Lexan

[Bernie Weishapl]

I made a crosscut sled for my table saw and finished it today. I was thinking of putting a piece of lexan from front to back about 4 to 6 inches wide as blade guard. First off do you think it is necessary? Second I have a piece 3 ft X 3 ft X 3/8" lexan that was given to me for free. I know this stuff is kind of expensive. My other question is, are there any polishes out there that I can polish this lexan as it is pretty scratch and dull. I figure I would be worse off putting a piece like this on the sled if you can't see what is going on than to just leave it off. Thanks.

[Roy Wall]

Bernie,

I recently called around the KC area.....3/8" Lexan runs about $16 a sq. ft. - so you've got a $144 piece of plastic. I"d love to find the "scrap bin" where I can get a 2' square for a buck!!

I would use it for blade guard if it was clean and clear. six inch strip and you still have plenty of Lexan left:)

I also want to hear the product that will clean it up:confused: -- only thing that comes to mind is Bon Ami -- but I'll wait and see......

[Tom Hamilton]

Here's a couple of pics of a lexan cover on a cc sled. One shows the vac attached to collect some of the dust.

Note the hinged wings on the sides to provide another level of dust collection.

Best regards, TJH

[Phil Phelps]

I made a crosscut sled for my table saw and finished it today. I was thinking of putting a piece of lexan from front to back about 4 to 6 inches wide as blade guard. First off do you think it is necessary? Second I have a piece 3 ft X 3 ft X 3/8" lexan that was given to me for free. I know this stuff is kind of expensive. My other question is, are there any polishes out there that I can polish this lexan as it is pretty scratch and dull. I figure I would be worse off putting a piece like this on the sled if you can't see what is going on than to just leave it off. Thanks.
I use a buffing wheel with tripole compound. Now Plexiglas is much easier because it's plastic. You need to sand first with 400, 600, and then lightly buff with a # 40 buffing wheel. Don't let the wheel dig in. Good luck.

[Hank Knight]

Bernie, I think you're misinformed abnout the cost of lexan. I've bought it from my local glass/plastics supplier for not nearly what you're saying it costs. Check out MSC Industrial Supply (www.mscdirect.com) for pricing. I think you'll find it less expensive than you thought.
Also, I don't think I'd use 3/8" lexan on a sled. That's way too heavy for what you need. I'd look at 3/16" or 1/4" max for your application. It's a lot less expensive than 3/8" and would, IMHO, work better. I have 3/16" on my sled and it works just fine. Buy some new material and leave the covering paper on while you cut it to size so it doesn't get scratched up. I wouldn't want a table saw guard I couldn't see through clearly.
My $.02.

My Error: 3/8" lexan is almost $16/sq foot. 3/16" is about half that price. To me, it would be worth it to buy a 12"X24" sheet of 3/16" for about $15 and start with new, clear plastic for your guard.

[Brad Townsend]

Bernie, I think you're misinformed abnout the cost of lexan. I've bought it from my local glass/plastics supplier for not nearly what you're saying it costs. Check out MSC Industrial Supply (www.mscdirect.com (http://www.mscdirect.com)) for pricing. I think you'll find it less expensive than you thought.
Also, I don't think I'd use 3/8" lexan on a sled. That's way too heavy for what you need. I'd look at 3/16" or 1/4" max for your application. It's a lot less expensive than 3/8" and would, IMHO, work better. I have 3/16" on my sled and it works just fine. Buy some new material and leave the covering paper on while you cut it to size so it doesn't get scratched up. I wouldn't want a table saw guard I couldn't see through clearly.
My $.02.

I too have been buying Lexan locally lately and $16 a sq. ft. seemed high to me as well. I just clicked on the mscdirect link however and a sq.ft. of 3/8" would cost over $32! Don't think you want to buy it from them. Should also note that Lexan is a GE brand name. Ask for polycarbonate. May be a different brand, but it's the same thing.

[Tony Falotico]

Hey All, I have purchased lexan cutoffs on e-bay. There is a guy who sells cutoffs. I got three 12"x18" cutoffs of 3/8" Lexan for $8. It's heavy, so shipping was about $11. Still much cheaper than the borgs, and cheaper than any web sites I'd found. Great for guards, jigs, whatever. There usually isn't much (any) competitive bidding on the stuff, and he seems to have a good supply.

If you search lexan, you'll get pages of stuff, he usually lists by it's proper name Polyethylene or Polycarbonate. If your interested PM me and I'll give you his e-bay handle.

I have No affiliation, I don't sell on e-bay, just passing along what I hope is useful information.

[Hank Knight]

Brad, Roy wall got it right. When I pull up the MSC Direct sight and type "Lexan" in the key word search and 3/8" thickness, it shows a 12"X12" sheet of 3/8" polycarbonate for $15.54. That's still a lot higher than I thought it would be. I'll bet the price is tied to the cost of oil. I've got a few pieces laying around my shop. Maybe I'll take them down and put them in my safe deposit box.
You're right about the "Lexan" trade name, and I agree that "polycarbonate" can probably be had cheaper than "Lexan."

[Rob Blaustein]

I've had good luck buying the 'odds and ends' box at freckleface.com. Check out: http://freckleface.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/plasticmaterialodds&ends.html
Also, they have 3/8 x 26 3/4 x 9 1/2 polycarbonate sheets for $14.89. Another place is TAP plastics (http://www.tapplastics.com), though I haven't gotten anything from them.

[Brad Townsend]

I went at it through the general product listing and came up with a price of $32.58 for the same piece of Lexan. Something is goofy with the MSC website.

[Dale Critchlow]

I get scraps of 1/4" lexan for free from a local glass dealer. Unfortunately, he doesn't use 3/8" very often.

They are big enough to build guards, etc.

Dale

[Bruce Page]

Bernie, I used a small piece of Lexan just at the front of my sled where the blade comes through. I mounted two oak cross pieces for stability and they also serve as handles when I pull the sled out from under my TS. “Mothers” makes a good plastic polish that does a great job on hazing and light scratches.

[Bernie Weishapl]

I already have a piece of Lexan that was given to me for free. It is about 3' X 3' X 3/8". The problem I have is that it is scuffed up and was wondering if it could be polished so it would be clear again. If it can't be polished to where it has some clarity I will go down a get me a piece of 3/16" new piece for a guard. There would be no sense in using it for a guard if you only have limited vision thru it. I just thought since I had this piece and if I could get it polished to where it would be usable great. Thanks again for all the replies. I appreciate it.

[Mickey Elam]

There are a number of methods available for clearing up the scratches. The first that comes to mind is wet-or-dry sandpaper in the medium and finer grits. I'd probably start at about 1000 grit and see if that made a difference and then progress up through the grits. You can always go to a coarser grit if the finer grits don't do the job. I'd add a bit of hand dish detergent to the water so that the residue would stay in suspension better.

There are also a number of plastic polishes available; I'm familiar with Novus, but Mother's and Meguiar's also have plastic polishes.

[Bill White]

Meguier's is what I have used with good results.