Finish on soft plastics

[Dean jeffery]

These are the cutters I buy for cutting plastics, not tried or even thought about HSS tbh.


http://www.cutwel.co.uk/routing/rout...-63-850-series

Limited to 1 nozzle for air blast but can get another from work, will try that next time.

Cheers for the help and suggestions

[magicniner]

If the surface defect is imperceptible to the touch have you considered flame polishing?
I use a waft of the old blowtorch flame on clear acrylic surfaces to improve finish and render machining marks almost invisible.

[Clive S]

Not that I have had experience with nylon but I did read somewhere that some people but the nylon in a fridge or freezer to cool it then machine it. Just saying

[magicniner]

Not that I have had experience with nylon but I did read somewhere that some people but the nylon in a fridge or freezer to cool it then machine it. Just saying

The colder it is the better it machines as it's harder when cold and chips shear off and clear the work better, if you have the extraction to safely do it alcohol mist with good air flow can be a boon for keeping heat sensitive materials cool

[A_Camera]

Not that I have had experience with nylon but I did read somewhere that some people but the nylon in a fridge or freezer to cool it then machine it. Just saying

That's a very good idea. The only issue is that it will shrink in the freezer and expand when it is at room temperature, so if accuracy is important at room temperature then that must be taken into consideration.