Acrylic Sheet Heat Forming

Wear gloves as you do this to avoid burning your hands.

Acrylic sheet heat forming.

Just heat the sheets above 150 degrees f for 2 3 minutes until they turn from translucent to clear using a heat gun. Tutorial for how to. Use long thin 1 inch or so in width test strips to practice your technique and learn how your particular heat source affects your chosen thickness of plastic. Upon cooling they will be strong and permanent.

When they come into contact with the heat source there is likely to be an explosion. You can see my other artwork at http. Turn the sheet of acrylic over on the heating element every 30 60 seconds in order to avoid damaging it. The process is straightforward.

Set up plastic or acrylic sheet in a simple bending jig. Work on a smooth glass surface as the heated plastic won t stick to glass. Preparing hot air gun w. Acrylic sheets give off highly flammable fumes when decomposed overheating.

For thicker sheets it will take longer and for thinner sheets it will take less time. This article uses a sheet about 1 4 thick so all times are about 10 to 15 minutes per step. The rest of the sheet is heated largely by conduction. It has tiny vacuum holes to facilitate the vacuum pump which sucks out the air between the mold and the sheet.

This is one way i heat form acrylic glass. Be sure that the marked line is above the heating element. Acrylic sheet is opaque to most wavelengths in the infrared spectrum the surface exposed to the heater absorbs almost all the energy. In the vacuum forming machine the sheet is heated until it becomes pliable while being held in place by the clamping frame.

Most kitchen ovens do not have accurate temperature control. Higher molecular weight acrylic has better heat strength during forming but is more difficult to form due to its higher melt strength and elastic memory. Ideal for perspex acrylic plexiglass polycarbonate. And because air is not forcibly circulated in a standard kitchen oven the fumes will accumulate.

To set up your plastic or acrylic sheet to bend simple curves for your miniature and model projects you need to first remove the protective covering from the material you wish to bend. Bending shaping plastic with hot air gun heat gun. Lower molecular weight acrylic forms more easily and with great detail but is more sensitive to differential heating. Modify the timing as necessary.

At this point the pliable polycarbonate sheet is lowered onto the mold. I have used this technique for years with sizes up to 16 inches in diameter. The only major variable that can affect the forming process is the thickness of the plastic sheet. Once soft mold them into any shape you desire.

Temperatures can be off as much as 75 f 42 c possibly allowing the acrylic to overheat.