Apply a fine layer of paint to seal your masking tape. Use C-clamps for extra stability. Any surface can work as long as the surface is flat, stable, and has an edge. For other tools, you don’t have to press the blade too hard into the sheet of Lexan. Either of one these should be fitted with a blade designed to cut metal, and its teeth should be spaced anywhere from 2 mm to 4 mm apart. To keep the saw from veering left or right on straight cuts, use a clamp-on guide. You can get a very clean edge on acrylic by lasercutting it. Bending Lexan Step 1 Peel off the plastic from both sides of the Lexan. Start your circular saw and let it reach full speed. When I cut mine, I used a cutter made specially for thick plexiglass such as Lexan. Lay your Lexan sheet flat on your workbench. Raise the blade so that it is about 0.5 inches higher than the surface of the saw table. You’ll find it around the. 01-17-2018, 6:04 PM #7. Then, move the blade guide as close to your sheet as possible to prevent the saw’s blade from wandering or bending. If you need to cut Lexan, you can use any power tool to cut a piece of this plexiglass material to the size that you need. Acrylic is easy to work with but it’s also easy to mess up if you rush the process. One of our popular products is LEXAN Polycarbonate, a thermoplastic polymer that is currently produced by SABIC. Remember to clamp down your sheet securely when you cut with a jig saw. For smoother cuts, instead of making two spears close completely, you should stop when they are just about to close. Set the piece of Lexan on a flat table and mark the desired bend location with the black marker. You can cut with tin snips , smooth with a plane and sand round corners. Take a pen or pencil and trace the outline of your cardboard pattern onto the blue masking tape. This tool is able to reach for further areas without you having to cut through to it.​. Pieces of Lexan with different thickness and softness will require different cutting tools. A steady and slow push towards the blade is what you want for your sheet’s edges to come out as smooth as possible. I have a large piece (30x45) that I need to cut down to 13x22 and I'd rather not buy a special blade just for this one cut. If you need to cut Lexan on a curve, use a jigsaw or band saw. Remember—do not cut deep because you only need to create a simple cut line, nothing more. Otherwise, the cuts will be distorted. Is anyone setup to cut thick Lexan? The choice of which tool to uses depends on the thickness of a piece of Lexan, the patters you want to cut and the purpose of the project. [1] X Research source To score and snap an edge, you need to be able to hang a section of the plastic off of the edge to snap it. Therein lies the finesse of cutting plexiglass, especially curved cuts with a jigsaw. However, it can scratch and dent quite easily. Cutting Lexan can be quite similar to cutting a cement board. Softness of Lexan: First of all, the best tool to handle of soft and fragile sheet of Lexan is a utility knife. Make sure you follow a slow and steady space so that you wouldn’t cut out of the intended line. Here are 3 things that you need to consider when you choose the right tool- the softness of a piece of Lexan, its thickness and the pattern which you want to cut the piece of Lexan into. house in your aquarium or safety-windows. Sanding also helps to remove the residual crumbs after the Lexan is cut. Instead, just let the saw cut the Lexan itself. Acrylic and Lexan, a branded name for polycarbonate sheeting, are both durable and flexible materials, often compared to one another because both are transparent and both stand as two of the most frequently utilized types of see-through plastics.Acrylic and polycarbonate both weigh half as much as glass and yet both plastics are much more shatter resistant. As a polymer company, we are at the center of many products. You should only work in a well ventilated area and avoid breathing in the fumes that are coming out of the saw blade. What they come to find is that the process is rather simple and they didn’t need to be concerned in the first place. Lexan is a form of Plexiglas that is often used for windows in place of glass. On top of that, the material is cheap and less fragile than others. Step 3 Turn the tool on to 6 or 8 and begin the cut. You can cut tubes or pipes with a handsaw made for the job. Step 1: First of all, you have to mount the table saw on the working table. Place the off-cut over the edge. If you want to know how to cut plexiglass with a table saw this is what you need to remember: never force the plastic sheet or push it too fast into the blade. Why is Heartwood Darker in Color than Sapwood. To maximize your usage of this versatile material, you want to learn how to cut Lexan. You can use a straightedge to guide the knife. Please Contribute . Thicker sheets will need to be cut with either a circular saw for straight lines or a jigsaw to cut shapes out of the sheet. Even though plexiglass is a synthetic, a clean cut can sometimes be more difficult to achieve than with glass. Lexan is also known as Polycarbonate. Sand down the edges with medium-grade sandpaper for a smooth and even edge. Today, we will be featuring a step by step guide on how to cut Lexan. At Polymershapes, we stand behind what our motto reflects. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Dremel recommends that you start at a 45-degree angle when cutting into a piece of material. Ensure that the off-cut falls freely. ToolsCritic.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Shown below, this tool is one of the best ways to cut it. If you notice smoke coming out when you are cutting the Lexan, you should slow down the sliding until the smoke stops and then continue pushing the sheet of Lexan forward. Now it’s time to get down to trimming the larger panels off the body first. Lay your Lexan sheet flat on your workbench. Learn how to cut plexiglass so the process becomes safer and cleaner. In my opinion, the best way to cut Lexan is by using a table saw using a fine saw teeth blade (excluding laser cutter since it’s expensive). For a sheet which is thicker than 0.125 inches, you should use a circular saw for the best result. If you choose to use a band saw to cut, make sure you secure it properly as well. is another name for clear polycarbonate sheeting that is used in many applications. If this is the case, why not provide the highest quality polymers and plastics? Plexiglas and Lexan are different materials: acrylic and polycarbonate, respectively. 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