Cut Holes In Acrylic Sheet

Acrylic sheets can be machined with most shop tools.

Cut holes in acrylic sheet. Using solvent based glues on laser cut extruded acrylic can cause cracking due to the internal stresses from temperature differences in the acrylic. All you need is a thin acrylic sheet a straight edge that is longer than your cut clamps and a scoring knife. Plexiglass sometimes called transparent thermoplastic acrylic lucite and perspex is a polymer that is often used as an alternative to glass. To guard against cracking place the acrylic on a flat sheet of glass in a shop oven not the one in your kitchen at about 180ºf 82ºc for about 1 hour per mm thickness then let them air cool.

Thicknesses of acrylic and perspex vary from 1 5mm to over 25mm. Brand names include lucite vitroflex perspex acrylex and many others. Cutting acrylic by hand is the easiest way to go for a beginner who isn t familiar with power tools. How to drill plexiglass.

When cutting the acrylic sheet you should try to avoid touching this coating as much as possible to retain the original outlook of the surface. A brief shop tip on how to drill clean holes in acrylic and other plastics. How to cut acrylic by hand. A brief shop tip on how to drill clean holes in acrylic and other plastics.

Acrylic and perspex can be used in a number of ways from bath and basin splashbacks to in a thicker form shelves. It can be molded into almost any shape from its liquid state but it is most often encountered for project use in 1 16 inch to 3 4 inch thick sheets. Follow these instructions to cut a circle in a sheet of plexiglass. Drilling holes in acrylic requires the use of a drill bit specially designed for use with plastics.

Standard metal drill bits will work but without extensive modification the metal drill bit will crack and chip the brittle acrylic sheet. Cutting acrylic is a simple process but whichever method you use you need a saw with fine teeth. How to cut acrylic or perspex.