Working With Plastics

Some people are not very familiar working with plastics.





So we will continuously be adding useful info about plastics, here are few first ones we put together:

Joining and Gluing ABS

Painting parts with molded-in colors - a great partnership.

Your Guide To ABS

Drop us a note if you find this info useful.

If you have more questions/topics you'd like us to cover in future posts, please respond to this thread or submit suggestion on our website using this form

 

Can you suggest a plastic type that is "gasoline" resistive for items like a funnel, etc, ABS, PLA....? Would not be used to store gasoline, but for poring etc.

 

A suitable plastic for making parts immersed in Gasoline would be helpful to know about.

 

A suitable plastic for making parts immersed in Gasoline would be helpful to know about.

HDPE (High Density Polyethelene) would be suitable from a chemical resistance standpoint. Lacking knowledge of any further design/cost implications it would be my go to suggestion. GLTY

 

HDPE (High Density Polyethelene) would be suitable from a chemical resistance standpoint. Lacking knowledge of any further design/cost implications it would be my go to suggestion. GLTY

Thanks,Mark.

 

Here are first 4 very simple videos we posted on YouTube, we decided to start with videos outlining the very basics.
Please help us out with topics that you think will be helpful and educational for machining plastics.
And we will make our best to work on making videos to cover topics you suggest.

Plastics are more flexible than metals or wood

How to Square a Plastic Block

Machining plastics - long and strong chips of material

How to clamp a plastic block into a vise

 

I have a very old antique Coke machine that I'm turning into a Kegerator. I have made a wooden door and have about 1" between the door and the machine for insulation. I want to make a cover over the insulation out of ABS because I want to bend it. Also, I want to use some on the inside to match up with the door to make a tight seal. I'm looking at .125" or .187" to work with. My problem is that I will have to drive to Atlanta to get it so I'm thinking of getting some extra sheets to have as they aren't expensive. To have them shipped here would cost way more that the sheets. (4'X8') Anyone have an information that might be helpful before I jump into this. I was thinking of making a mold and using a heat gun to bend it. The door part would be one piece but the inside would have to be open to put the keg in. It would have a 4" or 6" side that would be slanted to shut the door.

Keep in mind that ABS is a Hydroscopic plastic, over time and depending on the humidity it will absorb water from the atmosphere. I'm assuming the 4 x 8 sheets you're considering are "warehouse stock" and therefore difficult to determine shelf time. If possible I would lean towards use of a nichrome wire as heat source for the bend line. A slow soaking type heat is what you want to minimize potential surface blistering from any moisture absorption. There are sheet extrusion Co.s that run several "reds" on a fairly regular basis (Grain patterns ?? IDK) you might see about asking to get some samples. Look at a Spartech/Royalite color No 2018 red GLTY

 

Check out 3 new videos:

How to countersink a bolt.
How to avoid workpiece breakout while machining plastics
How to counterbore to suit SHCS (socket head cap screws)

 

What kind of plastics are used for firearm grips, ie; the plastic pistol grips and forearm grips on an Uzi? Or the backstrap on the Mac 10/11? Or the grip panels on the AMT 380?

 

What kind of plastics are used for firearm grips, ie; the plastic pistol grips and forearm grips on an Uzi? Or the backstrap on the Mac 10/11? Or the grip panels on the AMT 380?

Plastic grips for firearms can easily be machined from PVC or ABS. Both are good choices.
PVC is often used for machining grips with intricate designs. The use of a flexible PVC to bond to areas of the grips to enhance handling and/or to further decorate the part. Interesting opportunities to do excellent inlay work are possible because PVC and ABS do not significantly absorb water, twist, shrink or deform over time as long as they were a machinable grade material initially. Not all ABS and PVC materials are the same.
Look for machinable stress relieved grades.

 

Plastic grips for firearms can easily be machined from PVC or ABS. Both are good choices.
PVC is often used for machining grips with intricate designs. The use of a flexible PVC to bond to areas of the grips to enhance handling and/or to further decorate the part. Interesting opportunities to do excellent inlay work are possible because PVC and ABS do not significantly absorb water, twist, shrink or deform over time as long as they were a machinable grade material initially. Not all ABS and PVC materials are the same.
Look for machinable stress relieved grades.

Thank you sir. Would the ABS blocks you sell on your website be suitable for this purpose [ie; machineable stress relieved grade]?