I wanted to try an edge lighted plexiglass sign. The easiest way to make sure you have a level bed and a straight edge to align your work is to use a sacrificial table. I found a scrap cutoff from a shelf and milled a pocket that reminds of a phone…..
You need a good bottom cutting router bit. 3/4 to 1.5 inches is perfect depending on your machines spindle power. On my Dremel power machine I was limited to about a 3/8 bit. Here I picked a 1 inch bit.
I’ve used this board before for making circular plaques so theres a remnant of that still visible. The rounded corners of the pocket don’t concern me too much I just want a straight edge to align the work to. I pinched the edges of a small scrap of plexi with a couple of small wood screws.
The first cut is pretty messy but it gets better…..
Every pass after was a little smoother…
A quick test with my phones flashlight mode looks pretty good. A few blemishes from the scrap lying around on the bench or a while but that can be buffed out. a little sanding will straighten that rough edge too .
A quick wood holder was also cut on the CNC. just a square pocket with 3 holes punched in it. You can see most of the blemishes are gone after a minute on the buffing wheel.
I also cut a rabbit to hide the wiring from the casual observer.
Add a little hot glue to insulate the wires.
And because I was really bored, an AtTiny to make it breathe…
I probably could have made the base larger and cut a pocket for the chip.
Overall not bad for a first try at Plexiglass.
Wow. That is a very cool tool, and some nice electronics know-how to pull off a really nice item!