Flame-polishing acrylic

From TheBestCaseScenario

Care must be taken when flame polishing acrylic.

Almost any type of torch will work, but usually, the hotter the better. I have used propane torches, butane torches, and hydrogen torches. I have found the the hydrogen/oxygen torches work best for flame polishing.

How to flame polish acrylic: First, you will need to scrape the edges of the acrylic smooth. US Plastic sells tools made just for this. Otherwise, a rectangular bar of any metal with a nice sharp edge will work, or even a razor. Scrape the edges smooth with your scraping tool.

An edge scraper from US Plastic

Next, turn on your torch. Try and get a nicely shaped cone, or center of the flame. You will want the cone to extend as far as possible out into the flame. Ex. a flame with a blue cone and a lot of yellow flame around it isn't as good as a blue cone with a small yellow flame surrounding it.

A small butane torch

Now, make fairly quick passes on the edge of your acrylic. It will take practice to get right. However, NEVER hold the torch still on the acrylic, or you will get bubbles and burn marks.

A well polished acrylic edge:

A poorly polished edge:

Play around with some scrap acrylic before taking that torch anywhere near your computer. It will take some practice to get right, but it isn't as hard as it looks.