side panel 12mm hole???

[s002wjh]

whats the best and cheapest way to drill 120mm hole on a plastic see-through side panel? could someone tell me the necessary tools, which can be bought from place like home depot, and procedure on how to do it. if not a link on how to.. would be nice too. i already crack one of the side panel by using a 120mm hole cutter disk, maybe i'm doing wrong, should i put something underneath of panel for absorbing the pressure?

[Susquehannock]

Sorry you are having trouble.

What do you mean by a hole cutter disk? One of these?
http://www.boxinggyms.com/images/equipment/23/holesaw.jpg

If using the above use slow speed with medium pressure. Take your time - let the tool do the work.
A little water with some dishsoap can act as a lubricant & coolant.

Yes, it is a good idea to support the work piece from behind. Plywood is a good choice.

[dennis1991z]

should work but theres a chance the plastic will crack

[s002wjh]

Sorry you are having trouble.

What do you mean by a hole cutter disk? One of these?
http://www.boxinggyms.com/images/equipment/23/holesaw.jpg

If using the above use slow speed with medium pressure. Take your time - let the tool do the work.
A little water with some dishsoap can act as a lubricant & coolant.

Yes, it is a good idea to support the work piece from behind. Plywood is a good choice.

yes like that 120mm holesaw. the plastic crack because i put the side panel on 2 parallel frame so the middle section has nothing support it. so i wonder if its better if i put wood plank beneath it would help. also the plastic-glass get really hot. if anyone done this plz let me know.

[Susquehannock]

Yes I have cut holes in plastic many times. Graduated from holesaws, but have some experience with them.

Always support your work from the back. To avoid cracking cut part way through from one side, then finish from the other.

You should not be getting a lot of heat. Like I said - use SLOW speed & do not press hard.
Let the tool do the work. It's not a race.

[vixro]

I used a dremel saw to create my hole. It took a long time to make sure no heat was created, but it turned out well. Although the hole wasn't perfect, covered up with the fan and filter you can't even tell.

[ancalime]

Masking tape usually helps when you are cutting plastics with a hole saw.

[inkfx]

Is there a hole saw in particular I should be looking at when wanting to cut into acrylic? Do the different materials they are made of have an impact on how well they work? I'd really like to get a 120mm whole or two into the window of my PC-75.

[djrussell]

the hole saw material probably doesn't play a big factor when cutting soft things like acrylic. the material really only plays into how well it will stay sharp. it would make a difference if you were using it to cut say metal or granite (like for countertop faucet install) but i wouldn't worry about it here. just make sure you use the arbor in the middle that goes into your pilot hole.

[Wayward_Son]

For a 120mm fan hole you'll want a 4.75" holesaw. A generic one will run about $45 at most hardware stores, not including the arbor. Yes, it's expensive, but if used correctly it will give you the best results for a round hole.

Best usage requires a drill press. Cover both sides of your acrylic sheet with masking tape. Mark the center point of your 120mm hole, then clamp your acrylic to a piece of wood, and clamp all of that into the drill press. Any decent press will allow you to rotate two knobs to adjust the position of your work piece on two axes. You lower the drill press arbor until it is JUST above your work piece, then leave it there while you adjust the two knobs until your centerpoint mark is right underneath the arbor drill bit. Then you make sure everythign is clamped down, set the drill press to a medium or medium-high speed, and SLOWLY begin cutting. Use very light pressure on the drill press lever and let the saw do the work.

When you're done, clean up the adges with some fine sandpaper. Then place your 120mm fan over the new hold, adjust it so it is right where you want it, and then tape it in place with more masking tape. Make sure it is very secure. You will now select the largest drill bit that will fit through the fan screw holes. If it wont fit through without forcing it, don't use it. Find the largest that will slide through with little resistance. When you ahve found it, slide it through each screw hole on the fan and press down with some pressure and rotate it in your fingers. This will give you a marking on the masking tape on the acrylic. After you've done that four times, remove the fan.

Now, using the same drill bit, drill four holes through the four markings you made. Use a mdium speed on the drill and go very slowly. You don't want to chip the acrylic when the bit chews through the other side. Then remove all the masking tape, install your fan and grill, and you're done.

I used the above method to add a 120mm blowhole to my Lian Li. Here is the result.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1176/1445230726_09a16977ff_b.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1246/1444367735_d4acb9c265_b.jpg

[inkfx]

So this $45 holesaw will cut through the case aluminum as well? Are there cheaper solutions?

[Wayward_Son]

Yes, it will do aluminum. It will do steel if you that's what you want. The same saw will cut all different kinds of materials (except maybe something extremely hard like tungsten or something). What really makes the difference is the speed at which it rotates. Different materials require different drilling or cutting speeds.

I haven't been able to find a 4.75" holesaw cheaper than about $40, not including the arbor.

[maxfly]

try running the holesaw in reverse if its designed for cutting wood(most are).if you can find one with fine teeth that would be ideal but they are hard to find in that large a diameter.like Wayward said go as slow as possible to avoid chatter and/or hogging out the guide hole.especially if you dont have a drill press.if you know someone with a drillpress i would definately hit them up.doing it by hand is very very tough to do.

[Mycobacteria]

Those hole saws are kinda expensive... and I will probably only use it once or twice.

Has anyone cut the hole with a jigsaw?

[g14novak]

Just fair warning, using a jigsaw probably the same as cutting a hole with a Dremel on full speed...

It can be done, but it probably wont come out perfect looking like most hope for it to. I did mine with a holesaw and it still came out a bit rough (still needs to be rubbed down with a file though).

[djrussell]

http://www.stockthat.com/ProductDetails.aspx?id=QjAwMEU4RExYNgAA&ad=MK%20Morse%20AV76%20Hole%20Saw,%204-3/4-Inch%20Bi-Metal%20Boxed

http://www.stockthat.com/ProductDetails.aspx?asin=B000E8DLXQ

$27.18 for the saw and 3/8 arbor.

[Susquehannock]

^^^ - good price on a bi-metal saw of that size.

[Wayward_Son]

Oh hell, that's a great price. I'd jump on that in a heartbeat if I didn't already have one.

You'll need a drill or drill press with a 3/8" chuck to hold that 3/8" arbor.