Lexan windows?

[drewpster]

The cabin top of my old tug needs new windows. Currently they are made of Plexiglas. It is scratched and looks bad. Has anyone used lexan? Is there another material to use without going with safety glass?

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Lexan windows?

lexan is break resistant, compared to plexi. i used it to replace a curved windshield on a bow rider. worked really well. i use a jig saw, taped the bottom so it would not scratch, fine toothed metal cutting blade.

 

[drewpster]

Re: Lexan windows?

I think I remember that boat. Didn't you post some pics?
How well did the Lexan hold up to scratches and cleaning and such? Comparable to Plexi?
Can you get Lexan in different thickness?

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Lexan windows?

held up well, yes it comes in different thickness. home depot and lowes carry it.

 

[Lone Duck]

Re: Lexan windows?

Lexan is good but do not rub it with grit on it. splash lots of water on it first. cause it will scratch if you don't. Up here a 4x8 sheet of 1/4 cost me 400.00.

 

[SFT2]

Re: Lexan windows?

Lexan is good stuff, nearly impossible to break, but it's much easier to scratch than Plexi, and if you have large, flat panels of it you will likely get more bowing than with Plexi (which has more than safety glass).

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Lexan windows?

plexi breaks in those sharp things that stab you.

 

[Fish n Geer]

Re: Lexan windows?

Thats what i have to find out next.Whats gonna be cheaper the safety glass thats in it or the lexan.Going to replace the front three panels leave the sides alone they look good yet.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Lexan windows?

lexan is much cheaper. you are better off trying to find a complete windshield, than have safety glass molded to fit.

 

[Fish n Geer]

Re: Lexan windows?

Nah mine are just square panels held in by what looks to be rubber seals.I know dad had one replaced years ago.A rock from a lawn mower at the marina hit one of the panes and it shattered still in tact though.I probably will go with whatever they are now.They are just aged and scratchy looking.Not going to go through all this then have to look through old glass.
See what i mean?

 

[drewmitch44]

Re: Lexan windows?

I dis-agree with loneduck. I have the Lexan that im going to replace my windshields with. I have the pannels ready and i bought a small pannel of lexan and a small panel of acrylic. I mean small like 16" X 16" just to test a couple of things. I left both pannels outside for the last 2 months. I threw a bunch of dirt and sand on both and wiped them both down with a bucket of water. The plexy scrached all up like crazy and the lexan looked like it was scratching but when i hosed it off there were no scratches. Lexan, unlike acrylic plastic or plexi, does not scratch or scuff nearly as easily. Lexan is your best bet for a inexpensive replacement that will be easy to bend and mold into shape without heating. One day i took 4 tablespoons of table salt to the lexan and the acrylic. I put the 4 spoons on both my test pieces and then i took a towel just wet enough to move the salt around on the panels and the acrylic looked like you took sand paper to it. You could not even hardly see through it anymore. The lexan looked ****ty at first but then i rinsed off both and took windex to them and the lexan looked almost new and the acrylic you could hardly see through. I did all this to see what i wanted to use for my windshield. The lexan is WAY more durable than the acrylic plastic and the plexi stuff. I since have the lexan on hand and am just waiting to get to the point to install the pannels. I am going to try go find some pics of the tests that i did to the 3 different materials. Like i said the lexan was 100% better than anything else as far as scratch resistant.

 

[Lone Duck]

Re: Lexan windows?

Drewmitch44;
You misunder stand what I ment I don't say It scratches worse than plex I am saying it will scratch faster than glass. especialy if you run wipers on it.

 

[AguaSki]

Re: Lexan windows?

I thought I read somewhere that Lexan is used to build the canopy on a fighter jet. Someone on this forum can probably confirm this. If the Lexan is good enough for a jet, then it should work well on project boat.

 

[SFT2]

Re: Lexan windows?

You could always get a glass restoration kit from... bah, can't remember the name, but it's a place that sells all kinds of car restoration stuff. They have stuff that'll take gouges out of windshields.

Some aircraft windscreens and canopies are lexan, others aren't. I somehow doubt anything supersonic is using lexan since it's extremely easy to heat form it. I just stick it in the oven at 300 degrees for about a minute. Pretty sure F-16 canopies are tempered glass, and I know they have a thin layer of gold to reflect radiation or some such.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Lexan windows?

just for reference: "http://www.gtglass.com/site/scratch_removal.html"

 

[Fish n Geer]

Re: Lexan windows?

That would certainly be worth a try! Thank you!