How I Cut & Drill Clear Acrylic (aka Plexiglass)

This video shows the method in which I cut Acrylic Sheets (aka Plexiglass) with a table saw and also how I drill holes to attach hinges, as I make windows for deer hunting blinds. Using a high-speed drill and clamping your material down before drilling is highly recommended. Results with cutting and drilling Polycarbonate (Lexan) in this fashion may differ.

As always, use common sense, wear necessary personal protection and cut and drill acrylic at your own risk!!

[davidt]

Lean your blade. All that buildup from previous cuts just causes rubbing and heat. A clean blade is sharper as well. Your technique is great. Slow and steady is the name of the game.

[DawidhabdArup_N]

Thank you for sharing matey! I believe, “Our World is a Shared Experience”!!!

Remember, *_Life_* is *_Short_* so, *_Live Long_* and *_Prosper_* … 🖖🖖🖖

[MrRunner]

If I may. When drilling Acrylic, use a corded drill, not a battery powered one. The reason is that the drill speed for a 10mm hole is 3000rpm. Cordless drills usually max at 1500rpm. I have seen many holes drilled as you have shown, without an apparent problem, but I can assure you, over time you will see micro cracks. High speed low feed as you demonstrate. Secondly, use a very sharp drill, web thinned if it is a large diameter. Web thinning is done to reduce the thickness of the land between the flutes. Hope this helps
Thanks for the video, very well explained

[rustytree]

Good info! I think your right about getting acrylic !

[SteveH-TN]

Thanks for sharing this video and information very helpful for me

[Makete]

Great video and instructions. I'd like to know how to remove scratches and clean the plexiglass.

[blackcatw]

I tried doing this on my table saw with a fine tooth plywood blade. It was hard to push through the blade and I got the cut all crooked. The plexiglass just melted back together. I aborted and used a jig saw and that was a struggle with the cut melting back together. It never occurred to me that that a plain carbide blade on the table saw would work so good. Oh well, next time I'll know.

[gordonanderson]

Brett, do you use the .220 Acrylic sheet from Menards? When cutting slots / tracks for the sheets, do you make them .250? Also, how deep do you cut your tracks on the bottom ~ 1/4, and top ~ 3/4"? I would like to be able to remove them if it is warm, so I was wondering how much clearance is required. How much gap do you leave between your tracks, and do you put anything like velcro at the ends, to help seal between the two sheets? I have made my windows ~ 22" high by 46" wide, and I plan on using something like plastic wood to prevent swelling fro my tracks. Your feedback would be greatly appreciated.

[richardk]

Is there a reason you do not turn the blade around? Other videos have said that works perfectly. Thanks for the video.

[andrehawk]

How do you cut a curve in 1/8" acrylic? For Redwood table top.

[neon_ledyou]

Which table saw top with how many teeth do you use to cut plexiglass plate

[question_it_]

At 3:38 you said acrylic is harder than Plexiglass. You've got some of your info mixed up. Plexiglass IS acrylic. Like a Kleenex is a tissue. Acrylic 10x stronger than glass. Polycarbonate (Lexan) is 200-250x stronger than glass, will NOT crack when you drill it. THIN (.09, etc) Plexiglass/Acrylic WILL crack if you drill too close to the edge with a regular bit. I cracked a piece last night trying to drill a 5/32 inch hole about an inch from the edge. So.... if you're drilling thin Plexiglass, don't just use any drill bit. I'd research it more. So for my project, now that the first sheet broke, I'm going to try it again but with Polycarbonate (Lexan is a brand name). It drills easy. Its about 40% more $ than Plexiglass/acrylic. Again...there are distinctly different kinds of plastic sheets that folks use for windows. 1. Acrylic (Plexiglass is a brand of acrylic) 2.) Polycarbonate (Lexan is a brand of polycarbonate).

[glenpaul]

Not whatever...Plexiglass and Lexan are two completely different products with very different characteristics. Plexiglass is acrylic and Lexan is polycarbonate.

[runninggag]

Lexan isn't plexiglass. Plexiglass is acrylic. Lexan is polycarbonate.

[raeventura]

Can I pay you to do a project for me? If so can you share your email to discuss?