# Laminating acrylic



## gafftapegreenia (Aug 5, 2017)

I want to bond two pieces of 1/4" acrylic together, to ultimately make a 1/2" thick disk. The pieces are 5" square. What adhesive would you use to achieve an optically clear joint?


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## Amiers (Aug 5, 2017)

This is what I use. 

https://www.tapplastics.com/product/repair_products/plastic_adhesives/tap_acrylic_cement/130
Now it is mostly used for edging but I have tested it with left over pieces and it holds up. 

Be in a well ventilated area cause this stuff will get ya if you don't. 

Try not to get it on your skin it's pretty sticky.


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## AudJ (Aug 5, 2017)

For a piece that small, I would head to my local plastics dealer. My guy sells their scraps by the pound, and a 1/2"x 5" square would be probably less than $1. Not worth the time or cost of adhesive to glue (weld) to fabricate my own piece.


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## gafftapegreenia (Aug 5, 2017)

AudJ said:


> For a piece that small, I would head to my local plastics dealer. My guy sells their scraps by the pound, and a 1/2"x 5" square would be probably less than $1. Not worth the time or cost of adhesive to glue (weld) to fabricate my own piece.



I should have mentioned, the pieces I'm using are amber, which was only conveniently available up to 1/4"


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## porkchop (Aug 5, 2017)

The distributor we use suggests Weld-On #3. We've had great luck with it, but there's not a lot of work time.


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## JohnD (Aug 5, 2017)

Ah great we can add that to our preferred list:
Weld-On No. 3
Chanel No. 5
Jack Daniels No. 7
Marshall Stack No. 11


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## techieman33 (Aug 5, 2017)

JohnD said:


> Ah great we can add that to our preferred list:
> Weld-On No. 3
> Chanel No. 5
> Jack Daniels No. 7
> Marshall Stack No. 11



We reconfirmed last night that No. 7 is a good cure for getting over a long stressful event week.


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## gafftapegreenia (Aug 5, 2017)

What about Mambo #5?


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## Amiers (Aug 5, 2017)

So @gafftapegreenia how many of these 5" blocks you gonna make?

And also what are you using it for?Making plastic gels for a led fixture or something?


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## gafftapegreenia (Aug 6, 2017)

Amiers said:


> So @gafftapegreenia how many of these 5" blocks you gonna make?
> 
> And also what are you using it for?Making plastic gels for a led fixture or something?



Just one. It's going to be the candy portion of a large prop lollipop.


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## Amiers (Aug 6, 2017)

5" seems undersized. The kid must be small for 5" to look right. 

Either way if it had to be more I was gonna suggest a cool dying method to do if you had to make them en masses. 

Personally a little texture between the pieces would give it some life clear candy always has some bubbles or something odd. 

https://www.google.com/search?q=ora...Wh8LVAhWoz4MKHexMDksQ_AUIEigC&biw=375&bih=591

Post pictures. I always enjoy a good prop.


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## gafftapegreenia (Aug 6, 2017)

Amiers said:


> 5" seems undersized. The kid must be small for 5" to look right.
> 
> Either way if it had to be more I was gonna suggest a cool dying method to do if you had to make them en masses.
> 
> ...



I'm still game to hear about a "cool dying method".


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## Amiers (Aug 6, 2017)

So this is only theory as it never made it past research. I scourged the internet looking for effective ways to dye plexi/acrylic 

There were a few different methods from cooking to chemical softening. 

The one that looked the most promising and cost effective was a simple cook with fabric dye , little bit of water, little bit of dish soap and of course the plexi. Bring it to a boil 10 mins or longer depending on how dark you want it. 

Now like I said all research didn't really try it. Boiling the plexi makes it soft and the dish soap would act as a lubricant for the dye to work its way into the plexi. The water would protects everything from burning and also help bathe the plexi. 

The method and process sound legit even if in theory.


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## jonliles (Aug 7, 2017)

Acrylic Casting material from Amazon is super cheap if you need to make a 1 or 2 off.


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## Van (Aug 7, 2017)

Cut the pieces a bit over-sized. line up one side. apply a generous amount of cement, fold the pieces together, Hold tight for bonding. Over sized pieces will allow you to cut the inevitable bubbles from the perimeter. Once routed, sanded and scraped I would not attempt to flame the edge. Use a small heat gun like what you'd use for heat-shrink tubing.


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## RonHebbard (Aug 7, 2017)

Van said:


> Cut the pieces a bit over-sized. line up one side. apply a generous amount of cement, fold the pieces together, Hold tight for bonding. Over sized pieces will allow you to cut the inevitable bubbles from the perimeter. Once routed, sanded and scraped* I would not attempt to flame the edge.* Use a small heat gun like what you'd use for heat-shrink tubing.


 @Van Why do you caution against flaming?
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard.


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## Van (Aug 7, 2017)

RonHebbard said:


> @Van Why do you caution against flaming?
> Toodleoo!
> Ron Hebbard.


I've had...issues, flaming cemented joints, with certain cements. I learned, the hard way, to stay away from the open flame and stick with a heat gun.


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## AudJ (Aug 7, 2017)

I thought it was only bad try to adhere a piece that had already been flame-polished? It will crackle the entire piece. My training suggested that flame-polish was a last-step only. Is there more to it than that?


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## Van (Aug 7, 2017)

AudJ said:


> I thought it was only bad try to adhere a piece that had already been flame-polished? It will crackle the entire piece. My training suggested that flame-polish was a last-step only. Is there more to it than that?


You are correct, heat polishing a seam is always the last step. and NEVER clean a flamed edge with Alcohol...


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## RonHebbard (Aug 7, 2017)

Van said:


> You are correct, heat polishing a seam is always the last step. and NEVER clean a flamed edge with Alcohol...


@Van Why not?
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard.


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## gafftapegreenia (Aug 7, 2017)

I haven't done a ton of work with acrylic beside the usual glass replacement so please tell me more tips and tricks, they are appreciated.


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## Van (Aug 7, 2017)

RonHebbard said:


> @Van Why not?
> Toodleoo!
> Ron Hebbard.


It will spiderweb crack. I don't know the mechcanics or Chemistry but it will get you in lots....LOTS of trouble if you destroy a perfectly good thing by wiping it down with alcohol.... "And that's all I'm gonna say 'bout that..."


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## RonHebbard (Aug 7, 2017)

Van said:


> It will spiderweb crack. I don't know the mechcanics or Chemistry but it will get you in lots....LOTS of trouble if you destroy a perfectly good thing by wiping it down with alcohol.... "And that's all I'm gonna say 'bout that..."


 @Van I guess we don't need to ask how you came by this knowledge. I'll assume you learned it from "A usually reliable source." 
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard.


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## bobgaggle (Aug 21, 2017)

I haven't done any research on it, but my understanding is that the cracking or "crazing" is from thermal stress. The evaporating alcohol will cool the surface it was on, but not the rest of the piece, so it relieves the tension created by the temperature difference by cracking...

for the same reason that glass needs to be cooled overnight in temperature regulated ovens.


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## AudJ (Aug 21, 2017)

gafftapegreenia said:


> I haven't done a ton of work with acrylic beside the usual glass replacement so please tell me more tips and tricks, they are appreciated.


You can use regular woodworking blades and bits to cut acrylic plastics - fine table saw blade or router bits. 

Woodworkers I know say the plastics dull the blade too much to do woodworking, and acrylic plastic workers say wood dulls the blade too much to use for plastics. All I can figure is nobody likes anyone else messing with his/her tools.


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## RonHebbard (Aug 21, 2017)

AudJ said:


> You can use regular woodworking blades and bits to cut acrylic plastics - fine table saw blade or router bits.
> 
> Woodworkers I know say the plastics dull the blades too much to do woodworking, and acrylic plastic workers say wood dulls the blades too much to use for plastics. All I can figure is nobody likes anyone else messing with his/her tools.


 @AudJ Your post reminds me of cutting / machining aluminum extrusions and flat stock using fine-toothed carbide blades and twin-flute router bits. Beeswax, either in block form or in tubes designed for caulking guns but merely being held tightly-gripped in your palm and pressed against the spinning blade is a great, and practical, lubricant to keep on hand to utilize on table and / or chop saw blades when cross-cutting or ripping. It's also workable for router bits but the biggest caution with router bits is to watch LIKE A HAWK for the least indication of their flutes becoming plugged solid with aluminium. If you are using an 1/8th inch twin-flute bit and a straight edge to mill a series of parallel slots to receive the actuators for linear travel "slide pots" you need to pay STRICT attention as the little 1/8" bits can clog and snap in less than the blink of an eye. You can likely guess how I know this and I'll freely admit I have neither a horizontal nor vertical mill in my basement. If your shop purchases extruded aluminum angles and other cross-sections in 16' lengths, your 10, 12 or 14" General table saw and Biesemeyer gate is an extremely convenient way to rip 16' lengths a mile a minute. The bees wax in solid form earns its keep far more efficiently than any of the liquid or spray on lubes with far more of the lube working for you and far less of it running across the saw tables. You can fly along ripping aluminum extrusions as quickly as, if not quicker than, clear or #1 pine.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard.


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## JonCarter (Aug 21, 2017)

@RonHebbard -- Thanks for the beeswax tip. I'll remember it.


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## DIYLED (Aug 22, 2017)

Acrifix 117 with Nanofil shims. Practicing on scraps is a good idea before jumping into the real thing.

VHB 4905 is easy to use but not perfectly clear.


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## bobgaggle (Aug 22, 2017)

never used the beeswax, we use lenox's lube tube. mostly because of its great name. If you google it MAKE SURE YOU INCLUDE "LENOX" IN YOUR QUERY. I found that out the hard way on a company computer hahaha


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## DIYLED (Aug 23, 2017)

Has anybody tried these UV-curing glues?
http://www.acrifix.com/product/acri...-adhesives/acrifix-1r-9019/pages/default.aspx
http://www.acrifix.com/product/acri...-adhesives/acrifix-1r-0192/pages/default.aspx

Seems like there are some potential advantages of this type of glue, but I've never tried them.


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