Wanted Acrylic supplier suggestions

speedstar · Oct 24, 2018

Looking for who I could check out for some acrylic sheet, want to be able to order cut to size with routed edge for gluing. Tapplastics I know of, anyone else?

I am a DIY guy and see no reason why I shouldn't be able to build a tank, especially since it will be inwall and I can hide the seems if needed

mrpizzaface · Oct 24, 2018

I think the person that cuts and routs the acrylic should be the same person to glue the acrylic.

speedstar · Oct 24, 2018

mrpizzaface said:
I think the person that cuts and routs the acrylic should be the same person to glue the acrylic.

And how is this helpful?

There are plastic suppliers that cut and edge finish that do not do assembly. Not sure what your point is.

count krunk · Oct 24, 2018

glasscages perhaps?

Nitcrawler · Oct 24, 2018

Canal plastic down town

cromag27 · Oct 24, 2018

the issue is that you will need some of the panels cut larger than needed, then you router off the excess.

speedstar · Oct 24, 2018

cromag27 said:
the issue is that you will need some of the panels cut larger than needed, then you router off the excess.

I have a table router and the correct bit, but want the routed edge as it is best for glue compared to just laser cut.

Edit see you know better than I would by experience. I have built small frag tanks but now want to do a 187g

cromag27 · Oct 24, 2018

speedstar said:
I have a table router and the correct bit, but want the routed edge as it is best for glue compared to just laser cut.

Edit see you know better than I would by experience. I have built small frag tanks but now want to do a 187g

that would be huge to maneuver on a table router, but a hand router would work. forget about lasers for anything that needs to be welded. cnc router is the way to go. the front, back, too and bottom would need to be slightly bigger than needed, then router off the rest after welding. we have a big acrylic thread here where you can read more about good brands and thicknesses and such.

cromag27 · Oct 24, 2018

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/acrylic-fabrication-q-a.224773/#post-2599288

speedstar · Oct 24, 2018

cromag27 said:
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/acrylic-fabrication-q-a.224773/#post-2599288

Thanks

mrpizzaface · Oct 25, 2018

speedstar said:
And how is this helpful?

There are plastic suppliers that cut and edge finish that do not do assembly. Not sure what your point is.

I apologize for the lack of clarity in my post. I was hoping to be helpful by trying to dissuade you from going down a road of needless risk. I wouldn't trust the edges of any acrylic that has been cut, routed, and shipped. Acrylic is heavy and the chance of edge damage during shipping is high ( i buy acrylic all the time). I think the same person should do the cutting, routing, and gluing because they can better monitor the quality of the routing and cutting. On something as large as what you are proposing I just wouldn't trust acrylic being prepped by an outside source. Too big of a risk for my taste.

speedstar · Oct 25, 2018

mrpizzaface said:
I apologize for the lack of clarity in my post. I was hoping to be helpful by trying to dissuade you from going down a road of needless risk. I wouldn't trust the edges of any acrylic that has been cut, routed, and shipped. Acrylic is heavy and the chance of edge damage during shipping is high ( i buy acrylic all the time). I think the same person should do the cutting, routing, and gluing because they can better monitor the quality of the routing and cutting. On something as large as what you are proposing I just wouldn't trust acrylic being prepped by an outside source. Too big of a risk for my taste.

Thanks definitely something to keep in mind.

Lowell Lemon · Oct 25, 2018

speedstar said:
I have a table router and the correct bit, but want the routed edge as it is best for glue compared to just laser cut.

Edit see you know better than I would by experience. I have built small frag tanks but now want to do a 187g

I have a cnc router with a 109"×76" cut area. What material and panel sizes do you want? I could ship flat to you and you assemble. Built thousands of tanks as a business for over 30 years.

lapin · Oct 25, 2018

speedstar said:
Looking for who I could check out for some acrylic sheet, want to be able to order cut to size with routed edge for gluing. Tapplastics I know of, anyone else?
I am a DIY guy and see no reason why I shouldn't be able to build a tank, especially since it will be inwall and I can hide the seems if needed

Where are you located?
There are a few national plastic suppliers that can supply you sheets of cell cast acrylic.
Here in Austin I use Regal Plastics.
The thinner stuff I can route the edges myself and they dont charge much to do the cuts.
If it is 1/2 or thicker, I dont have the equipment. For that,I have them route the pieces on a CNC machine. Those edges are just fine for bonding. In fact if you are using sci-grip #40 or any other thick mixture for the seams you will have to hit the edges with #400 wet dry sand paper. This gives the #40 a good surface to bond.