Thick FR4 fibreglass sheet (without copper) in Aus?

[Mike B]

I need some 16mm x 16mm x 60mm solid fibreglass for a mechanical project.
At the moment it looks like I'll have to buy a bunch of 1.6mm single sided pcbs,
grind off the copper layer, cut them into strips and glue them together.

Small diameter rod and tube is common, but plate is hard to find.

Any ideas for a supplier in Aus?

Mike

 

[yaputya]

"Mike B" <someone@noplace> wrote in message news:9h7pb8trc2e6hsg55i1ik5l1icpnsh5juq@4ax.com...

I need some 16mm x 16mm x 60mm solid fibreglass for a mechanical project.
At the moment it looks like I'll have to buy a bunch of 1.6mm single sided pcbs,
grind off the copper layer, cut them into strips and glue them together.

Small diameter rod and tube is common, but plate is hard to find.

Any ideas for a supplier in Aus?

Mike

Fibreglass is often used to make boats. Try and contact someone locally who
makes them, they may have suitable scrap or they might be able to knock up a
suitable piece for you.
Failing that you could also make your own, it ain't rocket science...have a look at:
http://www.westsystem.com.au/west_system/australian_dealers

 

[Don McKenzie]

On 04-Dec-12 12:09 AM, Mike B wrote:

I need some 16mm x 16mm x 60mm solid fibreglass for a mechanical project.
At the moment it looks like I'll have to buy a bunch of 1.6mm single sided pcbs,
grind off the copper layer, cut them into strips and glue them together.

Small diameter rod and tube is common, but plate is hard to find.

Any ideas for a supplier in Aus?

Mike

Dr Google knows about this:
http://www.styromax.com.au/fiberglass.html
Many others available.

Don...

--
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Add VGA Monitor/TV, and PS2 Keyboard, or use USB Terminal
Arduino Shield, Programmed in Basic, or C.

 

[Jasen Betts]

On 2012-12-03, Mike B <someone@noplace> wrote:

I need some 16mm x 16mm x 60mm solid fibreglass for a mechanical project.
At the moment it looks like I'll have to buy a bunch of 1.6mm single sided pcbs,
grind off the copper layer, cut them into strips and glue them together.

Small diameter rod and tube is common, but plate is hard to find.

Any ideas for a supplier in Aus?

Pultruded (with fibre aligned on the long axis) or do you need it made
from layered weave, or some other structure?

--
⚂⚃ 100% natural

--- news://freenews.netfront.net/ - complaints: news@netfront.net ---

 

[Bruce Varley]

"Mike B" <someone@noplace> wrote in message
news:9h7pb8trc2e6hsg55i1ik5l1icpnsh5juq@4ax.com...

I need some 16mm x 16mm x 60mm solid fibreglass for a mechanical project.
At the moment it looks like I'll have to buy a bunch of 1.6mm single sided
pcbs,
grind off the copper layer, cut them into strips and glue them together.

Small diameter rod and tube is common, but plate is hard to find.

Any ideas for a supplier in Aus?

Mike

Does it have to be fibreglass? Laminated insulating material in various
dimensions and shapes is easily obtainable from electrical suppliers, it's
really tough stuff. Epoxy/fabric matrix AFAIAA.

 

[Mike B]

On 4 Dec 2012 09:08:50 GMT, Jasen Betts <jasen@xnet.co.nz> wrote:

On 2012-12-03, Mike B <someone@noplace> wrote:
I need some 16mm x 16mm x 60mm solid fibreglass for a mechanical project.
At the moment it looks like I'll have to buy a bunch of 1.6mm single sided pcbs,
grind off the copper layer, cut them into strips and glue them together.

Small diameter rod and tube is common, but plate is hard to find.

Any ideas for a supplier in Aus?

Pultruded (with fibre aligned on the long axis) or do you need it made
from layered weave, or some other structure?

A layered weave would be best as it will be machined using a 3mm carbide end
mill. In my experience pultruded tends to fall apart once you get down to sub mm
structures.

 

[Mike B]

On Tue, 4 Dec 2012 17:53:57 +0800, "Bruce Varley" <bv@NoSpam.com> wrote:

"Mike B" <someone@noplace> wrote in message
news:9h7pb8trc2e6hsg55i1ik5l1icpnsh5juq@4ax.com...
I need some 16mm x 16mm x 60mm solid fibreglass for a mechanical project.
At the moment it looks like I'll have to buy a bunch of 1.6mm single sided
pcbs,
grind off the copper layer, cut them into strips and glue them together.

Small diameter rod and tube is common, but plate is hard to find.

Any ideas for a supplier in Aus?

Mike

Does it have to be fibreglass? Laminated insulating material in various
dimensions and shapes is easily obtainable from electrical suppliers, it's
really tough stuff. Epoxy/fabric matrix AFAIAA.

The requirements are "strong, salt water resistant and easily glueable".
The first project will be a housing for a pressure sensor in salt water
environment.

I just did a search for "laminated electrical insulating site:au" and came up
with this "NEMA G-10/G-11 Fiberglass Epoxy Laminate Sheets"
http://www.insulcut.com.au/nemaG10_G11.html
which looks ideal.

 

[geoff]

"Mike B" <someone@noplace> wrote in message
news:cp0sb8t52tlk62p00odboslo9ea8hcpi6v@4ax.com...

On Tue, 4 Dec 2012 17:53:57 +0800, "Bruce Varley" <bv@NoSpam.com> wrote:

The requirements are "strong, salt water resistant and easily glueable".
The first project will be a housing for a pressure sensor in salt water
environment.

Why not just go down to Bunnings (or wherever) and get a metre of fibreglass
cloth and some fibreglass resin ?

geoff

 

[Mike B]

On Wed, 5 Dec 2012 09:54:00 +1300, "geoff" <geoff@nospampaf.co.nz> wrote:

"Mike B" <someone@noplace> wrote in message
news:cp0sb8t52tlk62p00odboslo9ea8hcpi6v@4ax.com...
On Tue, 4 Dec 2012 17:53:57 +0800, "Bruce Varley" <bv@NoSpam.com> wrote:

The requirements are "strong, salt water resistant and easily glueable".
The first project will be a housing for a pressure sensor in salt water
environment.


Why not just go down to Bunnings (or wherever) and get a metre of fibreglass
cloth and some fibreglass resin ?

Epoxy curing is an exothermic process which limits a single pour to about 4mm in
thickness otherwise you risk thermal runaway which overcures the resin making it
brittle (or catching fire).

In practice building a 16mm thickness requires 4 pours over a series of 4 days
due to the cure time and the need wait for the surface to harden properly so you
can sand off the 'amine blush' that forms on the top surface otherwise the
next layer will not stick properly..

So yes, it is possible to DIY, but it's time consumming, and messy.

Laminating a series of already cured 1.6mm boards can be done using a single
pour as the amount of resin is small and the surace area for heat dissipation is
high.

 

[Mike B]

On Tue, 04 Dec 2012 22:26:53 +0800, Mike B <someone@noplace> wrote:

On Tue, 4 Dec 2012 17:53:57 +0800, "Bruce Varley" <bv@NoSpam.com> wrote:


"Mike B" <someone@noplace> wrote in message
news:9h7pb8trc2e6hsg55i1ik5l1icpnsh5juq@4ax.com...
I need some 16mm x 16mm x 60mm solid fibreglass for a mechanical project.
At the moment it looks like I'll have to buy a bunch of 1.6mm single sided
pcbs,
grind off the copper layer, cut them into strips and glue them together.

Small diameter rod and tube is common, but plate is hard to find.

Any ideas for a supplier in Aus?

Mike

Does it have to be fibreglass? Laminated insulating material in various
dimensions and shapes is easily obtainable from electrical suppliers, it's
really tough stuff. Epoxy/fabric matrix AFAIAA.


The requirements are "strong, salt water resistant and easily glueable".
The first project will be a housing for a pressure sensor in salt water
environment.

I just did a search for "laminated electrical insulating site:au" and came up
with this "NEMA G-10/G-11 Fiberglass Epoxy Laminate Sheets"
http://www.insulcut.com.au/nemaG10_G11.html
which looks ideal.

After more research it appears that FR4 is the fire retardant version of G10
(commonly used for electrical panels). G11 is the high temperature version of
G10 but like G10 it isn't fire retardant.
G10 and G11 are available in many thicknesses. FR4 seems to be limited to the
1.6mm or thereabouts range used for PCB manufacture.
Some suppliers have G10/G11 available as laminated rod or as wrapped tubes, not
pultruded.