Question!! What speed have you found best for turning acrylic type materials? What tools do you prefer

Mike (Southgate, MI)
If I don't want to, I don't have to and nobody can make me (except my wife) cuz I'm RETIRED!!

Mike, I don't turn a lot of acrylic but the one thing I have found by mistake, don't use a sharp tool to turn acrylic. The tool either has to be super sharp or on the dull side. A sharp tool has caused more splintering than I care for and it's hard to keep a tool super sharp for any period of time. I have found that a tool on the dull side will take longer to cut and machine but does a better job with less spinters and breakage. This is just my experience I'm curious what others have found as well.

Mike,

I do not recall the speed exactly, but I think I turned at about the 1200 to 1800 range. More importantly, I found out that extremely light smooth passes were crucial. I have had more than one explode on me when my fingers stalled or the parting tool caught. I turned pieces that were cast in clear acrylic resins, and they seemed a bit more brittle than the others. I also had better results when I pre bevelled the square stock into more of an octagon with a belt sander. Moot point if your stock is already round. Patience.........thats the other tool!!!

All these materials differ. On same, scraping rather than cutting seems best. Others do better with actual cutting.

A few turn better if you refrigerate them first. Best thing to do is to ask the supplier of the stuff you're turning. They usually know the ins and outs of each type of material.

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I turn all of my acrylics at the highest speed my Jet mini will go which is around 3000 RPM's. A SHARP tool is a must and take light passes . You don't want to rush when turning acrylics. I round off my square stock with a Penn State Versa Chisel and then use a skew for finishing. A rounded skew to me is the best and I've tried different ones in the past. I use a Wolverine sharpening jig to sharpen the tools before starting and while turning I may take a diamond stone to keep an edge on it untill I finish the piece. Remember SHARP and NOT DULL.

Mike,

I turn a right much acrylic as you know, I went and looked at my Rikon and it's set on 1850rpm....works for me!

DR

I have turned quite a number of small items pens etc. and I agree with Lance sharp as possible and fast, from what I have read in the past one of the bigger problem with turning acrylics is heat, it will cause them to fracture so light cuts reduces this possibility.
The only other thing that is very important is to wear a full face shield when turning acrylics getting hit with a chip hurts get hit in the face and you can have major problems
John

not sure about the speed to turn at but i agree very sharp is best to turn but dull if you want to drill a hole in it......for drilling i take a drill bit made for drilling metal and drill a hole in a concrete wall with it(that will dull it good to drill without cracking anything) just incase you ever need to drill a hole ;)

Mike,

Speed and tooling aside, I've seen a trick that makes cutting acrylics more "forgiving". I used to have a Trophy shop next to me. They used to cut/machine a ton of acrylic blocks. They would go from a rather rough & hazy look on the parts to crystal clear in a matter of seconds by applying a quick blast heat from a propane torch to the newly machined piece. Try it on a piece of scrap. Might surprise you.

Mark Griffin
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C&M Custom Tackle
San Dimas, California

wow thats cool! im going to try that mark good lookin out

What I don't understand is why are some saying the use of dull tools or drill bits are better than sharp ones for acrylics or even wood for that matter. A sharp drill bit will cut with much less friction causing less heat build up. Too much heat is one of the main reasons for causing blow outs or cracking. With a dull bit or tool you have to force your bit or tool to make those cuts and when you are forcing it you will cause too much heat and a blowout or cracked blank is more than likely to occur.

Lance,

NOT answering for them! ...but maybe the heat is a blessing. It is for me. Once I get the piece warm it cuts so much easier and smoother for me.

DR

im not sure why a dull drill bit works but i use one everytime and havent had it crack yet....it doesnt make it dull dull just not as sharp

i think with a dull bit i tend to go much slower and i think that makes much less heat

Lance I think that DR may be right. In this instance heat may be your friend. Looking at the other posts though I see several are using much more speed than I am (3000 rpm vs 1800 rpm). The higher rpm may be better because you can't take as much of a cut and may help with chip out. I do know that when I have used a sharp (ultra sharp turns to sharp after you knock the edges off the blank) tool I have more chipping and tear out than when I use a tool that is on the less sharp side (not dull but a tool with some use on the edge) perhaps the heat helps to soften the acrylic. I know the description of the edge is a relative term and doesn't translate well to the written word. This technique may not work for everyone its just an observation.

Hi Fella's ! forgive the silly question.i have never used acrylics and would like to.i noticed on the board tests done on polyester blanks and the subsequent fading problems.does acrylic hold its colour? thanks to all for any respnse! cheers , Wayne

There isn't one right or wrong answer here..

Lots of different formulations of acrylic. And two different processes in making it. Cast or extruded. One MAY like heat, one MAY not, and yet another MAY require something totally different. You need to play with the stuff from your source to get the correct answer.



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Better to have and not need than to need and not have.

Wayne some of the polys/acrylics carry UV protection and others do not. Ask the retailer, and if in doubt, set it in the sun for a week or two and see what happens.

DR

Thanks for all the opinions!! Keep them coming!!! I do pretty good and turn a lot of them, but hoping to improve my technique. I seem to get a lot of tool chatter and tiny chip outs and was wondering how to improve that and thought maybe speed had something to do with it

Wayne, The problem is that we seem to refer to everything as acrylic, when actually there are many different materials, acrylic, resins, polyestors and many more and they all have different characteristics. There was an issue with one particular type Pearl acrylic rods that seem to be caused by the pearl oil used for the pearl effect. It made the rods turn almost black after a short time. Since they were never used/intended for outdoor use, the issue never came up. The vendor is slowly replacing the colors with U/V stabilized versions as the old stock is replenished. If you have any questions on the use of the stuff, feel free to ask here or e-mail me.

Mike (Southgate, MI)
If I don't want to, I don't have to and nobody can make me (except my wife) cuz I'm RETIRED!!

Mike, I use a round nose bit in my mini 7x12 metal lathe. Reasoning for this type of bit is the finish of the completed reelseat. Sharp pointed bits leave more scratches to sand out. I cut at low speed 1250- 1500, no need to go faster. I have used material from Epco and I find it quite brittle. It cuts well but try to enlarge the center bore after reel seat is made and I have had a few break out chunks and or pieces. I have been making reelseats out of bowling balls. I cut the ball in half, and clean out center, and use hole saw to cut out rings and clean and turn them for a flush fit and glue up. Bore is already drilled, I enlarge the center hole to fit the specific rod when I face the rings. There are so many colors and variations in bowling balls and best of all they can be bought at rumage sales for a song and or give aways from the bowling alley pro shops. Usually can make 9-10 reelseats out of one ball. Just a new idea. Galen Briese

Galen,

That is a wonderful Idea, thank for sharing. Also what do you cut the ball in 1/2 with? I may never do one, but if I run across one cheap I might!

DR