Cutting Acrylic

[yachtorion]

I've got two sheets of 10mm tinted acrylic to make new windows for my Horizon.

Anyone got tips for cutting, bevelling it reasonably well please?

I'm thinking router?

How about drilling?

 

[Otter]

I used a jigsaw with a very good quality blade and got a nice finish. They were inset so no bevelling but could you use a detail sander?

 

[prv]

Router worked well on the polycarbonate for my washboards. Jigsaw tended to melt it, leaving a rough edge and sometimes actually sealing the cut up again behind the blade. Admittedly the blade was probably a bit blunt.

Pete

 

[Rick_A]

I used a grinder with a thin metal cutting blade.

 

[pappaecho]

The problem with cutting acrylic is the heat build up which causes stress cracking. I used to make solar panels using acrylic sheet, which we cut with an unset circular saw blade. If you use a jigsaw use the slowest speed and if you can get an unset blade use it. Similar for a reciprocating saw

 

[geem]

We have made a total of 16 windows for our yacht plus washboards. We used a jigsaw with the correct blade. No heat build up or melting. I cut them out slightly over sized (about a mm or 2) then used a belt sander with 60 grit paper. An electric plane is also pretty useful for getting perfect straight edges. You can bevel very well with the plane then gentle sanding with coarse paper to fully round. A perfect finish is not hard with the correct gear

 

[Rigger Mortice]

If you use a jigsaw use the slowest speed and if you can get an unset blade use it.

I'll second that. Bosch make unset blades for cutting plastic and they are excellent; no overheating and a cut finish which needs very little to clean up. The only problem with a jigsaw is how to get a really straight edge and, for that reason, I prefer to use a router.

 

[mrplastic]

You do need to be careful when cutting acrylic as it stresses very easily and you could get latent stress cracks appear well after you install. Any and all machining processes will cause the material to stress. You don't say if the sheets you have are extruded or cast, cast is preferable as it is much less stressed to begin with and will cut and finish much more easily. You can de-stress after machining it by annealing it but it is unlikely that you will have a large enough oven if your windows are large. This is my industry and I have several large format CNC routers and Laser cutters, if you are local to Suffolk I may be able to help you out. Drop me a pm.

 

[wazza]

After cracking my acrylic years ago when using a saw to cut it I moved on to an angle grinder, brilliant...
Use a stainless cutting disk..

 

[nigelmercier]

Bosch make unset blades for cutting plastic and they are excellent; no overheating and a cut finish which needs very little to clean up...

These are made for Acrylic: http://bit.ly/BoschT102BF

See: http://www.boschtools.com/Products/Accessories/Pages/BoschAccessoryDetail.aspx?pid=T102BF

 

[alahol2]

How about drilling?

Use a standard drill but blunt the cutting edges with a file or a touch on a grinding wheel. Use a slow drill speed. Drill holes oversize to allow for differential expansion.

Some ideas here... http://www.troppo.co.uk/odds/Flying%20Fox%20Windows.pdf

 

[yachtorion]

Jigsaw with laminate blades, router with normal radius bit, and an HSS drill on slow turned out to work brilliantly!