Cutting glass with nichrome thread. How to cut glass underwater. Production methods of cutting
The principle is simple, elementary physics. Scissors make a microcrack (due to the fact that gravity acts less in water), the capillary effect completes the process, breaking off pieces of glass. Splitting occurs due to the wedging action of capillary water (Deryagin effect). Glass breaks at the weakest points of crystallization.
And if the glass is “released”, then the results will be much better.
To "release" the glass, it must be placed in cold water and then boil, "cook" for a few hours. Then, without removing the glass, let cool to room temperature.
The purpose of this operation is to remove internal stress.
The glass will be "soft" and easy to cut in all directions.
WORKING WITH GLASS
CUTTING GLASS WITH A CHARCOAL PENCIL
A glass cutter or a diamond is usually used to cut glass. However, you can do without them. It is convenient to cut various shapes out of glass using a charcoal pencil. Charcoal pencil is made as follows. Charcoal(birch or linden) is ground in a mortar into a fine powder. The powder is kneaded with gum arabic. The resulting thick dough is rolled into round sticks and dried well. Before cutting, the edge of the glass is filed with a trihedral file. Then a pencil is lit from one edge and touches the sawn edge of the glass with it. The hot tip of the pencil is led in the right direction. Glass cracks break easily. In order to cut any glass vessel, you need to fill it with water to the level at which you want to get a cut. Then, at the same level with the poured water, they tie the vessel with twine moistened with kerosene or gasoline, and light it. The vessel will burst exactly along the twine line. In order for the vessel to burst evenly, you need to monitor the tightness of the twine to the walls of the vessel (avoid sagging).
GLASS CUTTING USING ELECTRIC CURRENT
To secondary winding step-down transformer with a voltage of 10-12V, an iron or nichrome wire with a diameter of 0.4-0.6 mm is connected. This wire is wrapped around a glass vessel in one turn along the cut line. In the place where the beginning of the coil converges with its end, pieces of asbestos or mica are laid so that a short circuit does not occur. The ends of the wire are fixed with clamps. Transformer include in electrical network. As soon as the wire warms up, a crack forms in the place where the glass is heated. Sheet glass can be cut in the same way. Via electric current can be cut quickly and easily display glass 10-12 mm thick. First, dirt and dust are removed from the glass surface. Then a cut line is drawn, for which two marks are made on the glass with a diamond at the ends of this line in the form of short dashes. Glass is placed on flat surface table and along the ruler make an incision with a diamond according to the marks. Then a nichrome wire 0.8-1 mm thick is laid along the notch line, and a load weighing 0.5-1 kg is suspended so that nichrome wire firmly attached to the glass surface. Wires with a cross section of 1.5-2 mm2 are connected to the ends of the nichrome wire. The ends of the electrical wires are connected to LATR at 9A and connected to the electrical network (the voltage is first selected at which the nichrome wire becomes red-brown). Glass breaks easily along the cut line made by the diamond.
CUTTING AND BENDING GLASS TUBES
To cut a glass tube with a diameter of 5-6 mm, make an incision with a file, and then break it. On tubes with an outer diameter of more than 10 mm, an incision is made along the entire circumference. To bend a glass tube, the place of the bend is heated over the flame of an alcohol lamp. When heating the tube, it is constantly rotated around its axis, and as soon as the bend turns red, they begin to gradually bend without stopping rotation. When the tube is bent, it is taken out of the flame and, without stopping rotation, they wait until the glass cools down. In this way, tubes with an outer diameter of not more than 10 mm can be bent.
GLASS DRILLING
1. Small holes in the glass are drilled conventional drill which is pre-hardened. The tip of the drill is heated to white, and then it is quickly pressed into the sealing wax and held until the sealing wax stops melting. When drilling, the tip of the drill is abundantly moistened with turpentine. Small glass objects can be drilled in water.
2. A hole in the glass can be drilled with copper wire. To do this, you need to prepare a paste consisting of large emery, camphor and turpentine. One part of camphor powder is dissolved in 2 parts of turpentine and mixed with 4 parts of coarse emery. The resulting paste is applied to the place where it is necessary to drill a hole. A piece of copper wire is clamped into a drill chuck. It is convenient to drill glass through plywood (jig) with guide holes. The glass must rest on a hard and level surface.
3. To drill a hole with a diameter of more than 4 mm in thick glass, a copper tube is used. On the glass around the alleged hole, a plasticine or putty fence is made in the form of a ring with an inner diameter of 40-50 mm and a height of 8-10 mm. Corundum powder is poured inside the ring (it is easy to prepare it by grinding a piece of an unusable emery wheel). The powder is poured with a small amount of water to make a liquid slurry. Drill holes copper tube, clamped in the chuck drilling machine. The diameter of the tube should be slightly smaller than the diameter of the selected hole. It is very important that the end of the tube is strictly perpendicular to its axis - this can be easily achieved by cutting the tube on lathe.
4. A hole in the glass can be made with molten solder. On the surface of the glass, previously thoroughly degreased with acetone, gasoline or alcohol, pour a small slide of slightly moistened river sand. With a sharpened stick, a conical recess is made in it and a platform equal to the future hole is cleared of sand. Molten solder is poured into the resulting sand mold at a temperature of 250-300°C. After the solder has cooled, the sand is removed, and the solder cone is removed along with the glass circle stuck to it.
5. To cut a large glass round hole, you must first drill a small hole in the center, then strengthen one end of the wire in it, and attach a glass cutter or diamond to its other end and cut a circle with it. Then, with a glass cutter or diamond, several radii are drawn along the ruler from the hole to the circle line. After that, they take the glass in their hands and with reverse side softly strike wooden handle hammer. The cut pieces of glass should fall out. It is desirable to knock out the cut-out parts of glass in water. This reduces the chance of damage to the processed glass.
Cutting plexiglass may come in handy infrequently, it is more logical to entrust this work to professionals by contacting a specialized company. But sometimes it may be necessary to perform a single cut or there is a desire to do this work yourself in order to realize your own design ideas.
Cutting plexiglass at home
Cutting plexiglass at home is not difficult, as it is a malleable and easy-to-work material. Despite the external resemblance to ordinary glass, performance characteristics organic glass is different, and it is processed various methods: turning, planing, sawing, etc. It is permissible to cut plexiglass using a large number fixtures.
Plexiglas processing is carried out using the following tools:
- nichrome thread;
- Circular Saw;
- cutter;
- hacksaw.
Nichrome thread
Fusion cutting is performed using nichrome wire. A voltage of up to 24 V is applied to the wire through a step-down transformer, as a result of which it is strongly heated. Nichrome thread makes curvilinear and curly cuts having good quality surfaces that do not require further polishing.
Home craftsmen use a flat-bladed screwdriver for melt cutting. Electric soldering iron heat the metal part of the screwdriver, while the end is pressed against the surface of the plexiglass. Then, holding the tool by the edge of the handle, a cut line is drawn with a heated screwdriver blade. To draw straight lines, it is more convenient to use a metal ruler or the smooth side of a hacksaw. Plexiglas breaks easily along the traced strip. More on video:
Circular saw or metal cutter
A circular saw or cutter is also good option to work with organic glass. In this case, the cutter for metal for cutting plexiglass should be no thicker than 1 mm. It should be borne in mind that during cutting, the saw or cutter heats up the material being processed, as a result of which it melts and foams at the place of cut. In order not to spoil the workpiece, it is necessary to provide cooling. To do this, use water poured into a bottle. The vessel is fixed in some way near the cutting tool, and water is supplied to working area with a thin hose.
The circular saw must operate at high speeds. Some tools have special mode for processing plexiglass. For jobs that do not require High Quality cut, you can use a saw. The cutter is suitable for the production of thinner and cleaner cuts. When using a water cooling system, a smooth and smooth surface, and the cut will be transparent and neat.
cutter
Plexiglas of small thickness is perfectly cut with a construction cutter. Suitable for this purpose homemade tool made from a hacksaw blade, and even a clerical knife.
The cutter can only make a straight cut. To do this, the ruler (preferably metal) is pressed against the sheet of material along the line of the intended cut, then several times with pressure, the cutting tool is pressed along the surface of the plexiglass along the ruler. When the cut reaches the middle of the plexiglass layer, it can be easily broken. The fracture site will be uneven and rough, so additional grinding will be required.
Hacksaw for metal
The easiest way to cut plexiglass with your own hands is with a hacksaw. The cut lines must first be drawn with a pencil or felt-tip pen. In the process of work, the hacksaw must be kept level, trying not to tilt it to the side. It is desirable to fix the workpiece rigidly. The cutting surface will not be smooth. All bumps and burrs are removed with a file and sandpaper.
How to cut figured plexiglass
In some cases, it may be necessary to curly cutting. This is done in the following ways:
- Caliper. Plexiglas is cut with sharp sponges for marking.
- Nichrome thread. A template is made from cardboard, which is glued to the workpiece. For convenience, the wire can be fixed in a simple jigsaw instead of a canvas. Then you need to carefully cut the part from the plexiglass according to the template.
- A glass cutter (cutter) can cut a circle. The suction cup is attached in the center of the proposed circle, then a rail or ruler is attached to it. The glass cutter is rigidly attached to the rail with self-tapping screws. turning cutting tool around the suction cup, cut a groove in the Plexiglas. The excess parts are broken off.
Production methods of cutting
AT industrial scale plexiglass is processed using the following technologies:
- Milling cutting. Processing takes place on special milling machines with rotation speed up to 4000 rpm.
- Band-saw. Used for curved cuts. Final grinding is required, because the cut quality is low.
- Circular Saw. You can get a straight cut with a clean edge.
laser cutting
The most popular way to process plexiglass is laser cutting. The material is cut on special equipment using a laser beam. The method guarantees high level accuracy (up to 0.005 mm) and minimal waste. The laser allows you to make the cut edges smooth and transparent. However, after cutting laser machine high internal stress remains in plexiglass, and it is not recommended to glue parts made in this way.
Methods for cutting glass using electric current
The installation scheme for cutting glass cylindrical vessels is shown in fig. one.
An iron or nichrome wire with a diameter of 0.4-0.6 mm is connected to the secondary winding of a step-down transformer with a voltage of 10-12 V. This wire is wrapped around a glass vessel in one turn along the cut line. In the place where the beginning of the coil converges with its end, pieces of asbestos or mica are laid so that a short circuit does not occur. The ends of the wire are fixed with clamps. The transformer is connected to the electrical network. As soon as the wire warms up, a crack forms in the place where the glass is heated. The glass vessel is easily split (cut) along the heating line.
Rice. 1. Cutting glass with electric current.
glass vessels large diameter cut with an electric glass cutter, the design of which is shown in Fig. 2. The electric glass cutter is mounted on an ordinary clothespin, the sponges of which are sawn off and pasted over with asbestos. The spiral is a nichrome wire with a diameter of 0.5-0.6 mm. The spiral covers the vessel being cut, and its ends are fixed between the jaws of the clothespin so that they do not connect to each other. Porcelain beads or ceramic insulators are put on the free ends of the spiral (they insulate the ends of the spiral in electric stoves). The ends of the spiral are connected to mounting wires of the MGSHV type with a cross section of 0.5–0.75 sq. mm and connected to a step-down transformer with a voltage on the secondary winding of 10–12 V. If it is not available, a car battery can be used.
Rice. 2. Electric glass cutter.
With the help of electric current, you can easily and quickly cut a display glass with a thickness of 10-12 mm.
First, dirt and dust are removed from the glass surface. Then a cut line is drawn, for which two marks are made on the glass with a diamond at the ends of this line in the form of short dashes. The glass is laid on a flat surface of the table and a cut is made along the ruler with a diamond along the marks. Then a nichrome wire 0.8-1 mm thick is laid along the notch line, as shown in Fig. 3, and hang a weight of 0.5-1 kg so that the nichrome wire fits snugly against the glass surface. Wires with a cross section of 1.5-2 sq. mm are connected to the ends of the nichrome wire. The ends of the electrical wires are connected to a 9 A LATR and connected to the electrical network (the voltage is first selected at which the nichrome wire becomes red-brown).
Glass breaks easily along the cut line made by the diamond.
Rice. 3. How to cut the display glass.
The article was compiled according to the publications of V.G. Bastanov
Author-compiler. Patlakh V.V. 1996
Cutting glass without a diamond
A small hole in the glass can be drilled with a flat file sharpened like a sharp chisel.
The file is fixed in the drill chuck and drilled, allowing it to cool, and periodically sharpening. Glass 6 mm thick is drilled in 10-15 minutes.
In order to cut any glass vessel, you need to fill it with water to the level at which you want to get a cut.
Then, at the same level with the poured water, they tie the vessel with twine moistened with kerosene or gasoline, and light it. The vessel will burst exactly along the twine line.
In order for the vessel to burst evenly, you need to monitor the tightness of the twine to the walls of the vessel (avoid sagging).
Cutting glass using electric current
The installation diagram for cutting glass cylindrical vessels is shown in Fig. 1
An iron or nichrome wire with a diameter of 0.4-0.6 mm is connected to the secondary winding of a step-down transformer with a voltage of 10-12 V. This wire is wrapped around a glass vessel in one turn along the cut line.
In the place where the beginning of the coil converges with its end, pieces of asbestos or mica are laid so that a short circuit does not occur.
The transformer is connected to the electrical network.
As soon as the wire warms up, a crack forms in the place where the glass is heated. The glass vessel is easily split (cut) along the heating line.
Glass vessels of large diameter are cut with an electric glass cutter, the design of which is shown in Fig. 2.
The electric glass cutter is mounted on an ordinary clothespin, the sponges of which are sawn off and pasted over with asbestos. The spiral is a nichrome wire with a diameter of 0.5-0.6 mm.
The spiral covers the vessel to be cut, and its ends are fixed between the jaws of the clothespins so that they do not connect to each other. Porcelain beads or ceramic insulators are put on the free ends of the spiral (they isolate the ends of the spiral in electrolytes).
The ends of the spiral are connected to mounting wires of the MGSHV type with a cross section of 0.5-0.75 mm² and connected to a step-down transformer with a voltage on the secondary winding of 10-12 V. If it is not available, a car battery can be used.
With the help of electric current, you can easily and quickly cut a display glass with a thickness of 10-12 mm.
First, dirt and dust are removed from the glass surface. Then a cut line is drawn, for which two marks are made on the glass with a diamond at the ends of this line in the form of short dashes.
The glass is laid on a flat surface of the table and a cut is made along the ruler with a diamond along the marks. Then a nichrome wire 0.8-1 mm thick is laid along the notch line, as shown in Fig. 3, and a load weighing 0.5-1 kg is suspended so that the nichrome wire fits snugly against the glass surface.
Wires with a cross section of 1.5-2 mm² are connected to the ends of the nichrome wire. The ends of the electrical wires are connected to a 9 A LATR and connected to the electrical network (the voltage is first selected at which the nichrome wire becomes red-brown).
Glass breaks easily along the cut line made by the diamond.