Hello everyone,
I was wondering if anyone has ever used a paper cutter, board with the handle type, to cut styrene sheets or pieces. I am looking for a way to cut straighter edges. I do ok freehand but I often have to trim and the edges become uneven.
Any ideas
You might be able to do very thin stuff on a paper cutter, but that style of paper cutter is a shear, not a blade.
What you need is a steel straight edge and a sharp hobby knife. You don;t have to cut all the way through styrene, just score it a few times, don;t press down real hard - let the blade do the work. Pressing down hard is a sure way to get a crooked line - or cut yourself when the blade slips. Aftr you have scored the piece, you cna gently bend it at the score line and it will snap cleanly off - might have to sand the edge a bit to make it truly smooth.
NWSL and MicroMark both sell a tool which is basically a flat piece of masonite with a sheet metal guide edge that clamps to the plastic. NWSL Duplicutter or MicroMark Duplicate-It. These also have a fixed stop so you can cut multiple pieces the exact same length. For thin strip materials there is the Chopper from NWSL or Chop-It from MicroMark - they are sort of like little paper cutters but with a razor blade, not a chear. They have angle guides and fences for making duplicate parts as well. These are for strip styrene and wood, the first two are for sheet goods.
–Randy
Trainluver
I have a simple solution to your problem. I don’t buy plain styrene sheet. I always buy sheets with lines already scribed into them. To cut a straight line I simply score along one of the molded lines and snap. I usually have several different sheets on hand with different spacing on the prescribed lines so I can usually come up with a piece wide enough to meet my needs.
For cross cutting I use a small square, and as a previous poster has recommended, I let the blade do the work instead of forcing the issue.
Then I put the scribed side down when assembling. Of course this will only work if only one side of the sheet will be visible, but that is usually the case.
Dave
Most hardware stores carry a tool for cutting plexi glass, it scribes the plexi glass so it will snap on the cut line. It has a handle and the scribe folds into it for storage and it does a great job on plastic as well. This is what it looks like I just googled a plexi glass cutter, hope this helps. Jim. http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.eplastics.com/core/media/media.nl%3Fid%3D820%26c%3D621686%26h%3D600f2258f7e383543b2e&imgrefurl=http://www.eplastics.com/Plastic/Plastic_Tools/KS1TOOL&h=300&w=300&sz=24&tbnid=b3Ptfhpx4_h6hM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=90&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dplexiglass%2Bcutter%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=plexiglass+cutter&usg=__UW-b9weFuO8kOLXqXRB8mMPTJC4=&sa=X&ei=TtU4UMrdFOrY0QGhkoCACw&ved=0CHQQ9QEwBQ&dur=919
I normally ‘scribe’ the styrene sheet with an X Acto knife with a a ‘new’ #11 blade. A couple of passes and you should be able to ‘snap’ the material off. Sometimes there is an ‘edge’ to the material after a scribe/snap, I just use a mill file or sandpaper to clean up the edge. I cannot stress how important it is to use a new #11 blade. They dull very fast. I buy them in bulk from Micro-Mark(they have 15 pack & 100 packs). IIRC, these are Excel brand and are very good. I think you can also buy the bulk packs from ‘Tool Man’ at trains shows.
I do have a large old paper cutter, and I have used it to cut large sheet stock, but I usually limit it to .010" brass or styrene. One fell swoop and the cut is made!
Jim
For strip styrene, I use a modified NWSL “Chopper”, and for small sheet stock, an X-Acto with a #11 blade and either a metal straightedge and/or a machinist’s square.
For larger sheets (4’x8’), a carpenter’s framing square and an 8’ metal straightedge are more useful. A better tool choice for long cuts is a utility knife, as it’s less likely to wander or twist like the smaller #11 blade. The blades last longer, too, and you can get 100 double-ended blades for under five bucks. [tup]
Wayne
For what it’s worth here is a picture of a plastic cutter from Micro Mart.
I like this tool but as has been said let the blade do the work. On thin styrene one draw using a straight edge as has been reccomended will be sufficient to snap the styrene in two but on thicker styrene multiple cuts may be necessary. After the first cut the blade will pretty much stay in the groove.
For more details see link
http://www.micromark.com/plasticutter,7898.html
EDIT: You can also use this tool to cut shapes as well as straight cuts…just have to be more carefull. I use a pencil to draw what I want and then carefull trace over it with the cutter until I get a deep enough cut, somtimes all the way througb the styrene.
Bob
Get one of those self-healing cutting mats with a grid of 1" squares on it. Use these to align the edge of your styrene, as well as your steel rule.
Then just score and snap, as described above. Straignt cuts every time!
Hello If you have enough or can accumulate more try a local printer with a hydraulic paper cutter. A lot of times a screen printing establishment will have large scraps for the taking or at little cost, and most likely they will have a cutter there too. Before I retired from the printing trade I used the cutter at the shop to make a more than lifetime supply of 1/16 through 1" of .010 through .030 styrene. While I was doing it I cut plenty of 12x18 size because it fit in old film boxes. I doubt that I have even $5 or so dollars invested in the boxes of this stuff. Of course I had access to the cutter, and I do not know what someone would charge for the cutting. If you find a willing printer, ask about paper trimmings. I use a lot of paper for scratchbuilding, the trimmings are a lot of times just the right sizes for corner boards, facia boards and even flooring, and take paint well. I use what is called a coated one side board with a thickness of .008 to .024, the only thing I did was to get it before it went to the recycler. Not trying to take away from the retailers, but there are a lot of low or no cost materials out there. Steve
I don’t know if it’s been mentioned, but when scoring with a #11 Exacto blade, I use the back edge of a new blade with a straight edge. This helps prevent the blade from “wandering”.
I have a woodworkers type square and once i know exactly where i want it I clamp it using a small c-clamp. I normally have a piece of of 1/4" mdf under styrene so the sheet and MDF and square can all be clamped together. Like most everyone else I use a #11 blade. One key is not to try and scribe in one pass , use mutliple light passes with the #11 blase firmly against the square.
If you want a more precise/ 90 degree break especially for styrene 1/8" or thicker, scrore as mentioned but transfer/ measure to the backside and score again. This allows for a more accurate and easy to sand/ file cut. This is the same method used to get clean cuts in drywall.