Polishing tips

[George Elston]

I have a job coming in that is 1200 small (1x2 inch rectangles) 1/8" acrylic pieces that need the edges polished, any body have any tips on how to tackle this bear? Seems a little small for flame polishing, but I need some ideas, it's looks like a couple of hours cutting and a couple of days polishing.

[Doug Griffith]

One thing you can do is clamp stacks of them together in a vise or F style clamp and flame poilsh that way.

[George Elston]

I've only flame polished acrylic cut on a router, do I still need to sand and steel wool the pieces before polishing? I would think not as the edge is clean, I just need to round the sharp edges, and do the edges stick together when you flame polish in stacks?

[Doug Griffith]

The need for sanding and steel wool depends on how well the laser cut is.

Flaming is such a quick action that they don't stick together. I'd experiment with some scrap.

Sharp edges will probably need a quick pass with a file.

[Scott Shepherd]

George, you're polishing the edges because....? Because you need them clear or you need the edges rounded a little bit?

[George Elston]

George, you're polishing the edges because....? Because you need them clear or you need the edges rounded a little bit?


Rounded a little bit

[Rodne Gold]

The best way is to use a buffing wheel with a hard mop and a fine tripoli bar , will round and polish in one go.

[Marc Myer]

I've found some success rounding edges on acrylic. It's a good way to eliminate ridges: the rounding effect isn't huge but helpful in really precise work where polishing is not practical.
Cut the acrylic as usual. Then run the same file, only increase the speed (I triple the speed from say, 12 to 36) and do a manual focus. I pull the focus out by about a half inch and run the job again.
The beam expands a bit and melts the leading edge down. I haven't experimented much, but the effect could potentially be amplified.

[Doug Griffith]

It sounds like stacking won't work if you need rounded edges.

It may cut some time if you cut only one axis and then polish as long strips. Then put back in the laser and cut on the other axis.

Cheers

[Stephen Beckham]

George - just a thought, but have you thought about outsourcing this one? You could order them from a plastic provider pre-cut and polished edges. Quotes are free - I'd ask. It will obviously cut down on the profit, but will also cut down on the labor intensive work required.

[Rodne Gold]

I would actually agree with Stephen , I think this job will be a major schlep at not much money.