Is Acrylic best for things like router bases?

[Rich Engelhardt]

I want to make some specialty bases for my jig saw and routers.

Would Acrylic be the best or should I look at something else?

I prefer clear - but - I'm open to anything.

[Lee Schierer]

Polycarbonate is a better choice for a clear router base. It is much less likely to crack.

[Grant Wilkinson]

I use 1/4" corian or other solid surface material. It's not clear, but it is very durable.

[Thomas Wilson]

QUOTE=Lee Schierer;3119077]Polycarbonate is a better choice for a clear router base. It is much less likely to crack.[/QUOTE]

[Bert Kemp]

clear Cast acrylic is pretty tough stuff I think it would hold up ok.

[Jay Rasmussen]

Polycarbonate for sure. The trade names I've used are Lexan & Markolon. I know there are others.

[Zachary Hoyt]

I've had a 1/4" Plexiglas base on my router for a couple of years, the original black plastic or phenolic one was badly cracked when I got the router so I replaced it. It's not really clear enough to see through meaningfully, once it gets used a bit and the bottom gets scuffed, but it seems strong enough.

[Wes Grass]

1/4 to 3/8 acrylic (plexiglass) should be tough enough to handle a reasonable fall to concrete. And it's a whole lot cheaper the lexan.

I went with plexi on a project to save some money. And tried shearing the blanks ... wound up laying it all out and bsndsawing them to avoid a 2 hour round trip back to my tablesaw.

[glenn bradley]

I will agree that the base becomes foggy with use as a scratch pattern appears. For this reason clear is not as important as one might think. That being said all but one of my bases is clear but I don't find any value in being able to see through them . . . since they are more translucent that clear now. 3/8" plexi or polycarb both provide good service although I am not in the habit of dropping my routers :D

[Roger Feeley]

I use 1/4" corian or other solid surface material. It's not clear, but it is very durable.
Where do you get corian?

[Joe Chritz]

There are some places on the net that sell shorts from cabinet shops but not sure about .25".

There is also a host of industrial plastics available from a lot of suppliers but either acrylic or impact modified acrylic which would be a bit more durable but it is probably overkill.

Joe

[Curt Harms]

Where do you get corian?

A kitchen and bath fabricator may have small solid surface (not necessarily Corian) cutoffs but 1/4" is not all that common. Acrylic or Polycarbonate is much easier to find. I use 3/8" because I sometimes make the center hole fit a Porter Cable bushing. I don't find 1/4" thick enough for the stepped hole. I also sometimes counterbore rather than countersink the mounting holes and 3/8" is better for that.

[Bob Vaughan]

Phenolic is the slickest and gives the best control. Acrylic is ok. Polycarbonates have a drag to them because of the water in the plastic. That's also what makes that type of plastic so unbreakable. Its a trade-off. I've been making bases out of all sorts of plastics over the decades and they all work well enough.