Cooler than sliced Bread

[buck4]

I know you have all seen this done, but I have been wanting to try it myself, so a couple weeks ago I ordered the material need. Probably the coolest part is when the carving is finished, and you get to fan it with a torch, and watch it turn back into being clear. Sorry about the pictures, then sure don't do the project justice. In the side view of the dragon, you can see that I left the sides and top frosted,

[Turtle49]

Very nice Buck!

Is the model carved into the material like a mold or is it proud of the material?
Tim

[RhoTu]

Very nice.

I was wondering what would happen if you flamed the edges and then used a reflective material on the edges. Would that create more light refraction or not? Anyone tried that?

[GaryR6]

What is the material?

[buck4]

Tim, the profile was first flipped horizontally and then in component manager I subtracted the profile and set the exact height to my likeing. and carved the form on the back side of the stock. (mold) RT, the edges on the last supper were flamed, and your idea of a reflective material also came to me. But to finish the project I just left them open. I lit one up this morning before the sun was up, and I most say they are a bit much for a night light. GaryR6, the material used was 1" thick, clear Acrylic Plexiglass. Purchased from http://www.estreetplastics.com , a 9"x12" piece for $19.59 The 9.5" flexible LED Strips ($11.50) and 2Amp AC Adaptors ($9.00) from http://www.oznium.com they have many colors and lengths to choose from. The LED's are wired in series of 3, meaning if the strip is to long, you have to cut off 3-6 etc

[GaryR6]

Thanks, always wanted to try something like that......you know one just has to get out of the box more often. Its just not all signs......

[baker519]

Could you write instructions on how you did this. I have the plastic but do not know what to do? Thank you
A. Baker

[Greolt]

Buck

I don't have very much experience with back carving and lighting Acrylic, so take this with a grain of salt.

I believe that if you skip the flame smoothing you will get a better result from the lighting.

However having said that, the ghostly look you have achieved on the dragon looks great too.

Greg

[buck4]

A. Baker, 1) determain size of stock and import and size your profile. 2) Mirror the profile {flip horizntal} 3)in the componet manager {subtract the image} and set the exact height of the profile to fit your needs, keep in mind the stock thickness, tooling on hand and the detail of the model. 4) fit vector to the bitmap {out-line your profile to create a cutting area} 5) create your rough and finish toolpaths, I used a 1/16" bull nose with a .005" stepover on the finish pass. When cutting pay atention to your chips, you want to cut the plexiglass not melt, so you may have to ajust the rpm's. 6) the torching part is the coolest part of this project, I just used a protane torch, holding it 4-5 inches from the stock, KEEP THE TORCH MOVING to avoid melting your profile, you want to just melt the tool marks away not the profile. The finish project looks pretty cool even with out the LED lights, but the lights really show all the detail Vector Art 3D puts into the profile. Hope this helps, if I can help any other way send me a PM. ................Buck

[Redhorse]

Buck,
What a cool effect! Thanks for posting the pics., materials used, resources and the step-by-step instructions. Something new to try.

Thanks again,
Dave

[buck4]

OK Greg, I just had to try your advice on not using the flameing, so this morning I another one with just v-carving. And you were right the complete profile lit up. Next is to try a 3-D carving like the dragon, etc.................Buck Hey Tim, you'll like this one!

[Turtle49]

Very nice buck!

Your getting a lot of use out of that file...
Tim

[david_r]

This one is a couple years old, and looks better in real life

David

[buck4]

David, Now the shows some class, is it two pieces, with a carving in each?

[david_r]

Yes, it's two pieces. Each piece is protected with a strip of aluminum foil on one side, to block unwanted light.

David