Thoughts on sandwiched acrylic

[Jeff Wilkins]

Okay, I was asked to make a paper weight for a gift and here is what I came up with. It is the logo that I cut into three layers, lasered each layer, color filled them a different color and then sandwiched them together and glued with this stuff. A couple of questions,

1. Should I be doing this (aka can this be done and look good?)
2. If yes, how can I make it so the glue cannot be seen?
3. If no, how would you recommend doing this?

Thanks for the help. I have attached the corel file as well that shows the three layers. I did reverse engrave and quickly color filled it (didn't let it dry completely before buffing (not the best job) just needed a quick prototype to show).

[Mike Null]

Jeff

First, thanks for showing the pictures of your experiment. I'm not sure what you want to do can be done to your satisfaction but there are other cements which might work better. Do a search for transparent or invisible acrylic cements and something will turn up. The other thing is to use a color fill that won't be affected by the cement.

There is another way and that is to use a heat transfer product from Magictouch which is placed on the bottom of a thicker piece and pressed in placed then trimmed and a felt type cover put on the bottom of that.

http://www.themagictouchusa.com/decorate_Crystal_Acrylic_with_TheMagicTouch_ORD8.1 _Transfer_Paper-tv-9njhvJYqlHA.php

[Nick Foley]

Jeff -

I don't know much about your coloring steps, but I have experience doing acrylic display cases where the glue line had to be invisible, and here's what I remember:

1) Weld on makes many different versions of that acrylic cement - with different numbers indicating different viscosities and curing speeds. I believe it is the thinner, slower curing solvents which give the clearest bonds (#4).

2) Make an alignment jig so that you can drop them in place perfectly, without trapping any bubbles or messing up the edges with overlap.


Even with a perfect setup, some edge sanding/buffing could be necessary. It seems like a workable method though - I'd be surprised if someone, somewhere wasn't using it with success.

[Dee Gallo]

Yes, Jeff, thanks for making this experiment! I wonder if you designed it so that there was a frosted border around the edge, could you then glue in there and only there to avoid gluing at all over the designs? The frost would disguise the glue. Also - just a design suggestion - change the font - it's hard to read!

I do think the idea has merit and the results could be very good... and desirable by paying customers!

cheers, dee

[Doug Griffith]

Since you are cutting the perimeter with the laser, there is most likely a slight raised edge that will cause a gap when sandwiching the pieces together. Since it is rectangular, I suggest saw or router cutting, gluing, and then block sanding/flame polishing the edges. I would also use a press or clamps with enough pressure to squeeze the air out when gluing up.

[Frank Corker]

Look on YouTube for Tap plastics, they do a very good explanation on gluing acrylic. You appear to have either moved one or both layers after having applied the glue. Any dust particle is going to show as a bubble, any movement will show as a smear, dirty surfaces equal poor results.

[Steve Clarkson]

I would definitely not use Weldon for this.......if it touches the paint it will smear it. You probably only need a small dot of optically clear adhesive in each of the four corners. And if you flame polish the edges, I would recommend doing that before you engrave and color fill.

[Michael Hunter]

Answer to question 1 is YES - the first results look very promising.

As to the glueing, I'm not the one to ask as I mainly get it in my hair and not on the job.

[Martin Boekers]

Weld on isn't a glue, but a solvent. So it doesn't glue the edges but actually melts them together.
Surfaces must be absolutly clean and smooth. You may have an issue with engraving into it, since
Weld On doesn't actually "fill" an area like glue would. You may check for a UV cure glue that may work.
You also conside what Mike recommended with Magic Touch or even a waterslide decal. If your not
opposed to posts. you could cut circles in each corner and put a post through them or an acrylic rod.
One more interesting thing would be to try a something like this as the some super glue would probably
hold it together. You can fit these pieces together.

Show us when you get what you like. It's nice to get folks thinking out of the box!

Marty

[Joe Pelonio]

I have done multiple layers of clear and sometimes black acrylic, in a similar manner, but what I did was wrap 2 mil clear vinyl around the edges. It becomes invisible and helps diminish the lines between layers. I used 24" from my sign supply and cut it on the plotter to the correct width. You have to be careful when applying to keep the layers tightly together and at the same time avoid fingerprints on the adhesive side of the vinyl or they will show.

[Jeff Wilkins]

Well I didn't have enough time to fiddle with the 3 layers but this is what I came up with. Not to bad for the time constraint that I had. Thanks for the suggestions. This one was a scrap one because the edge chipped when coming out. My speed setting wasn't low enough.
232403232405232404
jw

[Dee Gallo]

And your solution was ????

[Joe Hillmann]

I know you aren't working on it any more but I would suggest, first make sure the surfaces to be joined are spotless. Then clamp them together nice and tight then rub a q-tip dipped in acetone around the seam and through capillary action the acetone should be sucked into the joint and glue it together.

[Joe Hillmann]

I just tried gluing two pieces together with acetone. It was full of bubbles except for the area that was directly under the clamp, that area was nice and clear