{"id":36808,"date":"2012-05-01T21:39:49","date_gmt":"2012-05-02T04:39:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ponoko.com\/blog\/?p=36808"},"modified":"2018-03-11T21:07:34","modified_gmt":"2018-03-12T04:07:34","slug":"styrene-may-material-of-the-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ponoko.com\/blog\/design-ideas\/styrene-may-material-of-the-month\/","title":{"rendered":"Styrene \u2013 May Material of the Month"},"content":{"rendered":"

The white knight of model making\"\"<\/a><\/strong>Styrene, or as sometimes it likes to be formally addressed – High Impact Polystyrene Sheet (HIPS) is one of the most ubiquitous plastics around, even though it\u2019s too humble for most of us to pay any notice to.\u00a0 Like PETG<\/a>, it\u2019s commonly used in food packaging, where it\u2019s thermoformed for specific applications.<\/p>\n

When it comes to laser cutting, fabricating components for model making is where this material truly shines.\u00a0 Prefab laser cut model kits are already available for the likes of railways<\/a>, trucks, aeroplanes and buildings<\/a>.\u00a0 Styrene\u2019s properties make it an excellent material choice for these applications.\u00a0 While it doesn\u2019t cut as precisely as acrylic, it is easily sanded or scored with a craft knife, which is perfect for leaving sprues (little \u201cbridges\u201d of material) to hold parts in place.\u00a0 Partially laser cut parts can be easily snapped off the kit sheet and sanded back for a clean edge.\u00a0 Styrene is not the only flexible plastic that can be laser cut.\u00a0 There\u2019s also PETG and polypropylene<\/a>.\u00a0 When it comes to model making, styrene has significant advantages over both of those.\u00a0 It can be easily bonded to itself with solvents (no heat welding required), and it takes on various paint finishes so can be painted to resemble other materials such as metals or wood.\u00a0 Styrene also thermoforms better than the other plastics, and thinner pieces can be formed to a mold with a hairdryer.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Styrene\u2019s flexibility, ease of finishing and bonding have seen it used in prosthetics<\/a>, jewellery<\/a> and even a Vanilla Design<\/a> coffee cup holder.\u00a0 Some of the material\u2019s limitations are its fragility in delicate pieces and its inability to hinge.\u00a0 Any score line compromises the structure of the sheet, and applying force to that area will snap the material.\u00a0 Of course, this can also be an advantage with laser cutting \u2013 using heavy vector engraving instead of cutting right through noticeably reduces kerf<\/a>, while still allowing for the cut piece to be snapped out of the sheet.\u00a0 This approach works with long straight lines and simple, open shapes, and prototyping is necessary for optimum results.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The white styrene can also be used in lighting design.\u00a0 Its glossy finish makes it more reflective than propylene.\u00a0 However, because it has a low melting point, only fluorescent and LED light sources can be used.\u00a0 Featured designs (clockwise): Middle C<\/a> by Sherman Warren, Lotus<\/a> by David Knott, Warp<\/a> by Alienology, Urchin<\/a> by Fabripod, Tumbleweed<\/a> by Del Jackson, Carbon<\/a> by Cindy Hartnett.\u00a0 Carbon is also this month’s FREE file for download.\u00a0 Make your own Carbon light!\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Styrene is available from Ponoko US<\/a> and Ponoko NZ<\/a>, and there are also US<\/a> and NZ<\/a> material samples to give you a better idea of cutting and engraving finish.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The white knight of model making<\/strong>Styrene, or as sometimes it likes to be formally addressed – High Impact Polystyrene Sheet (HIPS) is one of the most ubiquitous plastics around, even though it\u2019s too humble for most of us to pay any notice to.\u00a0 Like PETG, it\u2019s commonly used in food packaging, where it\u2019s thermoformed for specific applications.<\/p>\n

When it comes to laser cutting, fabricating components for model making is where this material truly shines.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5854,5796],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36808","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-materials","category-design-ideas"],"yoast_head":"\nStyrene \u2013 May Material of the Month<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ponoko.com\/blog\/design-ideas\/styrene-may-material-of-the-month\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Styrene \u2013 May Material of the Month\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The white knight of model makingStyrene, or as sometimes it likes to be formally addressed – High Impact Polystyrene Sheet (HIPS) is one of the most ubiquitous plastics around, even though it\u2019s too humble for most of us to pay any notice to.\u00a0 Like PETG, it\u2019s commonly used in food packaging, where it\u2019s thermoformed for specific applications. 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