Die Cut Plastic

[Newtothezoo]

Can anyone shed some light on what is needed to die cut .018 point plastic? We tried cutting 4 x 6" pieces 12 up on a cylinder Heidelberg and it did not work. It broke the plastic in places, made very rough edges and scratched it all up.

Any ideas or advice?
Thank you.

[dabob]

what kind of plastic is it???? flexible like a vinyl or more brittle like plexiglass????

[M@CK]

A long time ago I wanted to do the same thing and read that you need a heated clamshell die cutter to do that.

[Newtothezoo]

Rigid plastic. Not flexible.

[Santa]

I think M@ck is correct..for cutting plastic there are specialty clamshells that have heated knives, or they are cut using router tables.

[dabob]

CNC router tables are getting more affordable every day . .. a lot of sign shops use them to cut out plastic or metal letters - you might see if you could job this out to one in your area good luck

[jonprintz]

Most .018 plastic stocks are usually not difficult to die cut. Heated knives are not needed but a flat bed such as clamshell or a Bobst is. I wouldn't run this on a cylinder press.

The CNC router tables are a nice option for small quantities.

What rigid plastic are you trying to work with? Vinyl, polycarbonate? Some are easier than others.