Quote:
Originally Posted by ddsack
One question -- what kind of saw and blade did you use to cut the polycarbonate with? Did you have any shattering problems?
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Dee I let Jeff answer your question first out of respect and manners.
Now I will add to his answer by giving some more information.
You can cut this stuff with a jig or saber saw, a table saw or a motor driven hand saw.
The Skill saw/motor driven hand saw is normally a 7-14 diameter blade and you would use a blade made for this with 60 teeth all around the blade the blade will saw 60 on it.
The table saw will have a 10 or 12 inch blade and it will say 80 or 120 on the blade respectively.
The little hand power saw have a 4 inch blade and they will have around 36 teeth per inch.
The saber or jig saw blades will have around 14 teeth per inch.
The trick is to not stay in one spot too long as the material will heat up and melt.
Another thing I do for a fast clean cut with a hand saw is to use a straight edge.
Measure from inside of the blade to the edge of the plate the saw runs on.
lets say it is 3 inches, and you want to cut a piece 24 inches long.
you would subtract 3 from 24 and you would get 21 inches.
Measure and mark the material 21 inches on both sides and this is where you would set and secure the straight edge.
Run the saw along the straight edge and you will have a piece 24 inches long.
If you want to get fancy and cut curves you can use a pre-cut jig and a router.
If you need to bend the material you can use a pre-made form put some felt over it and use a heat gun to slowly and evenly heat the polycarbonate sheet.
Worth