Hot-wire foam cutter
From CosplayWiki
A hot-wire foam cutter is used to cut polystyrene foam and similar materials. The device consists of a taut metal wire, often made of nichrome or stainless steel, or a thicker wire preformed into a desired shape, which is heated via electrical resistance to approximately 200° C. As the wire is passed through the material to be cut, the heat from the wire vaporises the material just before it would have made contact with it, creating a smooth cut. The depth of the cut is limited only by the wire length. Width of cut is limited by throat, if any.
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Foams suitable for hot-wire cutting
All thermofusible expanded foams. This means those materials that melt to themselves at a relatively low temperature:
- Expanded polystyrene (blocks of expanded white balls).
- Extruded polystyrene (in blue, green, gray, pink or purple smooth plates, depending on the manufacturer).
- Plexiglas® (Rohacell®), very mechanically resisting but very expensive.
- Flexible expanded polypropylene foams, ideal for shock protecting.
- Polyethylene foams, flexible and tear resistant.
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External links
- Build your own hotwire foam cutter
- Build your own hotwire foam cutter from Home Depot Parts
- Large easy-to-build hotwire foam cutter
- Build your own CNC hot-wire foam cutter
- Build your own hot-wire foam cutter for $30
Content from wikipedia.org
