LF acrylic drill bit

[Mael]

Specifically 1/2"

Making frag racks for the frag tank upgrade with extra black acrylic I have on hand, but I only have the forstner bit which actually does a good job but takes a long time to do 1 hole. Since I will be doing over 100 holes Id like something specific to the job, so if anyone knows where I can buy one locally or has one for sale I'd appreciate it.

Tried home depot and ace even though I knew they were long shots and they don't have anything, might try true value pending suggestions here.

Last resort is to modify a regular bit for acrylic.

 

[brian cummings]

The Ace Hardware on 32nd and Indian School has had in the past a few acrylic bits. Otherwise I'd ask one of the plastics suppliers, I've bought acrylic bits from them in the past.

 

[fourth horseman]

What thickness is the acrylic you are drilling through? I ask because the thicker acrylic I have had good luck with regular hole saw bits. The thin acrylic tends to catch on the bits and crack. The best bits that I have found are from Fisher Tools just south of Tempe Marketplace. They have carbide tips on them and a heavy spring on the pilot bit in the center. This actually holds the main bit off the acrylic and you can apply light preasure so the bit doesn't catch and grab the acrylic. They are pricey though, any where from 30 to 50 dollars depending on the size. Hope that helps....


I just checked and 1" is the smallest I have of the carbide tipped bits. You are welcome to borrow it and if 1" isn't too big.

 

[Mael]

Thank you for the offer but it needs to be 1/2" to hold standard and tapered frag plugs.

The acrylic is only 1/4" for the frag racks, even when I use plumbers putty to surround the hole and fill it with water I still have to back the bit out 4-5 times to refill the water and cool the acrylic.

I do have 1/2" acrylic but I don't plan on drilling that, unless I end up having to use it for the probe holder and doser line holder I am planning on making too. Those would be smaller holes and only 4 holes per piece so I can use what I have for those.

and thanks for the tip brian, Ill try a cpl different ace's, there are a few around here.

 

[dream54ing]

Alex, I never had to use water for drilling acrylic. Am I doing it wrong this whole time? I know glass you need to have water to keep from heating.

 

[Mael]

I was just told water helps keep it cool to prevent any melting or binding, honestly don't know if it is needed or not, I still have some scrap pieces I can test dry drilling on.

What kind of bit have you used, regular drill bit or forstner?

 

[landy]

I have found stepper / unibits to very handy for drilling acrylic. YMMV.

landy

 

[cromag08]

Keep in mind some plugs are larger than 1/2".

 

[Mael]

yah, this is mostly for the plugs I use which are the tapered stepped plugs or the stand ones which have been test fitted, I know which ones your talking about, though, and hate those suckers.

This is for half the tank, the other half will be home made frag domes/rocks for growing out frags into mini colonies.

As an update, per Francis' suggestion I tried a regular carbide 1/2" bit and it went through easy with no chipping. Ill be doing the rest with that bit, and then using a countersink bit to bevel the edges of the holes a tiny bit. Thanks for all the help to everyone who posted.

 

[Mael]

again thx for the input everyone, went with the 1/2" carbide bit mentioned above and it worked great, also picked up some plexiglass bits for my jig saw and it cut a very nice smooth edge which was more than I expected. 1 of 4 sheets almost done, just going to cut small 45* angles off the corners.

 

[cromag08]

Looking good. egg crate too ugly I assume?

 

[Mael]

Yah, I had white egg crate in my first frag tank and while it worked I didnt like the look and the white seems to grow algae more. That said if I end up thinking this design I did restricts flow around the frags too much Ill switch over to black egg crate and sell these racks off.

For now I plan on using a small powerhead above and below the racks to make sure flow is good and I dont get too much detrious settling like in the last tank. Ill also have the returns creating flow on this setup whereas I ran sumpless on the last one.