Hand work on corian

[alohainterio]

We are doing hand work on corian. Any challenging job we can done.

[Hawaiilad]

Corian can be fun to work with, but I have always used power tools.

[NHokpic]

Corian is an interesting media to work with. It's a resin material so it last forever. The only problem for we scrollers is that the blade heats and melts the corian as you try to cut it with a scroll saw. I stumbled across a solution a few years ago. If you apply the clear packing tape used to seal boxes over the areas you want to cut, the blade gets coated by the plastic tape and its' glue and this protects it form heating up so you can use the Corian as your media.

Check out my Welcome sign in my NHokpic gallery on this site. I've also made several crosses with Corian.

A few other interesting notes about Corian. You can use a router to put a profile on the edges of any piece. Unlike the scroll saw, a router doesn't heat like a scroll saw blade. One last note, if you want to polish a piece of Corian, you can do this by using a very fine sandpaper.

[Ken Dolph]

NHokpic

The problem with the heating of the blade seems to come from the side to side motion of some saws. I have a Boice Crane and my brother has a Hegner. Neither of these have a problem with Corian. The packing tape may also keep the blade in the center of the cut.

You can also "scroll" with a router. If it is in a table you can use a 1/8" upspiral bit (or smaller) to quickly open large areas. You don't need to pre-drill for inside cuts this way.

Avoid sharp inside corners as they are stress risers, a place for cracks to start.

I did the dog ornaments with a router. My brother hand carved the Rose. A customer did the candy dishes.

[B Smith]

You can also heat it in the oven on a cookie sheet,take it out wearing heavy gloves and twist ,bend to whatever shape you want.

[Hawaiilad]

I use a Hegner saw and have not had any problems with burning when cutting corian. I have made several scrolled bowls and baskets with it.

[NHokpic]

Larry - I'm curious... 1st question, "Hegner" is a name I'm not familiar with. I assume it's a saw name and probably very good. 2nd question... did you use a low speed?

I'm more of a wood worker then a scroller, but I have learned the basics of srolling and love to incorporate it into my works. This means that I bought a popular saw (the Dewalt 20 inch [580? I think]). I have a few of my works included in my gallery which shows I'm on a learning curve. I'll be looking at your work if you have a gallery Larry

[susieq4131]

I cut this trivet - my own design and my all time favorite pig cutting board design by Dave Van Ess from corian and had no problems with melting. It cuts very easy, but makes a very dusty mess. The scroll saw is a DeWalt 788. I think I used a #5 blade.

SQ

[NHokpic]

Very interesting Susieq4131 because I have the same saw. I can't cut more the an inch without the blade binding, but adding the tape solves that problem. Like I stated, I'm much more of a woodworker then a scroller, but I love incorporating scrolling in my furniture. It's like the icing on the cake.

So I'm curious... what speed are you all using while cutting Corian. I mostly use a top speed and I have problems cutting Corian without tape.

[susieq4131]

Very interesting Susieq4131 because I have the same saw. I can't cut more the an inch without the blade binding, but adding the tape solves that problem. Like I stated, I'm much more of a woodworker then a scroller, but I love incorporating scrolling in my furniture. It's like the icing on the cake.

So I'm curious... what speed are you all using while cutting Corian. I mostly use a top speed and I have problems cutting Corian without tape.

I slow the speed down. I'm thinking maybe it's the blades and not the saw that is causing the problems. I took a little piece of corian and cut with with a # 2 and a # 9 regular skip tooth blade and had no problems with cutting either one. Neither caused the corian to melt. What kind of blade are you using? The corian I am cutting is 1/2 inch thick.

SQ

[Hawaiilad]

I run my scrollsaw on the fastest speed and just slow the feed rate of the corian into the blade....in fact all my cutting is done the same way. I also am cutting 1/2" corian using a #5 & #7 blades...I have used the reverse tooth blade and the polar blade and they both cut well with corian.