Corian pros and cons

[BobRad]

I'm thinking of trying Corian

I've been told by some that they don't use Corian as its too abrasive and dusty

What's the best kind of drill for it or will a regular brad end work

Is the workability and finish techniques same as acrylic

 

[NewLondon88]

It works well and polishes up nicely. It doesn't usually turn like an acrylic,
but there's many different types, so I shouldn't make a blanket statement.
I like turning it and polishing .. the problem is that when you're done, you
have a pen that looks like you made it out of a kitchen countertop.
If it were a solid color that might be different but I haven't seen those.
If anything, it tends to drill cleaner than wood if you have a sharp bit.

 

[Mark]

I love working Corian. Sharp tools and take your time. I use a brad bit and drill slowly. I clear my bit often. Turning and polishing is a breeze. I've been turning them, one color per pen. Its true it can look kind of bland at times. Depends on the color you choose. I want to start segmenting it. I think that will make a more interesting finished product.

I've never had one split or blow-out and can't explain why. I realize many others have had a terrible time with blow-outs. Good Luck..

 

[ed4copies]

Great for gluing --seams don't show in most patterns.

I'm with Charlie, neat pen, portable countertop????

 

[BobRad]

I have a couple of blanks around somewhere that might try. I though I could get solid colors - so thats not so great having only stone colours.

I assumed one advantage is that the blanks can be cheap if you get them from a place recycling its cuttoffs and I need to make some cheap pens. I think there is a place near me that makes counters and I'll see what they have.

 

[Aerotech]

i've never tried it but since Corian King lives right around the corner from me i'm gonna go check it out. Seems to me like he's asking a pretty good price.

 

[Dudley Young]

I turn a lot of corian. You can get solid colors and it segments real well and polishes real well. Here is an example. I get some corian in .5x.5x6" un-drilled, but most of the corian I get 2"x.5x.5 drilled 7mm. The best way to drill is to cut the blank long and don't drill all the way through, then cut it. That eliminates the blowout. Try it, you'll like it. If you have a belt sander, sand the corners off before you turn it. Here is the best source I've found for the pre drilled stuff.
http://cgi.ebay.com/7-mm-pre-drille...ryZ71234QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[Aerotech]

what do you cut it with. will a carbide tipped 60 tooth miter saw blade do it or will that destroy it. or will it destroy my blade.

 

[BobRad]

Good question - I trim to length my blanks with a regular band saw blade - but I wonder whether Corian will blunt it too fast.

 

[elody21]

Your blade will be just fine. Corian is great. You can use a nice big roughing gouge to make the whole pen. When it comes off of the lathe it is done and need for extra finish. I used to make hundreds for a distributor and I got the turning down to about 5 minutes per pen!
Just use some micro mesh and Novis polish and you are done. It is very durable and takes a lot of wear. I have several pens made from Corian I use all the time. A couple are about 10 years old and still look great.
It is easy to glue and with almost all of the colors seams are invisible with just CA glue. There is a right way. PM me if you want the directions.
Some seem to have something against it but it is made of acrylic and is much easier to turn than any polyester blank and most acrylic blanks. Some other brands of solid surface have a mixture of acrylic and polyester and like some colors of avonite are all polyester. With the lighter colors I even get a curl when turning.
Some solid surface will powder but the corian brand doesn't.
I just turned 3 polyester blanks tonight and I was just thinking how much easier and less trouble Corian is.
Hope this helps
Alice

what do you cut it with. will a carbide tipped 60 tooth miter saw blade do it or will that destroy it. or will it destroy my blade.

 

[Smitty37]

Turning corian

It looks good enough when finished but I find that most of it is 1/2 inch so you are drilling a quarter inch hole through a half inch blank - not as easy for me as some guys have suggested. You always get blow out when you drill through so make it long and stop before you get all the way through then cut it to length. It cuts fairly easy. Also, I don't try to turn all the way to the bushing because it nicks pretty easy when it gets really thin. You can also get hairline cracks when you press in the cap of slimlines...especially if you leave a little glue in the tube.

It comes in hundreds of colors and only a few of them look like a kitchen counter. And it is cheap and easily available. Sand it wet to keep the dust down.

 

[gaeast54]

price and color

Corian King has the best prices and the best colors around. Several colors in a bundle.

 

[snyiper]

Ptownstubbie also has corian at a very good price and great selection. I use lots of water when drilling it keeps things cool!!! I turn with a gouge or woodchuck finish with Skew....Great stuff

 

[Wild Turkey]

Bob,
I make a ton of slim-line, as well as large pens from Corian, glued together of course to make a larger type blank. Drills nice and I have very few blow-outs and the stuff polishes up like crazy. Try getting a Rotundo turning tool, this allows you to turn Corian very easily. Check in with Corian King here on the IAP and he can really help you pick material and give some great advice on Corian.

 

[elody21]

As for the drilling with a drilling vice and a bullet bit or regular bit, never a brad. it is simple.
It can be drilled cut and routered with and wood blades
Most is 1/2" but I have at least 8-10 colors that are 3/4" I also sell blank sets that are 3/4" by 5".ready to glue.
If you ever see 3/4" it is either about 20 years old or has been glued. It used to be thought that the only way to glue corian is with the corian glue, but that isn't so anymore. If you take the smooth side and clean it off with denatured alcohol. Put medium CA glue liberally on one side rub the two side together and use spring clamps. In about 15-20 minutes you will have a 1" thick piece that will be easy to drill for anyone.
There are a couple of companies that sell 3/4" that is new., but it is hard to find.
The hairline cracks. As long as you make sure the brass tube is clean, and I mean clean you shouldn't have any problems. If you need to you can bevel the end of the brass tube. Make sure you press your parts in straight.
I have been working with and selling Corian here for 6 years.
If anyone wants a 3/4" by 5-6" long I will send them a white marbled one for FREE just the postage and you can try it out yourself. If I use a buisness envelope it is about 4.2-4.5 oz. I think it would depend on where it is going as to how much it is. I would have to figure out each one seperately.
I guess when I started turning it there was a learning curve, but that is true with anything
If you are getting a blow out while drilling you are not clearing the bit as often as you should. That is true with any acrylic or resin.
Alice

As with any acrylic, resin or even hard wood you have to leave the blank a little longer that you drill.

 

[PenMan1]

I like working with Corian. The only problem that I have is that all the stuff I get is 1/2 inch thick. In order to make anything larger that a slimline, I have to glue pieces together. It glues very nicely, the glueing just adds time to the process.

 

[Bear-31]

I like working with corian with the exception of the dust. When cutting it mostly comes off in a powder and it really irritates my sinus...even with a dust mask. I always wet sand and it polishes up to a beautiful shine. I make mostly pendants out of the sample pieces (1.5"X1.5" sq)

 

[elody21]

Bear, I am just guessing but it sounds like you are using a different brand then corian?
The only time I get dust with Corian brand is when it is sanded. Some of the other brands of acrylic solid surface will dust. Also unless you cut them yourself Corian doesn't come in 1.5x1.5 squares.
If you have something different and would like to try Corian brand, I can get 4 2x2's in a buisness envelope and the weight is about 7.5 oz. You would pay for the postage only figured out by your address
Alice

I like working with corian with the exception of the dust. When cutting it mostly comes off in a powder and it really irritates my sinus...even with a dust mask. I always wet sand and it polishes up to a beautiful shine. I make mostly pendants out of the sample pieces (1.5"X1.5" sq)

 

[elody21]

If you want a free 3/4" sq x 6" pen blank of Corian for the postage only, let me know
The weight is about 4.2 to 4.5 oz. in a buisness envelope. Postage will be according to location
send me a PM. I will be out this evening but will respond asap
Alice Elody21

 

[NewLondon88]

I just picked up about 300 pounds of 12mm Corian scraps this afternoon. They
showed me to the back of the building and said "help yourself" . There were
about 10 pallets of scraps there, mostly counter cutoffs, rectangle and
oval sink cutouts. Lots of 4" x 30-40" pieces, but most were the colored
flecked material. But they had some nice vanilla, white and raw silk pieces
that I snagged.

 

[ToddMR]

Jack my buddy would be very jealous I think. He went to a place and they said they rarely have scraps.

 

[NewLondon88]

He went to a place and they said they rarely have scraps.

Really?? Do they make it themselves? I'm wondering how they would cut
Corian to size and not have scraps? Or maybe they already give/sell them
to someone else..

 

[Mark]

I have a fabricator less than a mile from me. They too said, no scraps. In fact, they pulverize their scraps and conveyor belt them to a dumpster.

Several hundred pounds of Corian dust, but no scraps...

 

[ToddMR]

Well they told him they use them for repairs and where they need to fit in a piece etc. I thought it was hard to believe too. I think he did mention some lady and her kid come in from time to time too for some stuff.

 

[NewLondon88]

That's a shame.. I wonder why they do that? I could see if they re-used it somehow..
but people are funny sometimes.

One place I used to go, the guy up front wouldn't let anyone have it. Said they had
none, etc. The guys out back were desperate to have someone take it, it was taking
up too much room, they tripped over it, couldn't find a place to put the new stock.
They told me when to come back (when the grouch was gone) and they not only
gave me what I could carry, they carried a quarter ton out the the car and helped
me load it. They looked forward to me coming back, telling friend etc.

 

[Smitty37]

Respirator

I like working with corian with the exception of the dust. When cutting it mostly comes off in a powder and it really irritates my sinus...even with a dust mask. I always wet sand and it polishes up to a beautiful shine. I make mostly pendants out of the sample pieces (1.5"X1.5" sq)

Please get a respirator....I've been turning only about 2 years (and actually turning only about 1 with the rest of the time doing other woodwork) and the dust has done my lungs more damage than 60 years of smoking cigarettes....some of that dust is really nasty stuff to inhale.

 

[ed4copies]

If you approach a cabinet shop and they tell you they have none, you might try saying, "Gee, that's a shame, I was gonna trade you a couple pens made from your scraps for the remainder that I could use" and show them a corian pen.

When I did shows, the "corian guys" (making the cutting boards) used to find me to trade for a pen.

 

[Lenny]

The truck driver that delivers countertops to our shop found out I made pens and on his next trip to our area, made a stop just to drop off a bunch of scraps to me.

I plan to give him a pen next time I see him .... but it's been awhile.

I think a countertop dealer would be a great potential repeat customer. Imagine the dealer telling a customer if he/she decides to go with this corian countertop he will throw in a handmade pen to match. Good chance for repeat sales and all the scrap corian you want. At least that's the way I imagine it playing out! :biggrin:

 

[elody21]

You should use a mask or respirator for every material you turn.
alice

Please get a respirator....I've been turning only about 2 years (and actually turning only about 1 with the rest of the time doing other woodwork) and the dust has done my lungs more damage than 60 years of smoking cigarettes....some of that dust is really nasty stuff to inhale.

 

[seawolf]

For small quanties of special colors you can go to the dupont web sight and call them they will send one or two 5X5X1/2 samples to you at no cost. That is how I got the red color hot, white and blue.
Mark

 

[LarryDNJR]

So... you are sending some my way right?

I just picked up about 300 pounds of 12mm Corian scraps this afternoon. They
showed me to the back of the building and said "help yourself" . There were
about 10 pallets of scraps there, mostly counter cutoffs, rectangle and
oval sink cutouts. Lots of 4" x 30-40" pieces, but most were the colored
flecked material. But they had some nice vanilla, white and raw silk pieces
that I snagged.

 

[LarryDNJR]

A place I went to here in Columbus said they don't really have scraps to spare because they can glue it up and make edge pieces, backsplashes, etc.

Then I was told that what little tiny bit they have gets picked up by a woman and her daughter for their crafts they do.

I was only able to watch out with a 12" x 13" piece which was nice enough in itself. Although I would like 300lbs worth myself. Maybe even 20lbs or so

Really?? Do they make it themselves? I'm wondering how they would cut
Corian to size and not have scraps? Or maybe they already give/sell them
to someone else..

 

[LarryDNJR]

I tried the whole pen routine. I showed the salesman what I had etc, and wanted to talk about a possible deal too. Unfortunately he said I should to the owner who as on vacation. I plan to try and go back here next week and see what I can work out possibly.

If you approach a cabinet shop and they tell you they have none, you might try saying, "Gee, that's a shame, I was gonna trade you a couple pens made from your scraps for the remainder that I could use" and show them a corian pen.

When I did shows, the "corian guys" (making the cutting boards) used to find me to trade for a pen.

 

[LarryDNJR]

Last I checked you had to buy the small samples.

10" x 10" $13.50
4" x 4" $2.00
2" x 2" $1.00

For small quanties of special colors you can go to the dupont web sight and call them they will send one or two 5X5X1/2 samples to you at no cost. That is how I got the red color hot, white and blue.
Mark

 

[NewLondon88]

So... you are sending some my way right?

send me a PM and I'll make USPS regret that 'If it fits, it ships" commercial. :tongue:

Definitely use the mask. One large shop near me has stopped buying the
large sheets for custom work. They now have another custom shop make
their pieces for them because the sanding dust was killing the motors on
all of their machines.
They showed me a pile of about 15 Porter Cable routers sitting in the
corner. All need new motors. .. and that was with dust extraction in the
shop. Maybe a dozen palm sanders, none of them looked that old. If I had
access to inexpensive motors, I'd be putting them on Craigs List myself.
But it gives you an idea of the dust..

 

[Wood Butcher]

OK, one more comment on this, I had heard of using Corian, etc. but didn't have any. I called two kitchen counter top places and asked for discontinued samples explaining what I wanted them for. The sweet lady I spoke with said come on down I'll find you something. I picked up about 40 lbs of 2x2 samples in probably 35 colors/patterns and we talked about crafts and stuff for half an hour. We even ended up as FB friends. I took her the second pen I made with her samples as a thank you and offered to make pens for them for their solid surface counter top customers, for a price of course. She had a pen made of Corian. It was a slimline, very basic and had the company name engraved. The one I took her was a cigar made of Corian in sea green with guitar pickguard material and Camelthorn wood from WoodturningZ. She went balistic over the pen. She posted pics back to me, maybe a dozen, and put them on FB too. The only thing I did was be real and friendly and she said will call me when they have samples or scraps. Get some and try it for yourself. Some will like turning it and some won't.