Hello -
I am a new entrepreneur and looking to make sewing patterns made out of acrylic or plastic. I am not familiar with 3D or Laser Cutting but wondering if someone at DMS might be able to help me?
Depending on the materialās specific properties, you may, or may not be able to use the lasers to cut your pattern(s). Some items can be lasered, and some can be toxic, or would cause damage to the laser cutters, so those materials are prohibited. I say this because you stated you are neither familiar with, nor certified on the lasers, so it needs to be understood up front,
Hereās a link for you to read that explains the use of the Lasers: Category:Laser - Dallas Makerspace.
As for getting somebody to cut your patterns, message @Team_Laser, and ask if anybody would be willing to help you. Offer to reimburse them for their laser time ($1.00 per 5 minutes of ācutting timeā on the Thunder lasers). Also, you would need to determine how much you would be willing to pay someone for their time and effort.
Acrylic is safe to laser!
2 Likes
Yes, Iām well aware of that. The OP also mentioned plastic.
1 Like
This is the exact Acrylic I purchased except I have cut into it so Iām not sure if I would still be able to use it on a machine.
Having previously cut it wonāt affect your ability to use it on the laser. I cut all sizes of scraps.
Buried deep in the questions for that product the manufacturer states that it is ā100% acrylicā. This probably rules out polycarbonate. Itās probably OK on the laser.
1 Like
The Shapeoko XL is currently housed in the machine shop with a sign that says āplastics only.ā Iād look for that class, and see if it meets your needs.
Having used both, Iād recommend the laser for this purpose. Iāve lasered a fair number of acrylic quilting templates. (Iāve lasered a fair number of freezer paper appliquĆ© templates and a lot of fabric, too.) Advantages of the laser for the sewing patterns:
- the āprogrammingā will be easier (true 2D)
- the machine learning curve is less - you donāt need to know any machining
- the classes are more frequent
- it will cut a lot faster
- you wonāt need a spoilboard or hold down clamps
@aled67 - The lasers all require vector artwork; i.e., they canāt use a bitmap or jpg. The first thing youāll need to do is learn how to use some type of program where you can draw vector artwork. Iām sure there are lots of choices but the ones that come to mind immediately are Inkscape (free and fairly easy to use), CorelDraw, and Adobe Illustrator. Adobe Photoshop has a good vector handler in the PATHS commands. (surprise, surprise)
If you can already create vector artwork, then you just need to start looking on the calendar for Laser classes.
1 Like
One thing that doesnāt mention is whether the acrylic is cast or extruded. Itās not like one isnāt safe or anything, but I have gotten much better results lasering cast vs extruded. Not sure itāll really matter for your purposes.
If you plan to do a lot of these in the future, I suggest talking to Regal Plastics. They have good prices on acrylic and are very nice to work with.
I literally just want one set. But Etsy is charging crazy prices.
1 Like
Cast is much better for etching than extruded is. Extruded basically wonāt etch because the melted material reflows and becomes clear again - so you donāt get that beautiful frosty etch like you do on cast.
Extruded gives slightly nicer cut edges for the same reason: the melted plastic reflows slightly resulting in a flame polished edge.
One thing to watch for on cutting extruded acrylic is that you can get some funny stresses that build up in the cut edge. These can lead to cracking and crazing along the edge, especially if the piece is later cleaned with a solvent like alcohol. I have never seen this happen with cast acrylic.
AFAIK, all of the acrylic sold at Home Depot is extruded.
For the purpose of making sewing templates any plexiglass will work just fine, cast or extruded will not make a difference.
Weāve made several sets of templates both for our personal use and for classes in Sewing at DMS, itās pretty simple.
1 Like
Been there! But once you figure out how to make one why not become the Etsy charging crazy pricesā¦? 
3 Likes
By the way, if you happen to have decent patterns I will trade you your CAD for help on the lasers. I am struggling with paper patternsā¦
1 Like
We should talk slopersā¦ As many people have quit sewing, patterns have simplified and consolidated sizing. I used to be able to buy a Junior Petite pattern when I was younger. (Think short and curvy.) All the options now are in Miss sizes, and they assume that you can adjust the fit.
1 Like
Not to derail, but Iād love to see a class on this. I rarely sew from a purchased pattern (unless itās something like a collared suit jacket) so starting from a sloper would be a benefit to me.
1 Like
Astrud and I like this book for creating/altering patterns:
3 Likes