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Cutting Di-bond
Can anyone advise the best way to cut di-bond?
I am thinking of using it for an external sign but i will need to cut into an oval shape.
I have very limited experiance of the stuff and when i have used it, it has always been cut to size for me.
Thanks for your help
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25 Replies
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Hi Lorraine
we do alot of signs using dibond and you can cut it very easy with jigsaw, we also use a metal shear when cutting streight edges.
Terry -
a jigsaw like rohlee says would be best for this. but make sure your working on a good flat bench and the materila is clamped down good.
ive seen some of the guys in our workshop kink the stuff because its buonced around a bit on the over hange while jigsawing…
so when jigsawing make sure you the area your cutting is close to the table top and not hanging off. over 3 inches or more…hope this makes sense 🙄
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oh yeh and make sure you give it a good file down afterwards it can leave some right sharp shears if not cut well…
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Thanks for your replies.
Do i need a metal blade??
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I think so – a plastic blade’ll probably melt 😕
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😆 😆 😆 😆 😆 😆
nice one phill 😉yeh you do lorraine… its always handy to buy a pack of 5. they aint dear..
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right then lads & ladies 😀 , call me thick if you like, but what it di bond
am i right in thinking its foamex between two thin sheets of metal (?)
eddie -
yeh your right eddie… thats the stuff.. amari do the equivelant. its called rynabond!
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Lorraine I dont know what jigsaw you have but the types of blade are similar for all makes. The packets will be market for cutting aluminium and certain types of plastics. Dont make the mistake of buying blades suitable for ferrous metals ie. steel as these are not really suitable. You can also buy packs of blades which have a range of blades in suitable for cutting all sorts of substrate. If your going to experiment cutting different sorts of material then it might be more cost effective to buy one of these.
Eddie the core in di-bond is a rubber compound rather than foam.
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nice one martin, what type of signage is it mainly used for ?
& can it be spray painted or does it come in a range of colours
also what thickness is it available in 😮 eddie -
Sorry for my sarcasm earlier Lorraine. This is an interesting subject – I’ve never really experimented with dibond much. I find it cuts very well on a circular saw bench (using a general purpose blade) and have always intended to get a sheet in to be able to offer durable metal signs at short notice to customers. Another interesting material is Filon (Fibreglass plate) – again difficult to cut, but highly durable. Any on elses thoughts on Filon?
I’d always assumed Dibon would be difficult to do a neat cut with a jigsaw, but from reading the above I think I’m wrong to think this.
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Phill, I hava never heard of filon, what makes it different from ordinary fibreglass, where do you use it and how much does it cost ?
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Thanks for your reply martin.
(:) phil 👿
I have a pack of mixed blades with metal, wood and aluminium one but wasn’t sure to use the metal or aluminium one. now i know!!!!!!!!
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Lorraine – What did I say? – What did I say?
Martin – Filon is a sheet material made from fibreglass available with a gelcoat white or grey finish. It’s offered as an alternative to aluminium for road signs etc. It should be easier to cut than aluminium sign blank material. Not sure where you get it from these days but believe it’s direct from the manufacturer (sorry – don’t have their tel. no.).
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I’m not supposed to be on the computer yet, but everyone’s asleep, so…….
We cut Dibond with three saws, a circular table saw, a Skil saw and a Jigsaw. All of them have “paneling” blades with the finer teeth. We always cut from the backside so that the front edge is smooth. You may have to file the edge, but with the fine-toothed blades it’s mostly not necessary.
With the circular blades we only lower the blades so that they just bareley cut through the Dibond. It gives a very smooth, fine edge.
If you must cut from the front because of a positive pattern, cover the film on the surface with some paper premask for more scratch protection from the saw on the surface.
I’d better go now. I can hear someone moving around upstairs.
Bye guys!:^)
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hey rosemary!
great to see you back on the boards… 😀
hope your feeling better… thanks for making the effort to post and thanks for the tips… -
Hi Rosemary, great to hear from you. Hope all is going well, you better hope mum and dad dont read this post or you’ll be in trouble !!!
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Lorraine,
We use lots of Dibond. We saw it, drill it, bend it, roll it and route it.
Here’s a link to the US suppliers site. Down load the the fabrication manual for some great ideas and tips.
Cheers eh, -
cant see a link Duncan, maybe post it again!!
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so good to see a post from you Rosemary! :D… but don’t overdo it now!
more soon
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Duncan – I have the same problem as Kevin (I can’t see the link) – It sounds like an interesting site – and the fabrication manual is something I would like to look at – so can you post the link again please 😀
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Wow! Am I ever a genius! You were right. Dad does check here once in a while and saw my post. ooff…………..
I’m only allowed 1/2 hour a day and only on the days I’m doing well cuz too much time on the screen seems to start these migraines.
Oh, well. I’d rather post here than anywhere else anyway.
We use Dibond for substrata almost exclusively now. I really like the schtuff. We can sand and paint it any color we like. Sometimes we rout a 1/4″ channel in 2×4 redwood and insert it in the channel to make a decorative frame.
We reinforce it with exterior plywood if we have a very large piece, but even a 4×8, 4mm is strong enough to screw to two 4×4 posts.:^)
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This may be the link Duncan was going to post, I’m not sure, but here is one I have to share.
A quick trip through a “registration” form will give you access to some great information to digest.
Rosemary, great to see you back, even if limited. Looking forward to seeing you back “full time” so listen to the doctors/parents and don’t push the issue.
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Hi folks,
Sorry about the missing link 😮 http://www.alcancompositesusa.com/dibond_bio.html -
thanks for the link Duncan , Bob… im off to have a read at it… 😉
yep rosemary…bobs right.. dont strain yourself… time will come and you will be right back to your old self again.. then we all can have a catch up gab on the boards 😀
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