Conference 7.286::home_work

    I'm sure there are places on 101 that sell acrylic panels (Rivco,
    maybe?).  
    
    If you are using it for glazing (as a glass substitute) you might
    be better off with polycarbonate (tradename Lexan) which is more
    resistant to breakage (and also more expensive).
    
    I've gotten large sheets of acrylic (and polycarbonate) by mail
    from a place called U.S. Plastics, Ohio.  (800)555-1212 might be
    able turn up a number; alternately, the WRASSE::FISH notesfiles
    has notes on plastics.
    
    __Rich

    Bedford True Value sells plexiglass and you can get up to a 4X8'
    sheet. It is VERY expensive at $2.25 a square foot.
    
    Merle

    I just bought a 2'x3' piece of 3/8" plexiglas at Assabet Glass in
    Hudson, Mass.  Cost: $47.50+tax, about $8/square foot!  And that
    was the CHEAPER place I found.  
    I have an old (1975) copy of an industrial-supply catalog that lists
    plexiglas; even in 1975, 3/8" plexiglas was $5.45/square foot, from
    an industrial-supply outfit, so be prepared to pay big bucks.
    "Standard" plexiglas also has the interesting property of shrinking
    slightly when exposed to heat, so if you plan to use this for a
    project of critical dimensions that will be exposed to heat you
    may want to consider "Type II" plexiglas that has been pre-shrunk
    and is dimensionally stable; that stuff listed in 1975 for $12.50/sq
    ft for 3/8"!!!
    I didn't try them, but there is a place in Worcester, Mass.  called
    Plastics Unlimited that looks (from their yellow pages ad) to have
    a good selection of all kinds of things.  

	Plastic Supply 735 E industrial Park Drive Manchester, N.H.
	669-2727.  They might have someone there Saturday mornings.
	I've bought 4 X 8 1/4" from them.  Seemed ok to me.

	Cadillac Plastic & Chemical 1 Perimeter Rd  Manchester, N.H.
	627-7671.  (I haven't been here.)

	Regards, Robert.

    I cannot remember the name but its just before the hudson bridge
    Kinsley st that is, on the right. with my mothers dog always ruining
    her windows on the storm door, plexy seemed to be the way to go.
     Now he breaks that too. 
                                          Hope It helped.     @L

    Try Cadillac Plastic as referenced in -.1.  They are the local outlet
    for a national plastics warehouse.

    I couldn't find a note which pertains to my question (checked 1787,
    and others).  If there is one, a pointer would be appreciated.
    
    I have a screened in porch which I would like to make three season
    by putting up plexiglass panels.  The window openings are 3 ft wide
    and 4 ft wide by 5 ft long.  The question is which thickness of
    plexiglass to use: 1/8 inch or 1/4 inch.  
    
    One of the glass places we called recommened 1/4 inch because it 
    is more rigid and would withstand the wind better,  however it is also 
    much more expensive. Anyone have any experience with this or know
    if 1/8 plexiglass would be adequate?                
    
    Thanks in advance for your help.
    
    Valerie
    

Depends on how you build the windows.   If you put more framework into the 
windows, you can get away with a thinner piece of plexiglass.

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That's probably overkill, but you get the idea.  Another option is 10 mil 
transparent plastic  (not the 4 mil crud that K-Mart sells).   I made a
nice set of storm windows out of 10 mil, after recovering from my coronary
brought on by the price of plexiglass!  8^)

Bob

    The heavy-duty flexible plastic is sold under the name 
    "Warp's Flex-o-glass" or something similar.  I think it's
    clear vinyl, not poly-whatever, and it stands up pretty
    well.  It does have ripples, and it won't be nice and clear
    and smooth like plexiglas, but as mentioned, it IS a heck
    of a lot cheaper!

Yeah... Flex-o-glas... thats the stuff!   You can get it nice and clear,
but it takes some work.  When I made my windows, I did two at a time,
and used the same technique I saw mentioned in here about tightening
screens...  I butted two of the frames top to bottom, and rolled the 
plastic out over them both.  I attached one end, then pulled relativly
tight and attached the far end of the other window. The I placed a fulcrum 
in the middle of the two, and bent them over it until the plastic was nice 
and tight, and secured the rest of the perimeters.  Then I cut away the strip 
in the middle, and had two very transparent plastic storm windows!

You can look out the window and not even know they are there.

Bob

>Yeah... Flex-o-glas... thats the stuff!   

why does one buy this - what does it cost?
thanx/j

    >Yeah... Flex-o-glas... thats the stuff!   

    ...and where?
    
    thanks,
    
    Valerie

Most good hardware stores will sell Flex-o-Glas ... look for it on a roll,
usually in the same section as screen.   

Why you would buy it is up to you.  I bought it because it was transparent,
and didn't cost as much as plexiglass.  

Cost was 1.35/ft (linear) for 3 foot width.

Bob

    I have a 24X12 foot porch with 12 4X4 screens.  This weekend I covered
    the screens with the 3M brand of clear plastic shrink sheeting.  I couldn't
    find the outdoor stuff so I used the indoor and it looks great.
     The plastic was wrapped around the frame so the tape is on the
    inside.  Since it comes out so smooth after shrinking there's nothing for
    the wind to catch and they stood up great to last nights thunder storm,
    wind and all.  I used to wrap them with the heavy plastic but will
    use this stuff from now on, assuming that in the Spring they look
    as good as they do now of course.
    
    George
    

>    I have a 24X12 foot porch with 12 4X4 screens.  This weekend I covered
>    the screens with the 3M brand of clear plastic shrink sheeting.  I couldn't
>    find the outdoor stuff so I used the indoor and it looks great.

does the indoor stuff come 4'+ wide?

or did I miss something?    

Does Plexiglas make a suitable outdoor glazing material at all?  
Doesn't it abrade too  easily and get murky from scratches?
Lexan (polycarbonate) is normally used for windows, as it is scratch
and break resistent, but costs about three times as much as Plexiglas.
I just bought a couple of 3' x 3' sheets of 0.1" thick for about $30 each.
It would seem that for a porch, throw-away sheet plastic would be the
best bet.
- tom powers]

> does the indoor stuff come 4'+ wide?

>or did I miss something?    
    
    Not in single sheets but I found a large size that was about 56"
    by about 18 or 20 feet.  One package was large enough to do 4 screens.
    
    George

    re .-1
    Where did you find this stuff @56" x 18'-20'?, and how much did
    it cost

    I bought it at Channel in Nashua last Saturday.  It was about $11.95
    per package.  Manufacturer is 3M.  Those dimensions are not exact.
     I'm estimating since the screens are actually 44 X 46 and there
    was quite a bit of overlap.
    
    George

When a local hardware store closed out, I bought 5 sheets of
Lexan; scratched but they're going into the garage door 38"X18"
(4 panels) and the rear door 35"X42". These sheets are 1/8" thick
and they are tough!

I broke the garage door glass several times.

cal

    There is a wholesale storm door and window dealer in Worchester
    that sells scrap Lexan for $1.00 sq ft. Scrap is any thing that
    is too small to fit in a storm door or window. The pieces that I
    got were aprox 18" x 30" used for garage windows. This was two years
    ago.
    
    _Bill

    I have a plexi (lexan?) windshield on a motorcycle with decals on it
    ... anyone know how to remove decals?  Scraping will scratch the
    surface.                                                     

    Warm it with a hair dryer. It should come off. If there is any stickum
    use wd 40.
    
    
    
    Lou Raymond

    The heat of a hair dryer should be ok.  just keep in mind that the
    lexan will be softer and more likely to mar...  The wd40 is a new 
    one on me, thanks...  I've used mineral spirits (odorless) to remove
    the gum reidue left behind from masking and duct tape with good
    success.  If you try the mineral spirits you might want to try a 
    small inconspicuous spot first.
    			

    I used the hair dryer and WD-40... it was history in 5 minutes... 
    
    thanks alot!
    
    Bob

    Don't know about decals per se, but any time I have tape or price tags
    or anything sticky like that to get off of just about any surface, I
    daub some cooking oil on it, let it sit there for a few minutes, and
    just rub it off.
    
    Works amazingly.
    
    -joet

    There wasn't a note, as far as I could tell, that addresses the issue
    of "How to cut Plexiglass".  We have an approx. 4'x8' peice and want to
    make it ovalish to fit on a rod iron table.
    
    My idea was cut it using a router & straight bit....
    
    
    please advise
    
    thanks
    
    	-John

I have cut plexi with a table saw.  You need a special plexi blade.  Don't
know about blades to cut ovals though.

Stan

    I used my bandsaw to do the same thing. No problems with a fine tooth
    blade (I had a 1/8 16 tooth blade,I think).
    
    I wood (pun intended) think any blade for plywood or metal would work.
    
    Gerry
    

    
    
    They also have a blade that goes in a jig saw.  One for thick
    and one for thin.
    
    JD

    Plexiglas cuts pretty well.  The biggest problem I've found is chipping
    and cracking at the edges.  I'd suggest you make sure the piece is supported
    well and use a fine blade, being careful not to twist the piece or
    force it as you're cutting. 
    
    There are different types of clear acrylic plastic too, which tend to
    get lumped (erroneously) under the specific brand name Plexiglas.  Some
    may be more brittle than others.  The manufacturing process has some 
    effect too.  My knowledge of plastic is pretty hazy, but my understanding 
    is that clear acrylic in thinner sheets is extruded; thicker sheets are
    cast.  The extruded acrylic tends to be more brittle than the cast
    acrylic, if I'm remembering correctly.  (There are also different
    casting methods and (probably) different extruding methods, but the
    most important distinction in terms of strength is the extruded/cast
    one, I believe.)

Plexiglass has several drawbacks too it for use as a top for a table....

    1) cutting with a router is probably going to be trouble. Plexiglass 
melts when subjected to heat. Just touch your router buts after using them 
and you will see how much heat they generate. You will gum up the router 
bit and ruin the plexiglass.

    2) use a scroll saw with a fine tooth blade to do the cutting, then 
plan on sanding to 600 grit and polishing with sveral grades of pumice, 
tripoli, and finally rouge.

    3) Plexiglass does not hold up well to UV light, so over time it will 
yellow and cloud up.

    4) plexiglass will scratch VERY EASILY. not a good choice for atable 
top that is going to get any use at all.

    5) talk to a good plastics supplier. Plastics Unlimited in Worcester 
can give you good advice on what to use and how to cut/polish the edges.

    This is all from memory of years ago working with Plexi.....your mileage 
may vary as some of this may be wrong and subject to correction....


    Vic H

    FWIW- I've had the best luck cutting plexi on table and radial arm saws	
    with the blade on backwards no chipping or cracking at all.
    
    
    -j

    I recently cut a few small ovals for picture frames and there's
    one certain way to avoid cracking and get a perfectly clean cut
    free of burrs.  Thin cheap plywood sheeting clamped on both sides of
    the plexiglass.  Any fine sawblade will do, I use a jigsaw or
    a fine coping saw for small circles and ovals.  Another advantage
    us that you can cut it a tad oversize and sand and polish
    the edge while it's still sandwiched between the wood to remove the
    sawmarks.
    
    Regards,
    
    Colin
    
      
    

    Well, since my collection of power tools is quite slim(Tim Allen
    wouldn't like my workshop), I used the router after all.  Just put the
    plexiglass on the floor(outside) and put a peice of cardboard
    underneath.  Then used a straight routing bit, outlined the table and
    'routed' away.
    
    Turned out fine.  Just have to sand it down....
    
    Any suggestions on that?  Start w/ a fine file and then use sandpaper? 
    
    
    thanks
    		-John

    re-.1
    Then jewlers rouge which will give a final polish to the edge that
    will render it transparent.
    
    -j