How easy is it to work with acrylic?

[Quandary]

Steve, How thick is the stuff you plan to cut? Windows can be anything from 6-10 mm. depending on size but Lewmar hatches (that can be walked on) are 10 or 12, there is considerable difference in the resistance. Most mains jigsaws wil cope, you will be wanting to go slow anyway.

 

[Stemar]

In my experience, slow speed and no pendulum - I'd be concerned that the pendulum action may chip or crack it. Put masking tape over the area the jigsaw will touch and cut to a line on the tape. I used a coarse metal metal, cutting blade. A fine wood one should work, but may not last. What matters is to have a few teeth in the thickness of the material. If it starts melting through, it's time for a cuppa. Tidy up afterwards with aluminium oxide paper on a block.

 

[Rafiki]

Evening all,

I need to replace all of my windows (there are lots) with a mixture of 8 and 10mm acrylic.

I’ve had a quote to have them fabricated at circa £1200 plus VAT which seems a lot to me for what amounts to copying 6 templates in sheet acrylic.

The material is readily available, is cutting acrylic sheet a terrible job? I would rough cut and then use a flush router bit to copy shapes.

Your thoughts are much appreciated, thanks.

I have found that Project Plastics in Colchester to be pretty reasonable. Let them take the risk of chipping the acrylic etc.

 

[DownWest]

I did a job involving 10mm . Rough cut with a jigsaw using a SHARP medium wood blade and a squeesy bottle of water with a bit of washing up liquide mixed in for coolin. Edges were visible, so belt sanded and wet and dry. Roger's flame edge sealing works too and avoids incipient cracks. Angle grinder and flap discs can be used for shaping as can the laminate trimmer in a router I used them all on that job. Previous experience was replacing aircraft windscreens. That makes one very careful due to eye watering cost.

 

[jamie N]

Using 'most' of the advice above, I cut mine with a jig saw, taking it very easy to avoid the heat build up. Because I'm pretty rubbish at straight lines, I found that trimming it with a 'plane' set to a very fine cut, helped to make it look as if it'd been done by someone who knew what they were doing.

Edit: I've just noticed that I was working with polycarbonate. Apologies.

 

[rgarside]

I found the best jigsaw blades for acrylic were Bosch 'cleanwood'. Use too fine a blade and it just melted the plastic. Finished off the edges with a sander.

I got good results with these:-
Bosch T102BF Jigsaw Blades Clean for PMMA
Bosch T101A Jigsaw Blades Special for Acrylic

uk-jigsawblades.co.uk

Also putting packing tape on either side of the acrylic along the cut line helps as it melts and acts as a lubricant to the blade - especially helps if you don't have the right blades. A sharp plane and a fine cut is good for cleaning up straight edges.

 

[Rum Run]

Ref the comments about being careful to protect the plastic from scratches by the jigsaw or router etc. The first thing is to leave the protective film on the sheets until you are ready to install the cut parts - seems obvious until someone doesn't do it!
Rough cut and follow router is the way if there are a number off the same. You can but specific cutters for plastics too.

 

[cmedsailor]

It's relatively easy to cut acrylic using a dremel. You just need a steady hand.

 

[Cliveshep]

I used to cut mine with a mini grinder and 1mm Inox discs that cut fast without melting. A flap disc then can clean off any burrs.

 

[Lodesman77]

My windows are a simple shape - long rectangle with radiused corners. I got the acrylic from Trent Plastics (recommended, excellent service) and the radiuses didn't cost much extra. If you go for straight rectangles then the website can give you an online quote for your measurements - I found their prices the most competitive.

 

[Akestor]

Evening all,

I need to replace all of my windows (there are lots) with a mixture of 8 and 10mm acrylic.

I’ve had a quote to have them fabricated at circa £1200 plus VAT which seems a lot to me for what amounts to copying 6 templates in sheet acrylic.

The material is readily available, is cutting acrylic sheet a terrible job? I would rough cut and then use a flush router bit to copy shapes.

Your thoughts are much appreciated, thanks.

What "fabricated" means? cutting the plexiglass only? ( that's a robbery.. Does the price includes uninstalling the old spotlights, preparing the surfaces, aligning, and installing the new ones? I had the shop cut 6 frames (8mm) on a slightly larger template i gave them , and then i trimmed them exactly to the shape i wanted. I did this because the merchant that sells the plexiglass does cutting, but as he is in a hurry to do business, he will not cut precisely...I used a similar machine with the pic to do the final trimming and i think its perfect for the job! The 6 frames cost around 140 euros, cutting included.
I installed them with VHB tape and Dow 7091 silicone. no screws at all!