Cutting Lexan - score and fold

[Problemchild 2149]

I did a little vid for my YouTube channel only just trying it out 
 

god it’s soooo much neater and sooooo much quicker 

 

JJ

[Mad Ax 9325]

Good tip re: drawing the cut lines on first.  I often struggle to see the line once I start cutting.

Last week I cut a Celica body out, which doesn't have cut lines around the arches.  Very hard to see where to cut.  It also has integral rally mud flaps which I cut off, not realising they were part of the design.  Will have to make some new ones out of rubber.

[Problemchild 2149]

Hope it helps some people

JJ

[DeadMeat666 1675]

On 5/25/2020 at 6:38 PM, Problemchild said:

Hope it helps some people

JJ

Actually it helped me a whole bunch! I recently did my Dark Impact body and Plasma Edge II wing this way, and it was WAY easier than when I cut the Plasma Edge II body with scissors a couple weeks back. Thanks!

[Problemchild 2149]

1 hour ago, DeadMeat666 said:

Actually it helped me a whole bunch! I recently did my Dark Impact body and Plasma Edge II wing this way, and it was WAY easier than when I cut the Plasma Edge II body with scissors a couple weeks back. Thanks!

No probs - I did so many lexan shells before just giving it a go and I was like “whaaaat - that was easy” 

similar with wet application of decals

JJ

[Otis311 196]

I am still not convinced on this method. After trying a few times I just don't have good results. I have never had an issue with curved body scissors. Less chance of slicing my hand wide open too. With either method I would have to do fine tuning with a Dremel after cutting.

[Mrowka 496]

I just cut out my first lexan bodyshell last night.

Used a combination of lexan scissors and score and fold. Can't say I was happy with either, even after cleanup with Dremel.

I am uptight about bodywork, which is why I hate doing it.

[Yonez 180]

I´d never dare to do cleanup with a Dremel. Sanding blocks and very fine grit paper work better for me so that I can smooth out the lines. I also use various round objects as sanding blocks for the curved bits.

Takes a while, but it gets there in the end. Just don´t slip and sand the outside of the shell.

[Otis311 196]

Dremel can do some serious damage. I use it on low speed and take my sweet time. Always relieved when I am done, very stressful. That can be said for every step of completing a body.

 

[highflyer 73]

Will try this on my next lexan body.

[Problemchild 2149]

If you are doing a straight line obviously it needs to have ends to be able to fold

so let’s take the sill for the car between wheel arches.

1. cut off all the lower lexan 

2. Score along the line of the sill and into the wheel area. It doesn’t have to be hard. Just gentle is fine and use a metal ruler if you want (sometimes I’ll put a block of wood on the bench and slot the car body over it (I’ll take a pic tomorrow)

3. Cut up to the line from the bottom into the wheel well so it dose ya your score line.

4. Fold and even the lightest score will allow the lexan to “snap” along this line.

 

for wheel arches

1. score around free hand (again gently so you can control where the blade goes)

2. Cut up to the line with scissors to crest sort of spikes and then fold from there. This is because you can’t bend a big curve or complex curved shape. It has to be a number of straighter lines.

 

why score and fold rather then trim with curved scissors - you get a single continuous cut line rather than one made up of many many small snips hopefully all joining together - so score and fold gives you a cleaner line AND to do all the straight lines on the bottom of the car would take 1min instead of 20mins 

JJ

[Problemchild 2149]

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JJ