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| Plexiglass for control panel -- cut it myself or have glass shop do it? |
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| blacktiger:
I had zero experience doing mine. I made a new protective overlay for my NBA JAm Te machine. Quite easy to do. I used a wood boring bit that was a tad smaller than the hole needed to be (I did not have one the exact size) and then I used a file to finish the hole off. Used one that is flat on one side and round on the other. for the corners I used a recip saw and then finished with a file. Worked perfect! Identical to the old one minus the scratches, burn marks and suck. Took about 2 hrs. I went to a plastics shop and they wanted 10$ a hole. We were talkong over 200$ for the job. I bought the sheet for 12$. Good Luck |
| FractalWalk:
First, I thought the way to cut the plexiglass is by using a drill (not a router) and using a forstner bit with the drill is reverse. That's one way but it certainly isn't the only way. I have used a drill press (forward speed, normal bit) and I have used a router with a template bit for bigger holes. Both worked great. The advantage of the router is that you are guiding along your already drilled holes in the panel and so your cuts match exactly. If you drill the plexi separate from the panel then you better have some pretty precise measures and cuts for them to line up perfectly. I'm just worried that perhaps that holes won't be as smooth or something and that is why everybody is telling me to do it by myself. I don't think quality is the issue. It's just that it's very simple to do so why pay someone else to do it? What size flush trim router bit is required? Size doesn't matter!! ;D Actually it doesn't, however, you want to be careful with terminology here. A TRIM BIT or LAMINATE BIT is a straight bit with an arbor on the bottom of the bit. Normaly these are used on exposed edges and not holes (i.e. cabinet sides not CP holes). To use it to trim a hole, requires a pre-drilled hole in the plexi big enough to slip the bit through. To use this bit, secure your plexi to your panel, drill a hole wide enough to fit the bit through, then guide your router so that the arbor rides along against your panel edge, cutting and identical path in the plexi that lays on top. A TEMPLATE BIT or PATTERN BIT is a straight bit with an arbor on TOP. This requires no pre-drilled hole as the bottom of the bit will drill the hole for you. To use this bit, secure the plexi on top of your panel, flip it over and sandwich the plexi on a scrap piece of wood. Then from the bottom side of the panel (now on top) drill thorugh the plexi with the router and guide your router so that the arbor rides along against your panel edge, cutting and identical path in the plexi that lays below. (pattern bit on left, trim bit on right) |
| sofakng:
Very helpful!! It seems to me that everything can summed up as: "Have the glass shop do it only if its cheap, otherwise do it yourself with a flush trim bit, it's easy." Also, template/pattern bit > trim/laminate bit? If I use a template/pattern bit I don't need to drill a hole so I have one bit that does everything. Correct? |
| Nannuu:
I don't think you want to run a forstner bit in reverse. You can do a hole saw in reverse for plexi but a forstner should be run forward. With a forstner the teeth tear away the edge and the blades remove the rest of the hole. You need to have the blades running forward to be effective. A hole saw is hollow which is why you can run it in reverse. Can anyone back me up on that? I think that is correct. |
| FractalWalk:
Also, template/pattern bit > trim/laminate bit? If I use a template/pattern bit I don't need to drill a hole so I have one bit that does everything. I wouldn't say that the pattern/template bit does everything, but it certainly will do what you want without having to pre-drill a hole. Can you use a pattern bit to trim laminate? That depends upon the situation. If you are trimming an unattached piece and you have freedom to flip it over then yes you can trim laminate with a pattern bit. But if the wood is affixed (i.e. kitchen counter) and only the laminated side is available to you, then you would need to use a trim bit. My guess is that for most arcade projects the pattern bit will suffice for trimming as well. I actually have both. |
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