Thread: Cutting thin acrylic.

Nice scales! I noticed the stress cracking at the end pins.

Not to cause a panic, but to acquaint you with some work shop possibilities. Here is a short note on Acrylic annealing:

Occasionally, If plastics are overheated while buffing, machining, sawing, or if over stressed while fastening, it may become very brittle and will stress crack. The cause is internal stress, built up by cooling of the part at different rates after the process. That may cause future problems if it is subjected to washing with alcohol or some strong cleaners. The only remedy is to not overheat any surface while machining or buffing. If the Acrylic has possibly been over heated, it may be annealed by application of heat to about 18oºF till it is at the same temperature throughout and held at that temperature held for for an hour or two and then allowed to cool very slowly. It is best to have it pressed between flat surfaces. Try it on some sheet you can risk. I have used a couple clean 1/8th inch thick aluminum sheets and almost boiling water in a large pan, ~180º-190ºF.
Think of all the plastic boxes that you've seen with crazing marks internal to the plastic..
Here is a link to a very good short article.
MINIMIZE IMPACT OF STRESS ON ACRYLIC SHEET THROUGH ANNEALING: Plastic Distributor & Fabricator

Bye the way, "Cast Acrylic" from a supplier will survive working processes with less internal stress as there is no manufacturing stress built into it. Altogether a better idea for making razors to be passed on for generations. Extruded acrylic has internal stresses from the manufacturing process.

Respectfully
~Richard