Engineering Edgelit

[dwilli9013]

Probably my personal favorite so far.
12 x 12 x 1/4 Acrylic
60° diamond drag bit. .200 pressure depth
2 hours fifteen minutes cut time.

[highpockets]

As an engineer I resemble that

Great job Dwayne!

[Mike-S]

Wow, really nice job on that one. 2:15 cut time for a drag bit seems long even on a 12 x 12 piece. What speed are you running at?

[dwilli9013]

Wow, really nice job on that one. 2:15 cut time for a drag bit seems long even on a 12 x 12 piece. What speed are you running at?

150 IPM. Don't dare go any faster. When I tried that on another piece ended up wiping the diamond off the end of a brand new tip.
I don't mind the time actually as I just sit in my shop and jump on Aspire and practice modeling. Or I will do other small projects while I am down there.
Most of these edgelits go to work with me. I have a base I made that plugs into the usb on my computer so I try to change the panels every few days.

[Mike-S]

150 is plenty fast enough.

When I tried that on another piece ended up wiping the diamond off the end of a brand new tip.

Yup, did the same thing half way through engraving a stainless steel flask.

[jarm2]

I really like that one. As a retired Mechanical Engineer, it really hits the spot. Nice work. I will have to try one of my own now to put in the house.

[jarm2]

What is the font and where did you find it?

[dwilli9013]

What is the font and where did you find it?

The font is called Geosteam. I downloaded it from Brent.

[Xxray]

Always good to take them into work, I have sold many many on the job.
Also donated a couple to my local where they put them on display in the dues room, really generous of me but I did have an ulterior motive - Advertising.
Sure enough, quite a few orders from that too [not only edge lit, corians are popular too]. But sometimes they have raffles and benefit parties for guys with cancer ect and I always try to donate something.

Edges look rough, don't you have a method for smoothing ?

[martin54]

As Doug has already said the edges kind of spoil it Dwayne, it's a great looking edgelit apart from that

Try using an endmill to cut them out rather than your teeth

Cutting acrylic well takes a bit of experimenting, I have bits that are designed especially for cutting acrylic & they don't get used for anything else, single flute cutters work best for me, good dust extraction or some other way to remove the chips is essential. My dust extraction isn't great so when I am cutting acrylic I use an airline to blow the chips away, probably helps keep the bit cool as well.
Some of the problems people have with re welding is down to poor chip removal

[ozymax]

I love that font and the general layout.
I have a daughter that's an engineer and she would get a kick out this.
Nice work.

[Xxray]

The method I use for polishing edges is simple, but takes some investment if tools are not already on hand.

First I use an orbital sander 120 grit, sand the edges down smooth with that. Then I use a mouse sander with 180 grit, sand it down some more. Usually only takes a couple minutes unless the edges are very rough.
Belt sanders work but I prefer hand tools for this, as its easy to dig in a gouge with too much power.

I invested in an industrial grade Baldor buffer specifically for acrylic edges, I use a "rough" polishing wheel then a finish, both with their own buffing compounds.
Gets the edges literally looking like glass ,,, And sometimes I don't even buff [except the bottom for better light transmission] and leave the frosted look.

I lieu of that, flame polishing works and is certainly better than nothing.

[dwilli9013]

All,
I knew I was going to take the heat on the edges of this piece. I cut the blank with my compound miter saw thus the rough edges. I hadn't cleaned the edges up as yet when these pictures were taken. I did take an orbital and bought then down with 120 grit. I also prefer hand tools as well on the edges as I have also gouged a few on my belt sander. (note to self: Do not post photos on site prior to finishing edges.)

Thanks everyone for all of the tips along the way. Seems every one I do now improves a bit. Getting ready to delve into the 3d edgelit arena now. Thick sheets are on their way.

[martin54]

(note to self: Do not post photos on site prior to finishing edges.)

Or you could just say, here's the latest edgelit, still need to finish off the edges but was keen to show it off

You don't really need to start 3d edgelit panels with a thick acrylic, you can practice using a shallow model just make sure you don't cut all the way through
It will still give you a good idea of how well it has machined if using something a bit thinner although I do personally prefer the look of them with a thicker acrylic.

[dwilli9013]

Or you could just say, here's the latest edgelit, still need to finish off the edges but was keen to show it off

Ahhh Martin I can always count on you for an alternative solution.

Had I just done that in the first place could have saved myself a ton at the dentist from having chewed off the edges in the first place.