Polycarb VS Metal Stencil: Custom CNC Laser Clowns & CNC Waterjet Dragon

March 21, 2018 Jon Off CNC Laser, CNC Waterjet, CNCROi.com News, Metal Products, Plastic Products,

Polycarb and metal stencil making are very different processes but the direction you take when it comes to CNCROi.com fabricating them for you depends on your specific application.

CNCROi.com has made LOTS OF STENCILS, whether they are made out of MDF, plywood, mylar, cardboard, polycarbonate, PETG or even metal (aluminium, stainless steel, iron, hot or cold-rolled steel), each material has a cost benefit that needs to be realized before actually making said stencil.

When it comes to metal, there are many CNC machine options to accomplish the metal stencil cutting, using heat such as CNC plasma or CO2/Fiber laser sources or CNC waterjet as shown here, which is a cold abrasive process that isn’t prone to heat warping.

What I really like about CNC waterjet cutting metal (and other materials), is how close the process is to laser cutting in that there isn’t any spinning bits like a CNC router so very tight tolerances are no problem.

We use CNC waterjet to make amazing signage as the metal after it’s been sand blasted really works wonders with enamel paint (or powder coating) for maximum smooth adhesion.

Additionally, for metal stencils fabrication by CNCROi.com, CNC waterjet cutting is a cold process meaning there isn’t any heat warping issues along the surface of the finished piece though it does require clean-up.

You may think that water + metal isn’t a good mix when it comes to rusting for a metal stencil, and you’d be totally right, but luckily, CNCROi.com has an industrial sand blaster, so we can make quick work of removing the rust build-up and clean everything up to be ready for painting or sealing.

For this metal stencil of a dragon with the words R&D on it, the thickness of the hot rolled metal sheet was 20 gauge which is very thin but incredibly strong and resilient.

This is something to consider for your custom stenciling application, a metal stencil will be stronger than a wooden one that’s dramatically thicker.

Same goes with polycarbonate stencils, they are extremely thin (can be thick) but even they won’t come close to the overall strength parameters of using real metal.

The CNC waterjet cuts using sand and high pressure water, as such, the edges get cut but also eroded, so the surface isn’t as totally smooth as CNCROi.com achieves with a laser but also keep in mind that if you are using paint or flame, metal is a wonderful choice and this drawback won’t be noticed.

This metal dragon stencil will look great in the shop, I plan to use this metal stencil in the shop as a wall sign… one person’s stencil is another person’s sign but I decided to use it as an example of what flame + metal can produce on a piece of scrap in the CNCROi.com shop to show you the possibilities we offers.

For some customers, they want to test out their product first before going into metal, CNCROi.com can help you out with that too!

After the CNC waterjet is finished cutting the metal stencil, you can see the rust builds-up pretty fast on the surface (both sides).

That’s why CNCROi.com has a huge industrial sand blasting unit to make quick work of the rust and the grime that happens all over the metal stencil during production in the CNC waterjet.

The results look great, a nice matte finish shows how clean this dragon metal stencil has become compared to the rusting hulk it was before.

CNCROi.com does a lot of metal work, recently I got into welding and that’s the background you see in the image above of the dragon metal stencil.

Now onto our second most popular material when it comes to custom stencils, polycarbonate.

The advantage of a polycarbonate stencil are many fold, first, unlike the metal stencil, it’s completely transparent, it’s so clear that it’s actually optically clear meaning free of any distortions.

Additionally, polycarbonate is incredibly strong, it’s what armies all around the world use for bullet proof glass, we make custom machine tags out of this stuff too.

So regardless of thickness, CNCROi.com has you covered when it comes to custom fabrication of polycarbonate, we just happen to be covering the stencil end of things today.

For this project, the polycarbonate is incredibly thin, that’s perfect for this application which is airbrush stencelling, it allows easy fixation to just about anything using tape and it’s thin enough to not have overspray issues.

Other materials we’ve made custom stencils out of include cardboard, which also works great when it comes to stencil use though it’s more of a one-time over the multi-time use of the polycarbonate or metal stencil.

In this airbrush stencil application, we are cutting out a bunch of evil clowns, they tend to go well with dragons so why not cut them all out together for a demonstration at the CNCROi.com shop!

Unlike metal though, polycarbonate stencils are very easy to bend around objects, so not only can you see where you will be stenciling through more than just the stencil holes, but you can also wrap it around cylinders, odd shapes and across different objects.

Your stencil can also be big or small, in this case, the evil clowns are 5″ x 6″ but we can easily go full bed size and even bigger using pass through if you really need a huge stencil to work from.

As these clowns take shape, keep in mind that there are many different types of plastics available for custom stencils, so have an idea of the thickness you’d like and CNCROi.com can get it for you.

If you wanted a custom stencil that was very disposable and one-time use, do consider paper stencils, CNCROi.com makes those too and depending on the design, they can be very cost-effective.

Other things to keep in mind with stencils is that you want to make sure all the inner parts are well supported.

It doesn’t matter if it’s a metal stencil, paper stencil, plastic stencil or cardboard stencil, inside parts need to be fully supported otherwise they fall out, think of the letter “P” where the inside of it isn’t there, it makes for a massive hole!

As for resolution, regardless of material, they are all pretty much the same when it comes to the application of stencilled.

If you want to get an idea of the different machines CNCROi.com can use to make your stencil, check this video out.

It’s pretty easy to remember though, if you want to flame brand something, nothing beats metal stencil, if it’s one time disposable use, plywood or paper is fine and if it’s for multiple stencil use over an extended period of time, polycarbonate is great.

CNCROi.com can help you when it comes to optimizing the design for a stencil.

Now that these custom clown polycarbonate stencils are done, you can see that it isn’t optically clear, that’s because CNCROi.com cut these using a mask to keep them clean.

This mask is easily removed, I just like to ship with it on to protect them and to give the customer a few test sprays that are easy to clean-up before going into actual production using the polycarbonate stencils.