Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Chatting => Design and Construction => Topic started by: azubah on June 19, 2009, 19:54

Title: how do I cut perspex sheet?
Post by: azubah on June 19, 2009, 19:54

I was flymowing the lawn the other day when I heard a stone hit the greenhouse. It looked OK so I continued. A little later I could hear a sssh sound and wondered what it was. The noise got louder and then changed to a tinkling sound. I looked at the greenhouse and was fascinated to see a pane slowly cracking like a car windscreen. I put a sheet of polythene down and when a gust of wind blew the pane shattered into a million pieces onto it.
I went to B&Q but the perspex they had was metric and was an inch shorter than I needed in each direction. They had larger sheets but I would have needed to cut them...hence my question, thanks.

Title: Re: how do I cut perspex sheet?
Post by: wighty on June 19, 2009, 19:57

You don't 'cut' perspex. You need a hooked stanley knife type blade and score it, 4mm thick perspex, score 5 times. It will then 'snap' along the score line.  We sell loads of perspex and cut to size all the time.

Title: Re: how do I cut perspex sheet?
Post by: horsepooisgood on June 19, 2009, 20:21

Buy it from Wighty, it will be cut to size for you :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

Title: Re: how do I cut perspex sheet?
Post by: philskin on June 20, 2009, 16:32

i use a 4" angle grinder mark it out 1st then grind along the line and sand the bur of after ,bobs your auntie :) :)

Title: Re: how do I cut perspex sheet?
Post by: azubah on June 20, 2009, 19:46

Thank you so much for your replies.

I will practise with the scoring method first. I tried (some time ago) using a jig-saw and it just melted, so I knew that that was not the right way.

I would buy it from Wighty, but he is too far away unfortunately.

I don't understand why everything nowadays is metric. Nothing is ever the right size any more. Can we go back to inches please?

Title: Re: how do I cut perspex sheet?
Post by: wighty on June 20, 2009, 19:52

Dear Azubah, I am a lady. No apoligies needed. I have taken you to be a gentleman. but may of course be wrong. :)

Title: Re: how do I cut perspex sheet?
Post by: azubah on June 21, 2009, 19:44

Sorry wighty. I too am a lady. Azubah was the name of a distant female ancestor which took my fancy.
We tend to assume that only men do jobs like cutting perspex, but it is a lot more fun than ironing. Why should they have all the fun?

Title: Re: how do I cut perspex sheet?
Post by: grumpy-grower on July 13, 2009, 15:14

For small jobs, Perspex may be cut with fine-toothed hand saws such as fret saws and hack saws. The work must be securely fixed and only light pressure applied.  Alternatively, just buy the panels cut to size from www.plasticstockist.com, that’s what I did.  :)

Title: Re: how do I cut perspex sheet?
Post by: Leaf on July 20, 2009, 19:04

Depends how thick it is, you DO use a jigsaw with a fine blade but you HAVE to put masking tape along the line you want to cut, it will not weld itself together then, you can also buy handsaw with a high teeth per inch rating that will cut it. a normal handsaw would just crack the perspex. ;)

Title: Re: how do I cut perspex sheet?
Post by: ians68 on September 20, 2009, 22:56

Cutting any type of plastic sheet-- coarse,sharp jig-saw blade--- cover sheet with masking tape and mark cutting line with pencil,  cut slowly thru' the  masking tape and clean up with sharp, file Note Must be Masking Tape