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Producing Lightboxes from Reynobond / Dybond on a CNC
Hi all
Thinking about making simple lightboxes made out of Dybond, need to know how simple this is as we have a new team to an AXYZ router and don’t want to drown them.
If anybody has any step by step instructions "idiots guide" to making up boxes then I would love to hear from you.
Regards
Liam
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8 Replies
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This might help
http://www.uksignboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=24646 -
Thanks Peter
Sorry to not come back to you sooner but we just had a baby boy!!
That’s a help still not sure on the Glue to use but hopefully will be able to find out, do you currently make these boxes up yourself?
Cheers
Liam
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Only in basic form and done with a hand router.
I have not actually made a lightbox though, only trays. -
Thanks Peter
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Liam. . if you have a CNC router machining and fabricating is a piece of cake. .. . its the designing that takes the time. . .what size bed does you CNC router have ?
If you are planning on cutting out large letters, adding infills / push-through letters and illuminating from behind you are going to require quite a deep tray it will also need additional support. .. composite panels don’t like getting hot so think about how your method of illumination. You also need to consider light bleed at panel joins etc.Here’s one I had machined as a tray… brushed reynobond and 10mm opal letters pushed through. ..
another way of doing this is putting the panels straight into a standard lightbox. .. don’t look quite as good though IMO !
Good luck !
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Hi Dave
You seem to be a bit of a regular Sign Board helper as I keep coming across you in the Forum Topics.
We have a 1500 x 2500 AXYZ single head router, we would like to bring in house current Aluminum Pan panel boxes that we are outsourcing, the make up of the box is an 150mm 2 piece box I know this type of box as biscuit tin with the outer box fitting over the inner and bolting together, the box is 150mm deep although we would like to bring this down to a max of 100mm, illumination is standard tubes and gear trays, we have the box laser cut to allow us to protrude a 20mm clear logo / letters capped of with White, the cutting of the aperture would have to be done as a flat sheet before bending, what glue do you use to keep the joins together and gear trays / lamp clips, supports in place? Do you know where we could purchase a Matt Reynobond type material to try to match in to the Egg shell powder coat the box currently has?
Hope you can help also you say Heres one I have machined as a tray? I cannot see an image so believe I am missing this?
Cheers in advance
Liam
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yeah there should be a picture attached. . .!
Liam I’m a little confused as to what you are trying to do ?
Most composite boards come in Gloss one side satin the other. . but not eggshell ! If you are trying to fabricate a tray from composite and expecting it to match an existing powder coated ali tray, don’t bother. . . you’ll never get the finishes the same. Likewise I don’t think you will be able to match the quality and productivity of a laser when cutting aluminium on a router ( I may be wrong as I have limited experience routing ali ! ! )
I make a biscuit tin, as you describe, approx 150mm deep.. I have a local sheet metal shop fold and powder coat the back trays, and I fabricate and machine the front trays from composite board. The gear trays and tube clips are riveted to the ali back tray and any push through lettering is held in place with a two part acrylic adhesive.
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Dave
Understand what you are saying ref the Powder coating, in a nut shell what we are trying to do is stop having to outsource the making of the box and bring it in house being made as a composite.
Cutting the logo aperture should not be an issue as I would have thought I could get away with a 3mm bit which will cut tight in the corners on the material.
I Have a sheet of Mill finish in stock so I will have a play around over the next week and see what finish we can achieve.
Thanks
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