"Carl Ijames" wrote in message
...
"John Doe" wrote in message ...

PVC board! I just noticed PVC board at the local hardware store.

Apparently it's solid material. So it can be cut, routed, etc.

It looks very inexpensive compared to some other plastics, for
stock.

Do they sell it in dimensions like a 2 x 4? I need at least 1 1/2
inch
thick by at least 3 inches wide.

Thanks.
================================================== ===========

Assuming you are in the US, the best way to begin any "I wonder
what's available and how much it costs?" search for stock is to go
to www.mcmaster.com and browse. That way you find out what
materials are available and in what size ranges, and you get a price
point. They have a great selection and awesome service; if you are
within 100 miles or so of a warehouse and order by 5 PM you usually
have it the next day by UPS ground. If you need a small quantity
and need it next day, just order it because beating that price and
delivery without having to meet a minimum order quantity is going to
be tough and you will spend more in your labor than you will save.
If you can buy wholesale in medium quantity from a materials
distributor (Total Plastics, a local steel company, etc.), you can
usually beat their price by a factor of 2-3 but will need an
account, usually have to spend more than some minimum like $75-125
per order, and delivery will be anywhere from next day to a week.
In this case, search for pvc, then click on type I pvc in the
results box (unless you need type II), then click sheets and bars if
necessary, and look. I see 1.5" x 3" in lengths of 1, 2, 3, or 4'
at $32/foot. At the top of the page there is a link "more about
plastics", and below that another link to properties, if you want to
see the specs on different plastics. You can also select type II
pvc instead of type I and see those specs. As far as I'm concerned
mcmaster has the best ecommerce web site going, for searchability
and just general ability to find stuff, so always start a "what if"
there. As an example, in my previous job I bought a lot of plastic
from the closest Sabic Polymershapes office in Jessup, MD, including
having 2-4 4x8' sheets per order, 2-3 orders per year, of 1/2" thick
type I pvc sawed to my dimensions of 3" x 5" and 3" x 7" so we could
machine products from them. I forget the exact numbers but
including paying to have it cut it was about 3x cheaper than
mcmaster carr, free delivery included via their truck instead of
paying UPS, and we still would have had to cut the mcmaster material
up ourselves. So, if you want one 4' piece, order from mcmaster.
If you need lots and lots, check your yellow pages to see how close
a Sabic Polymershapes (Sabic bought the GE Polymers division) or
Total Plastics is, and call them for a quote.

-----
Regards,
Carl Ijames

At Segway I ordered some PVC angle stock from MMC and what I received
was too distorted to use.
--jsw