Acrylic Control Panels!

[southpaw13]

So we have clear buttons and tons of LED projects on the way, what about making an acrylic control panel so that the whole friggin' thing glows...

Does anyone know how to cut holes in this stuff or know of a cheaper source?

http://freckleface.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/acrylicsheet.html

Thanks,
Southpaw

[Jollyrob]

No, even better, around 900 dollars from there,

[lokki]

check this out unfortunatly I never heard from the guy again, so I don't know if he is still making these CP


http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,18406.msg147715.html#msg147715

[MrTroy]

I'm sure someone did it before. I saw a pac-man(or maybe ms pac) cabinet completely clear. I can't find the link now.

[southpaw13]

Yes, Ms. Pac has been done in full acrylic.  It was at the St. Louis arcade museum that closed down.

So back to the question, how do you cut this stuff?   I am thinking about making the top of my CP out of it...

Thanks,
Southpaw

[PoDunkMoFo]

So back to the question, how do you cut this stuff?

[BSR]

For those interested here's the photo of the clear Ms. Pacman:

[southpaw13]

The same place has the lexan.  Yes, the price does go up!  Is it strong enough in the 1/4 or 3/8 in size for a control panel?  Will it bend too much?

Southpaw

[MinerAl]

1/4 should be plenty strong for a CP.  Maybe even overkill.  Fishtanks that hold hundreds of pounds of water pressure are made of 1/4 plexi.

A 4x8 sheet of 3/4 inch clear plastic should weigh a (figurative) ton!  Shipping alone would be more than the novelty is worth. 

I think a clear plastic CP that's frosted on the inside and lit would be pretty darn cool.  Especially with an otherwise Tron theme...

[southpaw13]

I like the idea of 1/4 in lexan.  The question is does lexan bend more than plexi/acrylic?

Thanks,
Southpaw

[crashwg]

No, even better, around 900 dollars from there,  3 full 4x8 sheets of acrylic (what does that mean) first completely  transparent cab

Now all we need is someone with a large expendable income so we can see that happen

It's $488 for a 4x8 sheet of 3/4 at that site not to mention you have to pay for motor freight!  It'd be damn expensive cab to build, I'll tell ya that much...

But damn would it be cool to have!

[markrvp]

I knew these couple of guys out if California once.  They needed some really thick plexiglass to build a big whale tank in a Klingon Cruiser.  I think one of them was named Scotty.

Anyways, they had this formula for transparent aluminum.  Now, if anyone here can take that formula and run with it, I think we'll have a new cabinet material   

[Timoe]

I remember seeing a post in the Project Announcement forum about a control panel Pixelhugger built for a family member or friend...

Anyway it had a lexan bottom so you could see all the controls and wiring.

It was real inspiring.  I'm definitely going to build some sort of CP with a transparent side.... I just don't know what I'll end up doing with it.

[markrvp]

I remember seeing a post in the Project Announcement forum about a control panel Pixelhugger built for a family member or friend...

Anyway it had a lexan bottom so you could see all the controls and wiring.

It was real inspiring.

[southpaw13]

How thick is one of those acrylic PC cases?

Southpaw

[Kremmit]

1/4 should be plenty strong for a CP.  Maybe even overkill.  Fishtanks that hold hundreds of pounds of water pressure are made of 1/4 plexi.

A 4x8 sheet of 3/4 inch clear plastic should weigh a (figurative) ton!  Shipping alone would be more than the novelty is worth. 

I think a clear plastic CP that's frosted on the inside and lit would be pretty darn cool.  Especially with an otherwise Tron theme...

1/4" will not break, but it will flex.  One of the reasons Lexan is reputed to be so tough is because it won't break, but the reason it doesn't break is because it flexes without cracking.  Lexan is really kind of soft, it scratches easily, and bends easily. 

It's also not bulletproof, as folks are so fond of saying it is.  I had the back windows in my Jeep replaced with 1/4" lexan, and I had it cut at a plastics shop.  They had a display showing the difference between 1/4" Lexan and Plexi, that they had taken out and shot with a .22 slug.  They both had holes in them; the difference was that the plexi cracked and shattered into sharp pointy pieces, while the lexan just had a little .22 sized hole in it, but no cracks or anything. 

If I press on the windows, I can feel them bend. 

[southpaw13]

Thanks for the info....

If I decide to do it, I will post some pictures...

Southpaw

[rdagger]

If you want large sheets of polycarbonate (Lexan), you might want to try a greenhouse supply house.

[dema]

That clear cabinet is sweet! How the heck would you attach everything though? I'm guessing some sort of cement or glue since screws are out of the question.

[nostrebor]

screws are fine if done correctly. You have to work PC or Acrylic like steel. Drilled and tapped holes, machined edges, etc.

[monkeybomb]

Anyway it had a lexan bottom so you could see all the controls and wiring.

I think treyonics centurion is the controller with the plexi bottom, but I cant' find a pic.

[dema]

If I had any talent the next cabinet I'd do is the clear one. I figure the $1000 material cost would be worth it if I could keep the other costs down, especially when you consider buying a prebuilt cabinet will run from $3,000 - $5,500.

[markrvp]

If I had any talent the next cabinet I'd do is the clear one. I figure the $1000 material cost would be worth it if I could keep the other costs down, especially when you consider buying a prebuilt cabinet will run from $3,000 - $5,500.

Measure three times, pray twice, cut once, scream continuously.

[Buddabing]

If I had any talent the next cabinet I'd do is the clear one. I figure the $1000 material cost would be worth it if I could keep the other costs down, especially when you consider buying a prebuilt cabinet will run from $3,000 - $5,500.

I looked at the link provided by rdagger, and sheets of 1/4" lexan go for only about $1.25 per square foot! So you could get three sheets for 4x8, about 96 square feet, for only $120.

Thicker sheets were more expensive, I think 5/8" went for $5 something a sqare foot. I don't know how you would cut that bad boy, however. And you'd have to find a local supplier.

[southpaw13]

If I had any talent the next cabinet I'd do is the clear one. I figure the $1000 material cost would be worth it if I could keep the other costs down, especially when you consider buying a prebuilt cabinet will run from $3,000 - $5,500.

I looked at the link provided by rdagger, and sheets of 1/4" lexan go for only about $1.25 per square foot! So you could get three sheets for 4x8, about 96 square feet, for only $120.

Thicker sheets were more expensive, I think 5/8" went for $5 something a sqare foot. I don't know how you would cut that bad boy, however. And you'd have to find a local supplier.

Looks like a $900 minimum!

Southpaw

[nobody]

this just inspired me. If you made the main body of the control panel out of lexan, you could lay a thin metal plate over it and cut out patterns in the metal. Then you could put a neon light underneath it makin the control panel itself glow!

EDIT: something like the motorola RAZR keypad (shown below)

[dema]

this just inspired me. If you made the main body of the control panel out of lexan, you could lay a thin metal plate over it and cut out patterns in the metal. Then you could put a neon light underneath it makin the control panel itself glow!

EDIT: something like the motorola RAZR keypad (shown below)

Cool idea.

[rcdriver434]

As a warning from someone who's been dealing with both polycarb and lexan for years now, if this a first cabinet, go with something simpler.  You'll just frustrate yourself otherwise.  Go to Metku.net.  It's a comp mods site with a tuturial on making glowing plexi mouspads that can be applied here.

Remember - Countersink first with drill backwards, then drill!
Countersink from both sides!

-Matt

[PoDunkMoFo]

Remember - Countersink first with drill backwards, then drill!
Countersink from both sides!

-Matt

If you use acrylic I agree countersink. If you use polycarb it is not needed.

For a control panel you might check plastic shops.  Look thru the scrap bins and ask them if they have any odd sized off-cuts they can give you a deal on.

[ChadTower]

What is a countersink?

[dema]

I found this site that had better prices on thick sheets of acrylic than the site initially provided.

http://www.delviesplastics.com/ACRYLIC%20SHEET.htm


If there was a way to cut this stuff myself I'd seriously consider attempting building an entire cabinet out of acrylic.

Any idea how to cut 3/4" in acrylic?

[nostrebor]

Table saw, band saw, router, jointer, etc. Same tools will work acrylic as wood. Just different techniques and blades/bits in some cases. The local plastics shop here has a really nice woodworking shop. No tool in it has ever cut wood though, just plastics.

My favorite moments are watching their fabricator do flame polishing on acrylic. He makes it look so easy

[Avery]

What is a countersink?

A countersink is a hole cut to accept the head of a screw (or bolt or whatever). 

You know how some screws have flat heads and wide conical heads which the screw part itself sticks out of?  The idea is that you make a conical depresion centered on the hole that the head of the screw fits into giving you a smooth surface, more or less.  In woodworking you often put the top of the head a little below the surface and putty over it, hence the sinking part.