Lexan...{long}

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Posted by =-JacK-= on October 04, 1999 at 20:35:41:

My panel for the MK2 is coming along nicely...pictures as soon as I can borrow the digital camera from work . I just wanted to put up a quick post about Plexiglas / Lexan. After I got the 4 joysticks and 20 buttons layed out and drilled, I covered it with the ubiquitous black marble contact paper (BTW if anyone wonders why several examples here use this stuff….it is the ONLY one at Wal-Mart that is not pink or flowery). It was obvious that this covering would not stand up to any abuse, so I wanted to protect it. I went to Home Depot, where they have Plexiglas and Lexan in 1/8”. Being the cheapskate that I am, I opted for the Plexiglas, which was about 1/3 the price of the Lexan. Yes I had read how hard it is to drill Plexiglas, but I was sure I could handle it…after all I only had to precisely drill 24 each 1 1/8” and 22 each 3/8” holes...no sweat. After 1 hole in the Plexiglas I realized I’d made a terrible mistake.

Back to Home Depot….I got the 1/8” Lexan (cut precisely to size for no charge, including a 7/8” strip for the front edge of the panel). I placed it on my drilled panel, bored a couple of holes to hold it securely in place. Two hours later I’m done!

CONCLUSION:
Lexan is an amazing product. I drilled the 3/8” holes with a regular metal drill bit and countersunk them with a cheap wood countersink. I drilled the 1 1/8”s with a bimetal wood hole saw. This stuff is like sheet metal to work with. I only found a couple of things to look out for:
1. Cool the drill bit or hole saw between each cut. A hot bit doesn’t ruin the piece, but if it gets too hot while drilling you will have to shave off a ridge that will form around the hole. No big deal but time consuming.
2. Be careful not to scratch the piece. All the tools I used on this can easily leave a nasty scratch.

BONUS:
Even with all the buttons and bolts tight the Lexan doesn’t deform. On the original MK2 panel the Plexiglas looks great, but it is “pulled down” around all the bolts. From 3 feet away the Lexan panel looks like plate glass.

Sorry to be long winded....

=-JacK-=

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thanks for the info... i know what i'm gonna use now :-) *nt* exph 10/05/99 (0)

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: My panel for the MK2 is coming along nicely...pictures as soon as I can borrow the digital camera from work <G>. I just wanted to put up a quick post about Plexiglas / Lexan. After I got the 4 joysticks and 20 buttons layed out and drilled, I covered it with the ubiquitous black marble contact paper (BTW if anyone wonders why several examples here use this stuff….it is the ONLY one at Wal-Mart that is not pink or flowery). It was obvious that this covering would not stand up to any abuse, so I wanted to protect it. I went to Home Depot, where they have Plexiglas and Lexan in 1/8”. Being the cheapskate that I am, I opted for the Plexiglas, which was about 1/3 the price of the Lexan. Yes I had read how hard it is to drill Plexiglas, but I was sure I could handle it…after all I only had to precisely drill 24 each 1 1/8” and 22 each 3/8” holes...no sweat. After 1 hole in the Plexiglas I realized I’d made a terrible mistake. : Back to Home Depot….I got the 1/8” Lexan (cut precisely to size for no charge, including a 7/8” strip for the front edge of the panel). I placed it on my drilled panel, bored a couple of holes to hold it securely in place. Two hours later I’m done! : CONCLUSION: : Lexan is an amazing product. I drilled the 3/8” holes with a regular metal drill bit and countersunk them with a cheap wood countersink. I drilled the 1 1/8”s with a bimetal wood hole saw. This stuff is like sheet metal to work with. I only found a couple of things to look out for: : 1. Cool the drill bit or hole saw between each cut. A hot bit doesn’t ruin the piece, but if it gets too hot while drilling you will have to shave off a ridge that will form around the hole. No big deal but time consuming. : 2. Be careful not to scratch the piece. All the tools I used on this can easily leave a nasty scratch. : BONUS: : Even with all the buttons and bolts tight the Lexan doesn’t deform. On the original MK2 panel the Plexiglas looks great, but it is “pulled down” around all the bolts. From 3 feet away the Lexan panel looks like plate glass. : Sorry to be long winded.... : =-JacK-=

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