How To Trim Acrylic Sheet

How to cut acrylic by hand.

How to trim acrylic sheet.

To cut acrylic sheets start by marking the line you want to cut using a ruler and a permanent marker. Clamp the plexiglass sheet to the work surface for stability. Lay the sheet on a flat surface and. All you need is a thin acrylic sheet a straight edge that is longer than your cut clamps and a scoring knife.

For a thin sheet of plexiglass that is material up to about 3 16 inch thick use a scoring method not dissimilar from a technique used to cut actual glass. Use the saw at a slower speed or keep the material cool by spraying water over the cut point during the saw operation. Line the plexiglass sheet along the cut line. For best results use another tool like the earlier mentioned table saw to cut your acrylic roughly before getting a more exact finish with the router.

Using solvent based glues on laser cut extruded acrylic can cause cracking due to the internal stresses from temperature differences in the acrylic. Cutting acrylic by hand is the easiest way to go for a beginner who isn t familiar with power tools. If you want a straight cut in a thin acrylic or polycarbonate plastic sheet up to inch thick reach for a simple utility knife then follow these steps. Be sure to use a compressor to keep the sheet in position to avoid chipping and more time needed to polish the cut.

Next repeat on the opposite side of the. Once you ve scored the initial line go over it a few times with the blade until a groove forms. Cutting thin sheets of plastic. Routers can be used to cut acrylic for both curved and straight cuts.

Then score the line using a plastic scoring blade using the ruler as a guide so your line is straight.