is Lexan, this stuff is indestructable, but its not cheap.........:skull:

Thanks. I was gonna start a new thread, but oh well! :D

A 2-flute High Speed End Mill works very well for drilling holes in Lexan.

Another way to finish the edges of a plexi panel is to draw file them with a single cut file..... then go over them lightly with a propane torch...... this works kinda like polishing the edges without as much work.

Originally posted by GloNDark
HAHAHA That's what my wife said. To which I responded, "How come I didn't one for christmas then?" ;) :laughing:



ha, the rotozip didn't live upto its name in my case...try cutting VERY hard 1 1/2" fiberglass with it...yep I was going through those bits like ther was no tomorrow...although for this job it would prolly be ok...

Wow.... It's true....Everybody has an opinion...:eek:

I cut plastics for a living...
First of all you can use any wood cutting tools..
A table saw is the best for a long straight cut,and please MAKE SURE YOUR BITS AND BLADES ARE SHARP or you can shatter or fracture any plastic.....
The thinner the plastic the harder it will be to cut...anything below 1/8"thick will need a fine tooth count but the trouble with a lot of teeth is there will be a lot more heat from the friction and heat and plastic don't get a long unless your welding it.
Here is an example of what I would when cutting a 2'x2'x1/8" plexi,polycarbonate or or any other plastic.Polycarbonate would be better for what you are doing.

1.Make your purchase from an industrial plastics supplier or an all plastics store. These places will have a better variaty and there sheets will have a paper or a film backing to protect the surface from your tooling when fabbing.

2. With a table saw..... I would rip the the desired piece +1/4"...so I would set the fence at 24 1/4".
Make sure you have a good SHARP carbide tip saw blade in the table saw or what ever else you might use.....the more teeth the better for anything 1/8" or thinner....FEED IT REAL SLOW

With a jig Saw..... If you use a jig saw use a good one with an orbital blade adj. and make the cut along the straight edge of a work table as close to the cut as you can.Use a new all purpose jig saw blade and full orbit on the jig saw setting. AGAIN CUT SLOW and +1/4"

3. With a joinerJoiner set the joiner to 1/8" (make sure you set the fence to the sharpest part of the knifes) and trim each end to a smooth sharp edge.

with a router make a straight,true edge as long as your longest measurement(in my case 24 1/2") and at leased 2" wide.

With some double stick tape(carpet tape)stick the straight edge to your 24"cut lines (it's best if you draw this on the material and check it for square be for making the final size)
Now with a trim router and a flush bit with a top bearing,route each edge one at a time. If you only have a flush bit with a bottom bearing you can use a table router (or just bolt the router to the bottom of a work table) and push the plastic with the straight edge along the bearing.....
If you have any circles laying around you can tape them to the corners and rout them to a nice round shape. ;)

;) Can you tell it's early in the morning and I have nothing else to do..

4.Now with a good paint scraper you can break the sharp edges off each edge to avoid cutting the shit out of youself....this can also be achieved with a router and a 45* chanfer bit if you have at least 1/4" material.

5. Measure mark and drill your holes....the best bits are forsener bits(I think that's how it's spelled) It's a bit for boring holes in wood.You can also use a speed bore(spade bit).
don't use a steel or spiral bit because it will feed to fast and suck up the material only to break your work of art.
If you have a drill press use it but you can use a hand drill just go slow in either case.

Hope this helped.
-Kerry