Bending Plexiglass
Peter Harper
Hey there gang,
Seasons Greetings to you all, and happy new year. I hope you all got lots
of cool bike parts for Christmas.
I'm building a small leather motorcycle helmet for our dog. It has a
plexiglass visor which I'm trying to bend to the right shape. The
plexiglass is about 1/8" thick.
If anyone has any household solutions or methods for doing this I would
appreciate hearing from them.
Thank you very much,
--
Peter Harper VN1500-A9 XS650 |
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada VROC #381 |
bo...@freenet.carleton.ca |
har...@algonquinc.on.ca |
Jack
bo...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Peter Harper) said:
>I'm building a small leather motorcycle helmet for our dog. It has a
>plexiglass visor which I'm trying to bend to the right shape. The
>plexiglass is about 1/8" thick.
>
>If anyone has any household solutions or methods for doing this I would
>appreciate hearing from them.
Dip it in hot boiling water.
(the visor, not the dog) ;-)
--
Paddlefoot
http://www.geocities.com/yosemite/7579
1997 bike picture archive http://www.geocities.com/yosemite/7579/1997.html
Norm Young
Jack wrote:
>
> bo...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Peter Harper) said:
>
> >I'm building a small leather motorcycle helmet for our dog. It has a
> >plexiglass visor which I'm trying to bend to the right shape. The
> >plexiglass is about 1/8" thick.
> >
> >If anyone has any household solutions or methods for doing this I would
> >appreciate hearing from them.
>
> Dip it in hot boiling water.
> (the visor, not the dog) ;-)
>
Or use a blow-dryer.
(Rumour has it Mr. Dal Farra might have one for sale)
Norm
Bill
Jack wrote:
>
> bo...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Peter Harper) said:
>
> >I'm building a small leather motorcycle helmet for our dog. It has a
> >plexiglass visor which I'm trying to bend to the right shape. The
> >plexiglass is about 1/8" thick.
> >
> >If anyone has any household solutions or methods for doing this I would
> >appreciate hearing from them.
>
> Dip it in hot boiling water.
> (the visor, not the dog) ;-)
This may work... I've used the oven.. but it's been long enough ago I
can't remember the temp. I'd start at about 250f and you'll know in
about 10 minutes if it hot enough to allow it to form. If it's a simple
leather helmet, you might want to consider building a form from
something
like cardboard that you can drape the "flexi-glass" over till it cools.
With control, you can torch the edges of the plexiglas to make a nice
transparent edge after some sanding with gradually lighter sandpapers.
--
-
Bill Splaine- 96 FLHTCU aka Ole Blue
Healdsburg, California
Stevo
You can use a hair dryer, experiment with the distance and heat settings to
get the required elasticity into the p'glass. If necessary you can mask off
areas that don't require bending. I've managed some very tight bends this
way and some compound shapes, curves etc. There is some distotion of view
through the bend though, depending on how tight the curve is. A 'former'
(desired shape) can be used, with the plexiglass being heated to drape
itself down over the shape as it is heated.
--
Devo
SRV250, Duke 450 Special
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,
- get it out with Optrex! Spike Milligan
Peter Harper <bo...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA> wrote in article
<68g95k$o...@freenet-news.carleton.ca>...
>
> Hey there gang,
>
> Seasons Greetings to you all, and happy new year. I hope you all got lots
> of cool bike parts for Christmas.
>
> I'm building a small leather motorcycle helmet for our dog. It has a
> plexiglass visor which I'm trying to bend to the right shape. The
> plexiglass is about 1/8" thick.
>
> If anyone has any household solutions or methods for doing this I would
> appreciate hearing from them.
>
Donn Schaefer
Has anybody tried making a DIY replacement windscreen for a sportbike?
On many bikes there is only a single curve on the windscreen. I wondered
how difficult it would be to perform the following steps:
1. Place paper over existing windscreen. Trace and cut.
2. Buy plexiglass cut into the shape of your template.
3. Drill holes.
4. Fasten into place on bike.
I don't even think you would need to "form" the plexiglass using
heat as the bend might be very slight. (The example I'm thinking of is an
'86 ZX900.) This would probably be much less likely to crack than an
aftermarket product. (Maier.) Also alot cheaper than paying the $45 or
so dollars for an aftermarket screen.
Comments? I'm going to make a paper template in case my bike goes down at
some point :)
donn
On 1 Jan 1998, Stevo wrote:
> You can use a hair dryer, experiment with the distance and heat settings to
> get the required elasticity into the p'glass. If necessary you can mask off
> areas that don't require bending. I've managed some very tight bends this
> way and some compound shapes, curves etc. There is some distotion of view
> through the bend though, depending on how tight the curve is. A 'former'
> (desired shape) can be used, with the plexiglass being heated to drape
> itself down over the shape as it is heated.
Mike McGinnis
try a heat gun, or hair dryer to soften it. I have heard of putting it in the
oven on a VERY low heat to heat it all uniformly. Then bend it over a shaped
piece of wood.
In article <68g95k$o...@freenet-news.carleton.ca>, bo...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA
says...
Peter Harper
Jack (paddl...@cococo.net) writes:
> bo...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Peter Harper) said:
>
>>I'm building a small leather motorcycle helmet for our dog. It has a
>>plexiglass visor which I'm trying to bend to the right shape. The
>>plexiglass is about 1/8" thick.
>>
>>If anyone has any household solutions or methods for doing this I would
>>appreciate hearing from them.
>
> Dip it in hot boiling water.
> (the visor, not the dog) ;-)
This worked.
I tried the oven thing but had nothing to lay it on after it was heated
that wouldn't leave marks.
The boiling water worked well but it would have been nice if the boiling
temperature of water was about 40 degrees higher. i t would have made
things easier. I may petition to revise some of the laws of physics.
Thanks for all the great suggestion I received. The helmet looks real good.
Black leather trimmed in sheepskin with a nice visor.
Some people also suggested hair dryers, but I never got to trying that
method so I can't say for sure. (Dave, hang on to yours, it'll grow back)
Dave Emerson
Jack wrote:
>
> bo...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Peter Harper) said:
>
> >I'm building a small leather motorcycle helmet for our dog. It has a
> >plexiglass visor which I'm trying to bend to the right shape. The
> >plexiglass is about 1/8" thick.
> >
> >If anyone has any household solutions or methods for doing this I would
> >appreciate hearing from them.
>
> Dip it in hot boiling water.
Is there any other type?
> (the visor, not the dog) ;-)
>
Dave-ID
Dave Emerson <Deme...@ford.com> wrote in article
<34AD31...@ford.com>...
> Jack wrote:
> >
> > bo...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Peter Harper) said:
[snip]
> > Dip it in hot boiling water.
> ^^^
> Is there any other type?
Yes.
Skip Cristi
> > >plexiglass visor which I'm trying to bend to the right shape. The
> > >plexiglass is about 1/8" thick.
> > >
> > >If anyone has any household solutions or methods for doing this I would
> > >appreciate hearing from them.
> >
> ^^^
> Is there any other type?
>
> >
> > --
> > Paddlefoot
> > http://www.geocities.com/yosemite/7579
> > 1997 bike picture archive http://www.geocities.com/yosemite/7579/1997.html
wiring. an industrial model works good on 1/8" lexan. just don't let it
get too hot.
Jack
"Stevo" <st...@bit.net.au> said:
>You can use a hair dryer, experiment with the distance and heat settings to
>get the required elasticity into the p'glass. If necessary you can mask off
>areas that don't require bending. I've managed some very tight bends this
>way and some compound shapes, curves etc. There is some distotion of view
>through the bend though, depending on how tight the curve is. A 'former'
>(desired shape) can be used, with the plexiglass being heated to drape
>itself down over the shape as it is heated.
Way kewl! Just heat the plexiglass and drape it over the dog's head!
never mind that smell of burning hair, it'll go away...
Rick Leir
Peter Harper wrote:
>
> Jack (paddl...@cococo.net) writes:
> > bo...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Peter Harper) said:
> > Dip it in hot boiling water.
> > (the visor, not the dog) ;-)
>
> This worked.
>
> The boiling water worked well but it would have been nice if the boiling
> temperature of water was about 40 degrees higher.
the experimental aviation folks use an oil bath to get the right
temperature.
cheers -- Rick
by the way, this group has spam spm spam spam. could we moderate it?
--
Rick Leir n rleir no spam at igs dot net
http://www.igs.net/~rleir
613-828-8289 7951 Rocinante
Jeff Pierce
Peter Harper wrote:
>
> Hey there gang,
>
> Seasons Greetings to you all, and happy new year. I hope you all got lots
> of cool bike parts for Christmas.
>
> plexiglass visor which I'm trying to bend to the right shape. The
> plexiglass is about 1/8" thick.
>
> If anyone has any household solutions or methods for doing this I would
> appreciate hearing from them.
>
Pete,
make a form out of a close grained wood and place the plexigass over
the form and place in the oven. KEEP AN EYE ON IT!!! After a while the
plexiglass gets soft and "drapes" down over the form. Remove from the
oven as a unit. Allow plexiglass to cool before removing from the form.
Jeff
Jack
Jeff Pierce <pie...@preferred.com> said:
>Pete,
> make a form out of a close grained wood and place the plexigass over
>the form and place in the oven. KEEP AN EYE ON IT!!! After a while the
>plexiglass gets soft and "drapes" down over the form. Remove from the
>oven as a unit. Allow plexiglass to cool before removing from the form.
Jeff, Jeff, Jeff, that's way too much work. Just place the plexiglass
over the dog's head and put it in the oven. No need to keep an eye on
it, just wait for the howls to subside and it'll be about right.
Chris Lewis
In article <68ovrb$7pd$1...@news.igs.net>,
Rick Leir <"rleir no sp"@am at igs dot net.> wrote:
>by the way, this group has spam spm spam spam. could we moderate it?
The spam is pretty easy to detect, and I'll set something up. Shouldn't
be necessary to moderate the group.
--
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