Corian is Nasty

Al Launier

Member
Messages
1,683
Location
Bedford, NH
I was finishing the last of the benches for the tools in my small shop so that I can move them around as needed. This last one holds both a belt/disc sander & a bench grinder. Thought I completed it, but then decided to make a "waterproof" drop-shelf to hold some quenching water when I hand sharpen drill bits, etc. I had some Corian pieces on hand leftover from the counter-top cutouts for a kitchen sink & thought that would be a good use for it since it has been hanging around for the last 17 years (guess that qualifies me as a pack rat). Not having worked with Corian before, I was a bit surprised to see how much fine dust was produced when cutting it on the TS. WOW! It does create a lot of dust! Nasty stuff to cut, but don't expect much of a problem tomorrow(?) when I drill for the hinges.Sure glad I had the dust collector/air filtration/respirator/safety goggles/face shield on. :rolleyes: Seems like a lot of precaution, but I had no regrets. ;)
 
What blade did you use? I've cut Corian before, and it produced chips, not dust. Edging it with a router produces small curls, and so does making a pen with it on the lathe.
 
I put a Corian cabinet top and back splash in one of our bathrooms. I didn't have any problems cutting it to size or drilling for the plumbing. It was several years ago so I do not remember what saw blade or drilling cutter that I used. I just remember the static electricity and the clinging particles. Yes I used a dust collector, safety glasses, dust mask and ear plugs. (When I get all of the rest of that stuff on, I have to use ear plugs. The headset type hearing protectors just don't seem to work with all of the other hardware.)

Enjoy,
JimB
 
I used a 50 TPI carbide combo saw blade. It is an older blade still sharp & in good condition, one that I reserve for odd cuts. I don't have a blade with a TCG grind for abrasive materials like Corian.
 
I use it for pens and stoppers all the time...don't toss it Bob, I'll take it!
It is very dusty and gritty. If I turn the skew into a laser, curls show up, but don't last long.
 
Corian melts at about 300 degrees. Blade choice might be important for cutting. Someone gave me a box full and I hated working with it. Gave away to someone else. Someone here I think.
 
I made a project out of corian about 20 years ago when I was school, one of the most important things they told us at shop was that if we used normal wood cutting tools we would destroy them, we used widia circular saws to cut it and metal files and metal hack saw blades, that didn't last for than a few hours to work with them.
 
Top