Mylar and elastic strap sources? #23
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As I understand from other face shield conversations: Mylar sheets are made of PET (same as in PETG). Laminating pouches are also made of PET, and come in .3 and .5 thicknesses. These can be found through Staples or Michaels. As I understand, the pouches would have to go through a laminator to seal up and become transparent. I too have not found a good source for the elastic straps. Are there other materials that can be used instead of elastic straps, and if so could other versions of the design be made for them? |
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I have made one with the elastic Material from Wallmart. https://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/unique-creativ-white-jumbo-braided-elastic-19-mm-x-27-m/6000084458063#find-in-store-section |
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Has anyone else sourced out Mylar sheets in Ontario, other than the laminating pouches? Thank you. |
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Laminating pouches? Interesting. Has anyone tried this and can vouch for it? I'm willing to buy them along with a laminator if I have to, but I'd like to make sure that it works before forking out the money. As for the Walmart elastic bands, it's great for making a single face shield, but I plan on making 80-90 a day, and that elastic band option would be the most expensive component. I need 500' roll or something like that where it would be a few cents per foot. |
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Hi all, PETG Sheets (4'x8') can be found at Johnson Plastics - I purchased .040in (1mm) plastic sheets at $45 per sheet. Cutting will cost about $16/sheet. [email protected] They were out of .030in as of yesterday. |
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Thanks! But isn't 1mm way too thick? They are using 0.127mm thick sheets (0.005"). |
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I tried 5 mil laminating pouches, and met with a doctor friend of mine, who told me that although it's not bad, it's not quite clear enough. It's slightly foggy. Perhaps 3 mil might be better but I don't think it would be durable enough. So I'm not going to pursue laminating pouches anymore. Oh well, back to the drawing board! |
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I can get the sheets for you from a local supplier for $0.75 a sheet. It's 0.5 mm thk and very durable. Used in the medical industries. Let me know if anyone is interested. |
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Isn't 0.5mm very thick? My understanding is it should be 0.125mm thick (0.005"). I would imagine that the thicker it is, the less transparent it becomes. By the way, I made a mistake when I said I tried 5 mil laminating pouches. Apparently when they advertise them as 5 mil, that doesn't count the fact that they are 2-ply. The pouch consists of 2 ply, whose total comes to 10 mil. So I purchased some 3 mil off Amazon (the only laminating pouches that have one-day delivery! Everything else is 1 month!), and will give it another go tomorrow. I think it will be clear enough. And each sheet is only $0.25. |
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Thank you for trying, and thank you for the update!
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On Mar 27, 2020, at 5:45 PM, mza1979m ***@***.***> wrote:
I tried 5 mil laminating pouches, and met with a doctor friend of mine, who told me that although it's not bad, it's not quite clear enough. It's slightly foggy. Perhaps 3 mil might be better but I don't think it would be durable enough. So I'm not going to pursue laminating pouches anymore. Oh well, back to the drawing board!
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The $0.75 sheet works very well and is clear as well. 0.5 mm is very durable which is needed for the application. |
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So just to clarify the .75 cent sheet is clear enough but not durable enough? Thank you so much for trying this out
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On Mar 27, 2020, at 10:35 PM, mrsachin2000 ***@***.***> wrote:
The $0.75 sheet works very well and is clear as well. 0.5 mm is very durable which is needed for the application.
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I'm quite sure jmichalenko said it is very durable ☺ |
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Bummer... 3 mil sheets yielded pretty poor results. The sheet came out very rippled. Either I used garbage quality sheets, or the fact that they were empty and had no paper inside made them ripple, due to the fact that they are thinner than 5 mil. I'm scrapping the idea. On the plus side, I have a lifetime supply of laminating pouches I'll probably never use.
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Thank you for the effort, you are doing good!
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On Mar 28, 2020, at 6:18 PM, mza1979m ***@***.***> wrote:
Bummer... 3 mil sheets yielded pretty poor results. The sheet came out very rippled. Either I used garbage quality sheets, or the fact that they were empty and had no paper inside made them ripple, due to the fact that they are thinner than 5 mil. I'm scrapping the idea. On the plus side, I have a lifetime supply of laminating pouches I'll probably never use.
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You're quite welcome. Thank you :) |
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I also tried a high quality laminating 5 mil sheets, they're ok a little less clear than I would like it to be. |
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I can't seem to find the thickness of these transparency sheets anyone used them or similar? https://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/Apollo-c-o-Acco-World-APOWO100CB-Write-On-Transparency-Film-8-50in-x11in-Clear/PRD18H87VJMMPF7 |
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ajarrar2, I did some searching online and found the following website, which indicates they are 5 mil (that would be perfect!). This seems to make sense, because the package weight is also stated as 2.15 lb, which I compared with the weight of my 100 pack of 3 mil laminating pouches, and they came up at 2.618 lb. Of course, accounting for the fact that 3 mil [laminating pouches] refers to only 1 side of the pouch, it's actually a combined 6 mil, so after doing all the math to figure out what they would weight if they were 5 mil, it comes to 2.18 lb, which is close enough to 2.15 lb (this includes the cardboard packaging, which could obviously vary in weight). https://vibenet.thalerus.com/quality/Product/APOWO100CB/2?SearchTypeOverride=SPR |
Thanks @mza1979m I did not think to compare the weight! :) Will let you know how those work out in the coming few days when they're delivered. |
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Thank you so much everyone for your persistence on this problem. It is so appreciated
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On Mar 29, 2020, at 11:57 AM, ajarrar2 ***@***.***> wrote:
ajarrar2, I did some searching online and found the following website, which indicates they are 5 mil (that would be perfect!). This seems to make sense, because the package weight is also stated as 2.15 lb, which I compared with the weight of my 100 pack of 3 mil laminating pouches, and they came up at 2.618 lb. Of course, accounting for the fact that 3 mil [laminating pouches] refers to only 1 side of the pouch, it's actually a combined 6 mil, so after doing all the math to figure out what they would weight if they were 5 mil, it comes to 2.18 lb, which is close enough to 2.15 lb (this includes the cardboard packaging, which could obviously vary in weight).
I knew my useless laminating pouches would come in handy, but I didn't think so soon! :)
https://vibenet.thalerus.com/quality/Product/APOWO100CB/2?SearchTypeOverride=SPR
https://www.ldproducts.com/apollo-apowo100cb-write-on-transparency-film.html
Thanks @mza1979m I did not think to compare the weight! :) Will let you know how those work out in the coming few days when they're delivered.
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Hi @mrsachin2000 - would you be able to share the contact for your local supplier? How big are the 0.75 cent sheets? Also, to confirm, are the sheets Mylar? Thanks!! We’re a company based in British Columbia. We are eager to get started with shipping these face shields out to hospital workers.
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Word of caution: these sheets are not transparent https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B000W4KUVS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 |
How can I get in touch? |
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@mrsachin2000 - I'm interested in using the local supplier. Could you please connect me? |
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Hi all - I've been testing out this plastic and it seems to be working very well in terms of transparency, ease of sourcing, and cost: I got a pack from my local staples in (BC). I’m not sure of its exact thickness nor what material it is - but it holds up well to a 70% running alcohol solution with a soft cotton ball (for disinfecting). |
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@momofomo 1. Thank you for sharing this. |
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Hi @mza1979m -
I hope this helps! If you end up getting this plastic and you find out what exact material it is (eg acetate or other plastic type), please share the info! Also if it doesn’t work for you, let me know too. On that note, I encourage you all to share your progress and learnings. What materials are better than others? Are they holding up to bleach or other disinfectants? What issues did you encounter? It may not seem like your knowledge would help others, but the hours you spent on figuring things out would save someone else hours. And then we can all start distributing masks sooner. 🤓 |
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Agreed, Thank you so much for all of the investment of time.
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On Apr 2, 2020, at 4:04 PM, momofomo ***@***.***> wrote:
Hi @mza1979m -
You’re very welcome. I’m a big believer that we all need to come together as a collective triumph through this very challenging health crisis.
My calipers show that they are 5 mil in thickness (0.13 mm). Not the most experienced using a pair of calipers, but I did multiple tries and landed on 0.13 mm.
I held the plastic up to my face and was able to see through it clearly. I know the feeling of being told that a product is a certain spec and then feeling disappointed that they aren’t. It’s frustrating and defeating to spend money on the wrong item. Remember that you’re helping to save lives and doing a great thing! So $80 in the big scheme of things is a bit more justifiable when you think of it this way. I bought a 50 pack of the plastic sheets I mentioned.
They don’t have holes. They are intended as binding covers - so normally the holes would be punched upon the spiral binding process.
I hope this helps! If you end up getting this plastic and you find out what exact material it is (eg acetate or other plastic type), please share the info! Also if it doesn’t work for you, let me know too.
On that note, I encourage you all to share your progress and learnings. What materials are better than others? Are they holding up to bleach or other disinfectants? What issues did you encounter? It may not seem like your knowledge would help others, but the hours you spent on figuring things out would save someone else hours. And then we can all start distributing masks sooner. 🤓
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@momofomo |
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Oh sweet, I found that Staples has 25 packs in stock locally, so I purchased a pack online, which I can pick up tomorrow. If it works, I'll buy a bigger pack. As a bonus, these ones have rounded corners! |
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Sorry about all the messages... https://www.staples.com/GBC-ClearView-Presentation-Covers/product_SS974901 |
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@mza1979m - thanks for the info! I'll look more into the properties of polypropylene. and I got a 1 package of 50 sheets (the store carried a smaller quantity in one pack - instead of the pack of 100 that's listed online). :) |
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@mza1979m - yes, they do have rounded corners! The rounded corners are only on one side of the sheet though (e.g. only 2 corners are rounded) |
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Based on my brief research on the chemical resistance of polypropylene: It seems to hold up very well to Isopropyl Alcohol and Bleach (sodium hypochlorite): The ratings: Ratings: Chemical Effect |
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This is good! I'm optimistic about this. |
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@momofomo I picked up the pack of 25 sheets, and although they were clear, they were VERY blurry. They were indeed 5 mil, but the laminating pouches I tried that were 10 mil were far clearer, and I was told by a doctor that they weren't clear enough. I'm not sure if these ones I picked up today are the same as what you purchased but it seems like it. They're great for what they were intended for. When you put something immediately under the clear sheet, it's very clear. But when I put them in front of my face, I get dizzy because it feels as though I'm looking through someone else's reading glasses, and everything past a few inches is distorted and blurry. If you haven't consulted with anyone about them, I would highly suggest you do before you make too many and it turns out they're not clear enough. Back to the drawing board!
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The transparency does not depend on the thickness as much as on the surface texture - try running it through a laminator and it should improve dramatically. If it doesn't, see if your laminator has a higher temperature setting. |
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I tried these 2 much clearer than my laminating sheets, the staples one is small granules. The GBC one is a little thicker but they are both not as thick as I want them to be to fit well. I shopped everywhere can't seem to find the perfect one. |
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Hi @ajarrar2 - I also tried the acetate sheets from staples. Yes they are granular and not useful. @mza1979m - the sheets do have a bit of a blurry effect, but they don’t seem to cause as too much visual distortion. I’ll consult with our doctor who’s on our team. To confirm, here’s the barcode from the binding sheets that I have: |
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Hi All, Wanted to give an update based on my testing today:
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Also, to note, my company isn't using the 3D printed design on this github. We decided to use one from https://3dverkstan.se/protective-visor/ because we didn't want to have to source elastic straps. We're also printing with a different filament (NinjaTek Filament) - so we chose what worked best with the materials we had readily available to us. |
Hello,
I'm in London, Ontario and own (4) 3D printers and a laser cutter and would like to make as many of these face shields as possible.
I have slightly thickened the front, middle part of the shield that goes directly onto the forehead, from 1mm to 2mm. The reason being that the first one broke very easily in my hands due to the 2 center strap notches significantly reducing the rigidity of the middle portion. I hope this is ok. This adds 2 minutes 30 seconds to the print time, but the difference was quite substantial.
I have spent several hours attempting to locate a good source for mylar sheets and elastic straps, to no avail. Perhaps you can save me hours of time and frustration by pointing me in the right direction? Are they online or can I obtain them in locally?
Thank you!
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