Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Re: Milling Materials

scott3d3@... wrote:

> What your looking for is called LUCITE, it's a type of lexan or
> plexiglass, except it's denser than plexiglass so it's heavier. It's
> use alot to make bar rails and such, or you will see figurines
> imbedded it. Nylon to stringy to mill and delrin to soft. Try casting
> you some clear fiberglass if you can't find Lucite. Good luck Scott.

Plexiglas is the trademark of Rohm & Haas for their acrylic sheet.
Lucite is
another maker's brand name for the same material. Lucite and Plexiglas
have the same density and all other properties.

Lexan is a DuPont product, often used for bullet proof windows. Our
local
plastic place has a test piece with a .357 magnum round stopped in a
piece of either 1 or 1.5" thick lexan. Very impressive thing to look
at!
Lexan is not as clear as Plexiglas, but it makes a usable window.

I have never seen clear fiberglass, as it is full of the glass fibers,
which make it
barely translucent at best. Maybe you mean use the resin for fiberglass

without the fibers. Most of that stuff is far from transparent, as the
fibers
already make it diffusing. You can get clear casting resins that you
mix
with a hardener and pour into a mold. There are two problems with this
stuff. One, it is VERY expensive, probably close to $100 for a gallon
of resin. Two, getting all the bubbles out is very hard. Usually a
vacuum
chamber is used to expand and pop the bubbles.

I think machining small pieces of Plexiglas or other acrylic sheet would
be
the easiest. You can get this stuff in hundreds (maybe thousands) of
colors. There is also laminated plastic engraving stock, used for
office
door number signs and nameplates. It has a base of one color with a
thin
layer of another color laminated on the front. You make a very shallow
milling cut through the front to expose the other color below. This
stuff
costs about $4-5 per square foot. If you don't use up too much
experimenting
with it, it is pretty affordable. I've made some nameplates for some of
my
gear with it.

Jon