Has anyone ever molded lexan?

[Ex-S]

I'm thinking of making a stick out of black lexan. I was going to make a wood positive mold, put the baked lexan over and then vacuum mold it to shape.... the only concern I have is if this will mess up the finish? Another alternative I thought of was to place the lexan on top of the positive and use a heat gun to form it.... As well, would I need some sheet metal to help support the componentry if I'm using about a 1/4" lexan? Thanks = )

Edit: I forgot to mention I have access to PETG; would this be better than lexan?

[koi]

Try asking Tau in the trading post. He seems to be the resident expert when it comes to making things out of acrylic/lexan/plexiglass.

[chippermonky]

I've seen lexan molded. I can assure you that it does mold, but Lexan might not be your best choice. I've never seen it vaccum formed before, but I know using a heatgun on 1/4-1/2 inch lexan, it will form bubbles and have an uneven surface on the outer edge. You're probably better off using plastic meant for vaccum forming. Do a quick google on vaccum forming and there are tons of tutorials.

And crap, you're stealing my idea. Curse you god of idleness. You are my arch nemesis now Ex-S. Ready.. .GO!

[Ex-S]

Try asking Tau in the trading post. He seems to be the resident expert when it comes to making things out of acrylic/lexan/plexiglass.

Cool, I'll give him a shout

I've seen lexan molded. I can assure you that it does mold, but Lexan might not be your best choice. I've never seen it vaccum formed before, but I know using a heatgun on 1/4-1/2 inch lexan, it will form bubbles and have an uneven surface on the outer edge. You're probably better off using plastic meant for vaccum forming. Do a quick google on vaccum forming and there are tons of tutorials.

And crap, you're stealing my idea. Curse you god of idleness. You are my arch nemesis now Ex-S. Ready.. .GO!

Yeah, I figured b/c most of these plastics have SOME moisture in them which makes them bubble if it's heated too quickly.... Hmm, I think I'll try PETG, but it's REALLY expensive (except I get it for free since I'm at a prosthetics/orthotics facility) .... I was initially leaning towards an Ipod themed stick, but I think I'm going to make a few models and see how it goes from there.....

lol, I'll race you to it ^__^..... but you'll probably win; I won't be able to start anything serious until May, but I accept your challenge:bgrin:

[chippermonky]

Cool, I'll give him a shout



Yeah, I figured b/c most of these plastics have SOME moisture in them which makes them bubble if it's heated too quickly.... Hmm, I think I'll try PETG, but it's REALLY expensive (except I get it for free since I'm at a prosthetics/orthotics facility) .... I was initially leaning towards an Ipod themed stick, but I think I'm going to make a few models and see how it goes from there.....

lol, I'll race you to it ^__^..... but you'll probably win; I won't be able to start anything serious until May, but I accept your challenge:bgrin:

lol, are you trying to handicap yourself? Anyways, I found the guide I was referring to. Great stuff, I'm so gonna make my own vacuum forming table now :D.

http://www.studiocreations.com/howto/vacuumforming/plastic.html (page on plastic, the guide also shows you how to make a table)

[NiteWalker]

Polycarbonate doesn't bend as well as acrylic. With acrylic, all you need is a heat gun and a bending form. Heat until it fits the form and clamp the other side of the form on. Much like bending wood. Polycarb is prone to blistering and bubbling when heated because of it's chemical composition.

[tau]

Polycarbonate doesn't bend as well as acrylic. With acrylic, all you need is a heat gun and a bending form. Heat until it fits the form and clamp the other side of the form on. Much like bending wood. Polycarb is prone to blistering and bubbling when heated because of it's chemical composition.

You seem to know about everything. =)

[Dj_Matrix]

i have molded it before and i used a heat gun... bubbles really werent bad? but i did need to sand a polish it with like 1000 grit paper cuz it lost its clearness on the side i heated up. very time consuming.