Acrylic fabrication questions? I can help!
- Thread starter JohnL
- Start date
Before polishing; yes you can wipe with denatured alcohol.
After polishing, alcohols should never even come near the material, especially after flame polishing.
The above pic appears to have been cleaned with a solvent after polishing. I don't specifically know if it was, but it has that look about it..
James
Giovanni
AKA Flippa
not much you really can do about it..
looks like it was cleaned with alcohol or some other solvent based cleaner..
James
Will it get worse?
that's something no one can answer with absolute certainty. If you take care of it from here; I've seen tanks far worse last many, many years.
I know that's not the direct answer you may have been looking for, just that I can't give an "absolute" answer..
James
sick_bubblegum
New member
so i put together a tank, and it looks like i have some air bubbles here and there. they aren't too big and the tank did pass a leak test. the bubbles didn't appear until AFTER i pulled the pins. also, the pins themselves also left air pockets. i made sure (or at least tried to...) there was equal pressure on each pin. my acrylic was cut with a cnc machine, so the edges were completely smooth. any way to avoid the air bubbles in the future?
Practice...
FWIW, CNCs generally suck, I've *rarely* seen any edges by one that were worth gluing. Maybe 1 in a 1000.. maybe
Not knowing your set-up or material you used - impossible to give many suggestions, but I can tell you that you let the solvent soak too long.
James
Setting up a 240 gallon acrylic tank, and have cut away the support surface in the area of the overflow box. I'm a bit concerned that the area not supported is larger than the overflow box area. Am I at risk for a problem if I fill the tank with water leaving that area unsupported?
Thanks for the help.
Thanks for the help.
Attachments
sick_bubblegum
New member
Practice...
FWIW, CNCs generally suck, I've *rarely* seen any edges by one that were worth gluing. Maybe 1 in a 1000.. maybe
Not knowing your set-up or material you used - impossible to give many suggestions, but I can tell you that you let the solvent soak too long.
James
yeah, i knew i didn't pull the pins at 30 secs. the tank dimensions are 36 x 18 x 12. it was hard to make it completely around the tank in 30 secs. the cnc'd edges felt smooth to me but i don't know if there were minute imperfections that i couldn't see/feel. the plastics shop did not have a table router available, and i didn't think i could get a perfect edge with one of those cheapie table routers.
and this morning, it seems as if i can't even get this stuff to flame polish! i've flame polished many times before, so i know i'm doing it correctly (using a propane torch). i'm going to call the shop and ask what brand of acrylic they sell.
the best polishing is done with hydrogen/oxygen torch..cleanest of all - no soot and the temps are perfect
James
honestly, it's luck o' the draw. Sometimes people can glue to flamed material without crazing after it's rested some... sometimes not. But no, there's no *good* way and 40 will craze just as any other solvent.
James
Steveb
Premium Member
I'm guessing but probably not worth it to try and remove say 1/32 or 1/16" of the edge with a router? Heating probably affects more than just the edge?
James,
Bud has asked me to get your input on a tank that I'm currently quoting for a customer. I've done several searches in these threads and found tons of information but I'd like to know you opinion on a setup.
My customer wants a 48x18x10 rimless frag tank. This tank WILL be set up and used 24/7 as a coral display in his home. After finding some of your deflection estimates for similar spans I was thinking 1" sides with maybe 1/2" for the bottom panel. I asked Bud for his opinion and he said I could possibly need more than that and I should chase down your thoughts before I quote.
Thanks for any advice you can offer.
Bud has asked me to get your input on a tank that I'm currently quoting for a customer. I've done several searches in these threads and found tons of information but I'd like to know you opinion on a setup.
My customer wants a 48x18x10 rimless frag tank. This tank WILL be set up and used 24/7 as a coral display in his home. After finding some of your deflection estimates for similar spans I was thinking 1" sides with maybe 1/2" for the bottom panel. I asked Bud for his opinion and he said I could possibly need more than that and I should chase down your thoughts before I quote.
Thanks for any advice you can offer.
itche_scratche
New member
how do I remove the over run weld-on 4? I used weld on 4 to attach my tank. Couple spot i accidently put too much weld-on 4 that cause over run to the bottom side to acrylic. now it dried up and leave some mark. can any body help me how to remove it?
thanks in advance.
thanks in advance.
