Acrylic Prices

[Steve Clarkson]

So I needed to order some 1/2" clear cast acrylic today......of course, a 4'x8' sheet seems to be the minimum. Laird quoted me $329 and then Curbell quoted me $269.......so I called up the Curbell guy to confirm that it was cast and not extruded......since the guy who sent me the quote had left for the day, a second guy confirmed it was cast, but told me that he probably would have quoted me $279 since he thought the $269 quote was low.

So I guess I'm going to have to really start shopping around whenever I need acrylic.

[Michael Kowalczyk]

Hey Steve,
Is that delivered price??? Do they clean your house and detail your cars also for that price? Wow it's been a while since I bought any 1/2" acrylic but that sounds way high. Lairds has always been high unless you know someone good there. I use Calsak but don't know if they service your area. I have also used Professional plastics with good results.

[Scott Shepherd]

You also have to be aware that there are brand names and generic. There's a lot of acrylic being made in Mexico, and a lot coming from the China region. Both of those are inferior in quality by a long way compared to some of the main brands. I've even bought some Sabic (formerly known as GE Plastics) in black, only to remove the mask and see the sheet full of weird patterns running all through it. It's as if the product was cooling too fast when they were putting it in the mold. It didn't matter for the application I used it for, but if I needed clean, clear material for a display, that would have been rejected.

Most plastics places deal on tiered pricing too. Buy 1 sheet a month, it's $329, but 10 sheets a month, it's $189 a sheet. I've seen as much as 40% difference that way. I've been the 1 sheet guy, then had someone that buys a lot of material call up, and they tell me their price (I made up the prices above, that's not relative to any material pricing we get).

We've also found some good pricing from sign supply companies, only to have the material show up with all the corners chipped and the faces with scratches on them. Oh, the joys of buying plastic :)

[Amy Shelton]

Delvies Plastics has 1/2" cast in smaller sheets; I'm not sure how much you need.

[Larry Bratton]

Stuff is all over the board, always has been. Makes me suspect that there is a lot a margin in it for the distributor.

[Larry Bratton]

You also have to be aware that there are brand names and generic. There's a lot of acrylic being made in Mexico, and a lot coming from the China region. Both of those are inferior in quality by a long way compared to some of the main brands. I've even bought some Sabic (formerly known as GE Plastics) in black, only to remove the mask and see the sheet full of weird patterns running all through it. It's as if the product was cooling too fast when they were putting it in the mold. It didn't matter for the application I used it for, but if I needed clean, clear material for a display, that would have been rejected.

Most plastics places deal on tiered pricing too. Buy 1 sheet a month, it's $329, but 10 sheets a month, it's $189 a sheet. I've seen as much as 40% difference that way. I've been the 1 sheet guy, then had someone that buys a lot of material call up, and they tell me their price (I made up the prices above, that's not relative to any material pricing we get).

We've also found some good pricing from sign supply companies, only to have the material show up with all the corners chipped and the faces with scratches on them. Oh, the joys of buying plastic :)

I have used some cast material called Chemcast, made in Mexico and I would put it up against any of the domestic stuff. I have also gotten some junk from places like Indonesia.

[paul a rowsell]

What type of glue would you use to glue up say a small box made of acrylic. I am hoping I can find something in the local hardware store to do this job.

Help


Quebecnewf

[Dan Hintz]

Paul,

CA (cyanoacrylate - superglue)

[Tim Neal]

Paul,

CA (cyanoacrylate - superglue)

Good old super glue. I use to work for Rohm And Haas Co. They invented Plexiglas. It was made using a casting process in Bristol, PA. Before that business was sold, employees were able to buy it dirt cheap. Unfortunately, that was over 20 years ago. The best glue...a 50/50 mixture of Methylene Chloride and Glacial Acetic Acid. Just hold the two pieces together, and apply the mixture to the joint using a syringe. It would get sucked in by capillary action. It would dissolve the acrylic, then evaporate, leaving a joint that was super strong. Ahhh...those were the days....as long as you had good ventilation:eek:!!!

[Dan Ashlin]

I have used some cast material called Chemcast, made in Mexico and I would put it up against any of the domestic stuff. I have also gotten some junk from places like Indonesia.

Chemcast is good stuff, so is Marga Cipta. I've had nothing but good experiences with both.

[Robert Walters]

Good old super glue. I use to work for Rohm And Haas Co. They invented Plexiglas. It was made using a casting process in Bristol, PA. Before that business was sold, employees were able to buy it dirt cheap. Unfortunately, that was over 20 years ago. The best glue...a 50/50 mixture of Methylene Chloride and Glacial Acetic Acid. Just hold the two pieces together, and apply the mixture to the joint using a syringe. It would get sucked in by capillary action. It would dissolve the acrylic, then evaporate, leaving a joint that was super strong. Ahhh...those were the days....as long as you had good ventilation:eek:!!!

MEK (or a variant of MEK) is what's used today primarily - Nice solid chemical weld (as long as you start with clean, flat edge surfaces).

[Dan Hintz]

Good old super glue. I use to work for Rohm And Haas Co. They invented Plexiglas. It was made using a casting process in Bristol, PA.
Rohm and Haas' website claims Otto Rohm "discovered" it in 1931 (though reports show he came up with the method much earlier than that). Dr. William Chalmers, however, appears to be the first person to invent a fully clear version, patented in 1931, and later sold to Imperial Chemical Industries (later acquired by DuPont).

Interesting history on that stuff...

[Mark Giese]

Weldon 3, you will also need to get the applicator bottle with a needle tip, not the flexible tip. It is a solvent weld, as apposed to glue adhesion. There is also Weldon 16, a little more syrupy, comes in a tube that looks like an oversized toothpaste tube. Even though it is syrupy, it is still pretty thin.

[greg lindsey]

Although this may be a little late, I checked with my plastic distributer this morning after reading this and thier price for 1/2" clear acrylic is 220.00 for a 4 x 8 sheet, of course that is plus shipping. I use A&C Plastics, they are the wholsalers of wholsalers of plastics. They have wharehouses in Houston, Colorado and Chicago. Absolutley the best prices I have found anywhere.

[Scott Shepherd]

Larry, I agree with you on the Chemcast. I've had quite a few batches out of Mexico that wasn't marked, just the plain brown paper mask. No idea who made it, other than what I was told about it coming from Mexico. That's the stuff that I found to be very poor quality. We use Chemcast every so often and have found that to be good quality. Thanks for correcting me.

[Adam Orton]

On the subject of shopping around I just went to a plastics shop where a friend worked and didn't really check prices. Big Mistake!!! I wandered into a different company and they were extremely nice prices were better and they let me take scraps, PLUS I didn't have a container to buy Meth Chloride so they just gave me an old metal can 1/2 full.. SO yes checking about is good.

[Michael Kowalczyk]

Although this may be a little late, I checked with my plastic distributer this morning after reading this and thier price for 1/2" clear acrylic is 220.00 for a 4 x 8 sheet, of course that is plus shipping. I use A&C Plastics, they are the wholsalers of wholsalers of plastics. They have wharehouses in Houston, Colorado and Chicago. Absolutley the best prices I have found anywhere.
Hey Greg,
Call Mike at Calsak Plastics and you can save around 8-10% off of what you are paying now. Just tell him that I sent you, he's the manager, and that I said to take care of you. Who knows it may help you save some $$$$.

Hope this helps and ...

[greg lindsey]

Thanks Mike, I will give him a try.

[Gene Hobbs]

I get all my stuff from estreetplastics. It is all cut to the size you need it.

[Ed Maloney]

I've been using eStreet Plastics for my 12x24 cast acrylic sheets. What I really like about them is the fast delivery in under a week. They don't offer cast 1/16" so I use Delvies for that.

[Andrea Weissenseel]

Steve, don't you have a signmaker in your area ? Sometimes you can get really good deals there - especially if you don't need a complete sheet.

I use Acrifix from Evonik (formerly Röhm) to glue acrylic

[Larry Bratton]

Weldon 3, you will also need to get the applicator bottle with a needle tip, not the flexible tip. It is a solvent weld, as apposed to glue adhesion. There is also Weldon 16, a little more syrupy, comes in a tube that looks like an oversized toothpaste tube. Even though it is syrupy, it is still pretty thin.

I use a very small artist brush to apply Weldon #3 to the joint, I find it easier to do this than with a syringe. Load your brush to the verge of a drip. You can buy Weldon #16 in gallons(probably quarts too) also. I get a clear plastic bottle from Walmart (the same thing as a catsup dispenser) with a nozzle type tip, works great for #16.

[Steve Clarkson]

Although this may be a little late, I checked with my plastic distributer this morning after reading this and thier price for 1/2" clear acrylic is 220.00 for a 4 x 8 sheet, of course that is plus shipping. I use A&C Plastics, they are the wholsalers of wholsalers of plastics. They have wharehouses in Houston, Colorado and Chicago. Absolutley the best prices I have found anywhere.

Greg,

You're right about A&C.......I was pricing out a sheet of gold mirrored acrylic......Curbell & Delvies were in the $6.25-$6.75 per sq ft price range (depending on quantity) and A&C quoted me $5.15 per sf for an "off brand".