I've also cut sheet styrene and ABS with a table saw and a chop saw; full size 10" Delta table, full size 12" Dewalt chop. I'd suggest sandwiching the plastic between two sheets of plywood. And using a high-tooth-count fine cut blade; Freud and Makita make such blades.
Robert
LINK to SNSR Blog
I have cut styrene on a table saw,
What I learned; blade teeth can not be mutch above material, rate of feed is a learning curve by itself.I used a reg.combination blade, unsure if others may be better. plastic is hard to hold, slippery. I think a band saw would work better. You do not end up with aclean edge.
IMO for the few pieaces I needed,it was not worth the extra fooling around. But yes it can be done
Something I want to try someday is cutting the thicker styrene (maybe .060" or so) with a table saw, rather than the typical sharp blade. The cut won't wander (if I do my part), and the cut edge will be square--that can be useful. And (again, if I do my part) it can be accurate.
I do have a "real" table saw, but I think it's much too coarse for the typical stuff I want to do. So I'll probably get a model maker's table saw.
For anyone who thinks it can't work to cut styrene with a table saw, I will say that I've cut it with a miniature chop saw, and I regularly machine it with a mill and a lathe. There have been no problems.
I'll add that I dislike cutting styrene with a blade. And the thicker it is, the more I dislike it.
Ed
Yeah something on the ruler -- cork or sandpaper or even just some duct tape -- to keep it from sliding is helpful. Clamping is ideal if the work area permits it.
I also found that I was doing better cutting styrene when I did the work on my rather high benchwork (bare wood no track or scenery yet) rather than on the workbench. Being too high above the work perhaps made me push the blade into the work, with the results being as described above from forcing the blade too much. Working at something closer to chest height made me draw the blade over the plastic - a lighter touch. This might be a purely personal thing.
Doctor Wayne makes excellent points: it also matters how the knife handle feels and rests in the hand, and using a blade with some innate stiffness. I had bought a very tiny knife I think sold by Testors, thinking it would be perfect for precise work - handle is much skinnier than a pencil and the blade itself is tiny. It has its uses but it resists long precise strokes because of the "bear paw" way you have to hold the handle and the whippiness of the small but very sharp blade.
Dave Nelson
As others are saying; too mutch pressure,slow lite strokes. When I started, I would actullay break #11 blades,,a learning curve.
Walking straght edge ? I use the blade part of a tri-square, alittle thicker then a scale rule, I also glued a strip of very fine wet/dry sand paper tothe bottom.
Its a learn as you go thing, don't toss your mistakes,they will be useful at some point
This suggestion might sound a little odd, especially since you have so many good replies already.
.
I say that for right now, don't worry about it too much. If your first scratchbuilding project is less than good, that is OK. Just keep moving forward and get it done.
You will learn a lot, and your next one will be better.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
I've found that it's very easy, especially on long cuts (4'x8' sheets) to unconciously roll/twist the X-Acto knife handle within your grip whilst making the cut, causing it to not track along the straightedge. To correct that tendency, I use a utility knife, like the red one shown below...
...it's fairly old, I think, and weighs about half a pound. The shape of the handle makes it easy to keep it perpendicular to the cutting surface. The blades are also less prone to flex, cheaper than X-Acto blades, and easier to to re-sharpen, especially than the X-Acto stainless steel ones. The only location I have to cut 4'x8' sheets is on the floor of the layout room, and I use a carpenter's framing square, a machinist's square, and a long metal straightedge, each as is appropriate. My free hand and one or both feet hold the big square or the straightedge in place while the knife is being used.As others have mentioned, there's no need to cut through the sheet: on .010" material, 2 or 3 light passes will suffice, then simply flex the sheet along the cut to snap it apart. For the large .060" thick sheets, 4 or 5 fairly firm passes with the knife will yield similar results.Depending on what you're building, you may want to use thicker sheet material and/or strip material for bracing - Evergreen has a wide selection of both....and I keep most of what they offer on-hand...
...most of those plastic sleeves contain several packages-worth of similar-sized material, and likewise with small sheets from .005' -.040" thickness. I also have various types of car and structure siding, structural shapes, and styrene rod and tubing.Scratchbuilding is one of those slippery-slope sorta things - the more you get into it, the deeper it draws you in. Enjoy the ride!
Wayne
Sounds like you're putting too much pressure on the blade, causing it to flex. And when it flexes, it cuts a curved path, like a ski. Lighter pressure would certainly help. You could also try a heavier blade, such as a #2, or a blade with a less acute angle of attack.
Styrene, especially the thin sheets you're using, only needs to be barely scratched. Then the sheet will snap cleanly like a pane of glass. You don't need to cut all the way through as if the material was paper, wood, or cardboard.
Good luck. You've already done the hard part. Picking up a knife and a straightedge is a very big step.
I use clamps to hold the straight edge in place, and I cut with the blade angled into the straight edge. And, as others have said, light, multiple cuts.
Rich
Alton Junction
You can also score thicker styrene with a few light passes of a fresh #11 X-acto blade then snap it clean along the scored line.
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
Ooooohh, ok. Thats probably it. I'll try that.
I'm beginning to realize that Windows 10 and sound decoders have a lot in common. There are so many things you have to change in order to get them to work the way you want.
Yeah. What they said.
Nobody gets it right, at first.
You'll do fine!
The straight edge I have has a thin cork backing, it keeps it from slipping off. But yes, the key to getting smooth cuts with styrene is to make many LIGHT passes, don;t try to cut through a sheet with just one or two cuts. For long, straight cuts, you don;t even have to go all the way though, just part way, then snap - called score and snap.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
you ---probably--- have too much pressure ...
try gently running the blade down the ruler, multiple cuts, just part of the way is the idea ...
nice and light, multiple passes
I eagerly bought eight sheets of 0.010" evergreen styrene. "Perfect!" I thought. Well... yes and no. I am having trouble cutting straight or (in the case of curves or other lines) keeping the blade on course. I am using a brand new X-acto knife and blade, but it will still shoot off of course, even with a ruler! Even the ruler will slip sometimes, regardless of the amount of pressure I put on it with my non cutting hand. I really want to get a scratchbuilding project under my belt before trying something bigger, but so far its been a big bummer. Can anyone help?