Plexi drilling problem

[iscariot]

I've read two different opinions on drilling plexi here.  So far I've tried both super-fast and ultra slow with no luck.  No matter what I do the plastic cracks.  Can someone give me some advice?

[severdhed]

here is another thread on the subject. 

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=89334.0


i too had the problems with it cracking.  i ended up using a router to drill all of my holes, and it worked great.

[thecheat]

I just drilled my plexi this past weekend. I glued my hole pattern to it, clamped it to my c/p board, and used a 1 1/8" hole saw to drill. Never had a problem at all. I started with a (small) drill press but I couldn't get most of the holes because it wasn't big enough to reach towards the inside of my panel. Put the still clamped panel in a vice with a couple scrap wood blocks in front of the jaws and drilled with a power drill and the hole saw.

I wish I had a forstner bit, the hole saw would load up with the cores and I would have to remove them every time I drilled.

[ctozzi]

try lexan it's more $$$ but will never ever crack.

[FrizzleFried]

Plexi is a ---smurfette--- to drill.   GO SLOW...use the weight of the drill only to push through...

Lexan is MUCH MUCH easier to work with.

[ChadTower]

It's a lot easier if you clamp it between two sacrificial pieces of wood.  No vibrations then.

[Malenko]

It's a lot easier if you clamp it between two sacrificial pieces of wood.  No vibrations then.

QFT, though its LESS vibration not NO vibration.  Forsner bit is better

[Hoagie_one]

Forsner BIT IS THE WAY TO GO

[Bluedeath]

I used the dremel cutting tool. But if you can find it go for the lexan, not only is easyer to work but in the long run the plexiglass will crack or at least it will show stress marks.

[javeryh]

A step drill bit works great too.

[Ginsu Victim]

My problem using a dremel was that I kept slipping and left marks around the holes. I don't do it like that now. I will be switching to lexan for my next CP, though.

[Xiaou2]

Plexi may take practice to cut well... but its worth it Impo.

 Lexan is easier to work with... but because its Softer than Plexi,
it will Scratch 10x easier.

[Bluedeath]

Do you mean scratch or break? lexan  should be more resistant than plexyglass.

[Franco B]

Nope. Lexan (Polycarbonate) will scratch much easier than Plexi (Acrylic).

To be honest I don't find Acrylic to be much harder to drill/route than Polycarb. Both are easy to drill and even easier to route, epecially if you are using a small bit (1/4" or so). A 1/4" bit will go though thin Acrylic like butter.

I have had the best results drilling just under the required hole size with a forstner bit and then template routing the rest with a 1/4" flush or pattern bit.

When drilling just make sure you feed the drill in slowly when you start and exit the material and you should be fine. A drill press will make things easier too if you are not using one already.

[Namco]

Here's my procedure and it worked a treat on the panel I drilled:

• Step 1. Get a template to use. If you have a wood control panel or a metal one, overlay the completed panel onto your plexi to use as a template and clamp that baby down.
• Step 2. Using a very small drill bit, drill small pilot holes dead center through each of the button holes
• Step 3. Using a dremel tool make the pilot hole bigger, just big enough for the center drill bit of your hole saw to pass through without touching.
• Step 4. Using the hole saw, drill a hole into a piece of sacrificial wood. With the panel pressed down against a piece of sacrificial wood, put the center drill portion of your hole saw through the plexi hole so that the hole saw teeth are touching the plexi
• Step 5. Start the drill on a very slow speed and kind of grind out some plexi. Once you've scored through a bit of plexi, give the drill more power until you're full speed. Once you're almost all the way through, slow the drill down until you hear the satisfying crunch as the drill finally punches fully through the plexi. WARNING: If you're going too fast when the crunch happens, the crunch will be a crack instead.... (or maybe that was the other way around?)

[iscariot]

Thanks for all the help, but I'm going to go with a vinyl cover from a local sign place.  If I don't like it I'll just get the plexi later.

Anyone have a good idea for generic cpo artwork?