Cutting 1/4" Acrylic With Dremel | The Planted Tank Forum

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I watched a video of this but I'm a bit skeptical. Has anyone tried doing this? I've failed at cutting my 1/4 acrylic several times via scoring. I did 1/8 no problem but I intend to use 1/4" for my baffles and weir. So I'm tempted to use a dremel, I will go buy one if others have tried this and succeeded. Please no hypothetical answers. Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk For anyone with acrylic experience I don't intend to fuse weld any of this but I am aware I'll need to give the edges a good sanding/buffing if I did intend to. A second part of my question is do I use a standard cutting disk or do I opt for the wood and plastic multipurpose blades Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk #1 · Jan 3, 2016 (Edited by Moderator) I watched a video of this but I'm a bit skeptical. Has anyone tried doing this? I've failed at cutting my 1/4 acrylic several times via scoring. I did 1/8 no problem but I intend to use 1/4" for my baffles and weir. So I'm tempted to use a dremel, I will go buy one if others have tried this and succeeded. Please no hypothetical answers. Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk For anyone with acrylic experience I don't intend to fuse weld any of this but I am aware I'll need to give the edges a good sanding/buffing if I did intend to. A second part of my question is do I use a standard cutting disk or do I opt for the wood and plastic multipurpose blades Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk Sort by Oldest first Oldest first Newest first Most reactions #2 · Jan 3, 2016 I cut my 1/4" acrylic using the scoring tool commonly sold for this purpose. Took awhile, and made a bit of a mess, but I'm a small female who is not particularly handy, so if I can do it, anyone can. Just be patient and work slowly. #3 · Jan 3, 2016 At 80 bucks a sheet I'm done messing up haha, u just don't have the patience, I dug in the tool at least 15 times with consistent pressure. It's just not doing it for me. I can cut really small pieces but I'm doing a long weir and it's just not working out. Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk 1 Reply #4 · Jan 3, 2016 Something that has worked well for me on long cuts; Score the acrylic as usual (lets say 15 passes) on the top side (use "top" as reference) Then put the acrylic in a vise with the top side facing you and put the cut line right at the top of the vice. Start at the far right end. Bend the acrylic away from you just enough for the cut line to crack. Move the acrylic to the right, just past where you think the crack ended. Bend the acrylic again, just enough for it to crack. Keep doing the above until you get to the other end - pretty certian you will have a nice clean break. Have mad 2"x24" breaks this way. Now, if you are trying to make a piece say 16" tall by 36" long the process is the same, but you may have to get creative on your technique for holding the acrylic. #5 · Jan 3, 2016 Little more awkward, 4.5x24 it's been a pita. Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk 0 Reply #6 · Jan 3, 2016 My thoughts on the Dremel are not good. It is a small weak tool that relies on spin for it's power. Very high speed rotation compared to other power tools. that igh speed makes the blade heat much quicker than a far larger blade running at slower speed. With plastics, I normally find I'm not cutting as much as melting my way through after just a short bit of cutting. The melted plastic tends to wind up in the blade as well as a cut which can weld itself back together after the blade passes. Just not my tool of choice for plastics other than simple demolition. For cutting when snapping can't be used, I would favor clamping the sheet down along an edge like a table and then use a handsaw with the finer teeth for the cut. Scoring the top edge before cutting can help you get a smoother cut as it tends to grab little chunks less when it is scored first. One side will be more ragged than the other but it may give you one better smooth side. For more complex cuts like curves a coping saw or other tool like a saber saw with a bade that is thin from cutting edge to back is good if the saber saw can be run at slow speed to hold down the heat. Run too fast the cut just welds back together behind the blade. #8 · Jan 3, 2016 Another option: Whatever tool you decide on, clamp a guide to the acrylic so you can stabilize the tool and cut a straight line. This guide could be a straight piece of wood (perhaps a scrap of 1 x 4) or a level (though I do not like to use my levels like this). If Dremel has some special blades for plastic, use them. I have not done this, but I have watched my son, and seen the results- he cut some really interesting acrylic computer cases then back lit them. When I cut acrylic I used a skil saw with a plywood blade. I have drilled, too, using a wood bit, and turned the drill to its lowest setting. #9 · Jan 3, 2016

Diana said: Whatever tool you decide on, clamp a guide to the acrylic so you can stabilize the tool and cut a straight line. This guide could be a straight piece of wood When I cut acrylic I used a skill saw with a plywood blade. Click to expand...

Yeh I always start with a piece of wood to cut. Does using an electric skill saw cause any bits to fly toward your face? Show more replies 0 Reply #13 · Jan 3, 2016 Depending on length of cut and as long as you are going in a straight line I have used a circular saw with a high tooth count and reversed the blade! Just make sure you use tape on both sides of piece to be cut! I have done this on both thin acrylic and plexi glass with only one mishap #14 · Jan 4, 2016 Purchased a Drexel 3000, felt more sturdy than the 4000. Am I wrong in assuming that Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk #15 · Jan 4, 2016 So the 3000 worked amazing, got some cuts done and I'm impressed with the wood cutting blade for acrylic, it was butter and no melting. Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk #16 · Jan 4, 2016

shrimpNewbie said: So the 3000 worked amazing, got some cuts done and I'm impressed with the wood cutting blade for acrylic, it was butter and no melting. Click to expand...

Very nice! Thanks for the info / update. 0 Reply #17 · Jan 4, 2016 Will post pictures of the project once I'm done with this. It's a lot of planning before I actually cut but I'm working on a sealedish sump Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk #18 · Jan 4, 2016 I use a tile/marble cutter with a water pipe instead of scoring - does the job quite efficiently even with thicker than 1/4" acrylic. You would need a dremel for curves though. #20 · Jan 15, 2016 I used a jig saw and a wood blade. Run it without melting. Much easier to set up a guide to keep it square and true. #22 · Jan 16, 2016 I don't mind if it bows. I just want to keep things from falling into the tanks accidentally, and reduce evaporation a little. (Though maybe if I flipped them from time to time, it would straighten out any bowing?) Tonight's project is making risers for my LED fixtures. I got scared by the PAR readings posted for Finnex fixtures in that other thread. Since I just sit my light strips on the acrylic top, I don't need fancy risers like Fuze makes. I'm just cutting 3" x 5" rectangles that I can clamp the light strip to. Depending on which way I turn them, I can raise the light 3" or 5". #26 · Jan 16, 2016

randym said: maybe if I flipped them from time to time, it would straighten out any bowing? Tonight's project is making risers for my LED fixtures. Since I just sit my light strips on the acrylic top, I don't need fancy risers like Fuze makes. I'm just cutting 3" x 5" rectangles that I can clamp the light strip to. Depending on which way I turn them, I can raise the light 3" or 5". Click to expand...

Yeh I didn't think of flipping them. Flipping them should at least keep the bowing to minimum. I hope you make a thread on the risers. At present I have my light strips sitting on pcv tubes on the glass top. 0 Reply #27 · Mar 16, 2016 So you guys recommend using a dremel to cut inner angles, or even straight cuts for 3/8th" acrylic? I've been trying to find someone with a laser cutter to cut out the eurobrace for my acrylic tank, but no luck so far. I have a dremel, but I'm worried the cuts would be messy and not straight. I have to cut the eurobrace, then I also have to cut out horizontal lines in the back wall of my tank for the weir. #28 · Mar 27, 2016 I would use a saw or a thin wood bit with a higher powered rotary tool like a Dewalt die grinder, there are other brands but this comes to mind first. The Dremel worked well enough for me with 1/4" but I would use a 90° adaptor and the plastic/wood blade. Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk 0 Reply #29 · Sep 26, 2019 I want to cut a rectangular shape piece from 5mm acrylic sheet. Please suggest me best way. Is dremel tool a best solution for cutting the sheet at home as I don't laser for cutting. ??? Kindly, assist me on this. Thanks in Advance. Insert Quotes Post Reply

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