Support Forum

Hi Carl,

1. We offer plexiglas in 2, 3 and 4 mm thickness. See here

2. Plexiglas is available in clear or red. Other colors are available upon request, please contact our office at (206) 768-0602 or info@frontpanelexpress.com for details.

3. Our standard colors can be selected in Front Panel Designer. Please use the 'Remark-Box' in Front Panel Designer to leave us a note for any special requests.

Best regards,

Diane

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Jan 14, 2009 04:45PM

Can the Plexiglass Red Filter you offer be used

for VFD or LED Display Filters.?

Posted By: Jorge de la Paz on Jan 02, 2010 04:13AM

We offer the brand Plexiglas GS from Evionik (Product description) for both clear and red acrylics.

You can find the optical properties on page 6. It has a pretty good transmittance percentage of 92 and blocks UV. Basically, it depends on what kind of filter you are looking for. There are acrylics available on the market with integrated light guiding material or non glare surface texture.

If you are looking for UV protection and a couple of percent in transmittance loss aren't a problem, our plexiglas will be usable as VFD or LED display filters.

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Jan 05, 2010 04:36AM

(1) For transparent/translucent plastic materials , pLease add Clear Lexan (Polycarbonate) material to your available materials. In many instances the proximity of a polystrene or plexiglass material to an lcd or other electronics can build up a static charge and transmit it to the lcd/electronics ,possibly zapping it.

(2) For Opague plastic materials ,please add ABS materials like black. No issues with static unlike Plexiglass/POlystyrene materials.

Posted By: Jeff Wilson on Jul 10, 2010 05:49PM

Hello Jeff,

I can sympathize with you in regards to static discharge. Having worked for many years in the plastics industry, I can offer some insight.

Both polycarbonate and acrylic will have immense static discharge potential, but this appears to be more of an issue with the masking that is placed over the sheet. A sheet with poly-mask will have immense discharge capability (I have experienced a 1/4" arc from a sheet of 3mm polycarbonate), while a sheet with paper masking tends to have almost none. At Front Panel Express, we always remove the masking on any sheet we machine, and it sits on a giant grounded metal mill for significant periods of time. When the plastic is packed, if two pieces of plastic are to be packed one on top of the other, a piece of tissue paper will be placed between them. I would imagine, however, that a material like FPVC might still have issues, even with those efforts taken.

We are able to machine plenty of different opaque plastic materials, and we can special order these quite easily. For the amount of this type of machining that we do, it does not make a ton of sense to keep all of these materials around. For something like black ABS, you will typically see one day added to your order for us to receive the material.

Many thanks,

-Paul

Posted By: Paul Birkeland on Jul 12, 2010 07:04PM

Hi,

On this page, it is mentioned that the clear acrylic comes in thickness from 2mm to 10mm.

But, in the quoted post (below) and in designer, the maximal thickness is 4mm.

1. We offer plexiglas in 2, 3 and 4 mm thickness. See here

What information is good, because I would like to make a led edge-lit window whit engraving. So I will need a thickness of 6mm minimum.

Thanks

Julien

Posted By: Julien on Mar 19, 2013 09:46PM

Hello Julien,

The forum post is from 2009 and outdated. You can order clear acrylic up to 10mm in thickness.

Best regards,

Diane

Posted By: DianeHaensel on Mar 20, 2013 11:33PM

Hello Jeremy,

A vector import does not bring information of the z-axis. Everything with 'depth information' as countersinks, cavities or threaded holes would not be correctly defined.

We are working on an import option in Front Panel Designer to allow more complex shapes. This will be available with the next version. We will keep you informed about the release date.

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Dec 09, 2008 07:59PM

Hi Jeff,

You don't have to to design this shape in Front Panel Designer. The combination of several curved slots can be tricky especially when smooth arc-arc transitions are needed. We can import dxf files for 'complicated' outer shapes in our milling files so that panels aren't only restricted to rectangular or circular shapes.

In Detail:

Just design the panel in a rectangular shape (in your case 14.17" x 16.63").

Place all cutouts and engravings as wanted. Please add a note for us that you want the shape modified by dxf import and submit your order as usual. As soon as we receive your dxf file (please send to order@frontpanelexpress.com with the reference number of your order) we will let you know the additional cost for the modification, usually between $15 and $45.

It is also possible to provide just a pdf with the dimensions you want and let us do the rest.

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Dec 03, 2008 05:48AM

Hi James,

we can send you samples of our available materials so that you can give your polish products a try.

Please call us at (206)768-0602 or email us at info@frontpanelexpress.com to give us your address. We will send out the samples shortly.

Regards,

Diane

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Nov 18, 2008 05:26PM

In the thread titled "Beveled edges" it was revealed that a part can be machined on its edge if the material is thick enough. What are the constraints to this?

For example, can I machine a M2 hole in 4mm material? What position tolerance is there between features machined on the front and features machined on the edge?

That is possible. Our position tolerance of objects on different sides/edges is +/- 0.1mm. M2 in a 4mm panel works fine, M3 would be pretty tight and is not recommended.

You can set up your design as the following:

- Design an additional panel with height of 4mm and length in accordance to the front panel. This will give you the top view on the edge. Choose 4mm thickness, we will fix the panel thickness for you later. You can go up to 4.5mm deep with a M2 hole.

- Check the box for customer's material, the material price is already included in the front panel.

- Place the M2 holes where needed. Please let us know how the holes are related to the front if they are not symmetric (a note in "Remarks" is fine).

Also, is it possible to machine on the perpendicular faces of right-angle aluminum? The sides are 25.4mm wide and 3.2mm thick. Is it possible to machine on the two outside faces of this material? How about the inside faces?

In general, yes for the outside. But it depends on your design, e.g. distance to edges etc. Inside is a little more tricky and really depends on what you want to have cut or engraved. I can give you a more specific answer if you could provide a drawing or even better a Front Panel Designer file.

Regards,

Diane

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Nov 11, 2008 01:18AM

Scale Generator is based on java script, and requires the Java runtime to be installed to allow it to execute.

If you already have Java installed you should be able to double-click the jskala_english.jar file to launch it.

If you don't have Java installed, the simplest way to get it is to visit , click the 'Java Software Free Download' link in the top-left and follow the instructions there.

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Nov 08, 2008 10:38PM

I have downloaded and unziped, but I cannot find a

jskala_english.jar file.

Posted By: Don Cleveland on Nov 17, 2008 02:31PM

Hi Don,

the download for the Scale Generator can be found in the Tips & Tricks section.

Here is the link for your convenience.

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Nov 17, 2008 04:44PM

I have down loaded, and unziped a second time, but I don't

find a jskala_english.jar file. I have Java 6 installed, I

can't figure out what I'm doing wrong.

I've searched, but cannot find jskala_english.jar, is it

part of the Zip file?

Posted By: Don Cleveland on Nov 21, 2008 05:41PM

It looks like this problem only occurs when using Internet Explorer for the download.

Our IT department will have a look on it. I will let you know as soon as this problem is resolved.

I have sent the file directly to your email address, please let me know if it works for you this way.

I apologize for any inconvenience.

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Nov 22, 2008 03:31AM

Thanks

I placed jskala_english.jar in the dir with the rest of files.

When I double click it I get a message saying Windows

can't open the file.

Posted By: Don Cleveland on Nov 24, 2008 08:01PM

I updated Java to V6 update 10, and now it is working.

Thanks.

Posted By: Don Cleveland on Nov 24, 2008 08:15PM

Hi Don,

I'm glad you got it to work. The problem was a combination of the versions of Internet Explorer and Java. Not all versions work well together. We recommend to keep both IE and Java up to date to ensure Scale Generator is working on your computer.

Thank you for pointing that out for us.

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Nov 26, 2008 04:35PM

Scale generator.

As well as Don, I’m unable to download “Jaskala_englis.jar” even if I update my Java runtime (6/16)and re-downloaded Front Panel Design as well as Scale gen from Tips and Tricks.

When I unzipped “Jaskala_english.zip”, no “ jaskala_english.jar” shows up.

Any turn-around?

If nothing else, could you please be so kind and e-mail it me?

Thank you

Andrea Daretti

Andar3@gmail.com

Posted By: Andrea Daretti on Sep 30, 2009 11:49AM

Hi,

I can run the .jar file but when I hit the create button nothing happens, no *.plt file is created. :(

Help!

Jakester

Posted By: Robert Jacobson on Oct 04, 2009 04:03PM

Hi Jakester,

Did you specify the target directory or did you just enter the file name? You also need to add the extension .plt to your file name.

An instruction about Scale Generator can be found here

I am sorry for the inconvenience. Please do not hesitate to call us in case you still have problems to get it to work. Our customer service would be more than happy to walk you through Scale Generator.

Diane

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Oct 06, 2009 07:49PM

Just started using Front Panel Express, am very impressed

with its capabilities especially for free. Have part of my

front panel designed but cannot use Scale Generator yet.

I have Java 10 - 18. Downloaded Scale Generator and unzipped but no file named jskala_english.jar is in the

directory. Apparently i need a copy sent to me also via

my email address.Would appreciate any help on this....

thank you.

Posted By: Phillip Criddle on Feb 23, 2010 12:25PM

Hello,

I can see how people have this problem since java is a pain to manage. This is what I did (and worked from me):

1. Uninstall Java. I like to use the free version of revo uninstaller () since it deletes all registry entries as well as dlls and temp files. If you're going to use this program chose the advanced option.

2. Re-install Java. Go to and use the offline option. Please make sure to only install java and remember your file destination (which you can customize as well).

3. Go to and click on the "Scale Generator - Script for generating scales" link. If everything has gone right you should see a small window .

Posted By: P Neumann on Feb 26, 2010 12:40AM

hi, scale generator doest work in my pc some help ?

thanks[/color]

Posted By: jorge lorenzo on Jun 01, 2010 07:28PM

Hi Jorge,

I sent Scale Generator to your email address. Please let me know if you can start it from the file I sent you.

Posted By: Diane Haensel on Jun 14, 2010 07:12PM

When I downloaded Jaskala_english.zip it would not work either. I renamed it Jaskala_english.jar and it works just fine now. It is NOT a zip file.

Posted By: Randy Humbert on Jul 16, 2010 11:07PM

Also having problems opening, tried all of the above. Can I get the file emailed directly?

(XPsp3, IE8, Java 6)

Posted By: Billy Cameron on Jul 20, 2010 08:03PM

The center point of the scale is offset upwards. Could use advice in setting it right.

Posted By: Randy Humbert on Jul 21, 2010 05:54PM

Hello Randy,

When you generate the scale, the "Length" box determines the diameter of the inner circle from which the scale marks emanate. The overall object size then is dependent on not only that angle, but also the lengths of the segment marks, and which segment marks are at the largest extremes. As the segment marks have two available lengths the actual "size" that the scale becomes in Front Panel Designer is a fairly complicated size to calculate.

Given all of that information, I would make a temporary hole with the diameter of the length specified for the scale.

Place that hole over the hole where the scale will go. (Align/distribute makes this easier)

Be sure your grid is turned off, then drag the scale over that hole until the indexing marks line up so that they are all perpendicular to the temporary hole.

Delete the temporary hole, then group the original hole and the scale to keep them together.

I started to whip out a fancy formula for calculating the vertical displacement from the scale center, but it quickly became overly cumbersome.

-Paul

Posted By: Paul Birkeland on Jul 21, 2010 11:02PM

SOLVED THE PROBLEM!

The issue of this problem lays in use of 7Zip program (or similar programs) that has an ANNOYING "helping" function in renaming files with the extention ".jar" to ".zip" .

Sollution! -> RENAME THE “Jaskala_english.ZIP” TO “ jaskala_english.JAR” (Used large letters only to ease the viewing of the matter. :wink: )

The other issue with "CANT FIND ANY PLT FILE!" is because YOU have to add the ".PLT" at the end of your file so that FrontPanelExpress will be able to se it. Either do this inside Scale Generator when naming your file or do it manualy in by marking the file, press F2 and place the cursor at the end of the filename and add .plt to it.

Happy Scaling!

/C.Bigstone

Posted By: Charles Bigstone on Aug 20, 2010 03:39PM

SOLVED THE PROBLEM!

The issue of this problem lays in use of 7Zip program (or similar programs) that has an ANNOYING "helping" function in renaming files with the extention ".jar" to ".zip" .

Sollution! -> RENAME THE “Jaskala_english.ZIP” TO “ jaskala_english.JAR” (Used large letters only to ease the viewing of the matter. :wink: )

The other issue with "CANT FIND ANY PLT FILE!" is because YOU have to add the ".PLT" at the end of your file so that FrontPanelExpress will be able to se it. Either do this inside Scale Generator when naming your file or do it manualy in by marking the file, press F2 and place the cursor at the end of the filename and add .plt to it.

Happy Scaling!

/C.Bigstone

I want to add a little more information to this thought. A lot of customers still have this problem and I blame it mostly on Microsoft Internet Explorer! IE is trying to protect you by renaming .jar file as a .zip file. You can turn this feature off by:

1. In the upper-right corner of IE8, click on Tools to open the drop down menu;

2. At the bottom of the Tools menu, click Internet Options;

3. In the Internet Options dialog box, select the Security tab;

4. On the Security tab, select the Internet zone, then click the Custom Level button;

5. Scroll about 2/3 down the list to the option "Open file based on content, not file extension" and change the setting to Disable;

6. Click OK;

7. Repeat steps 4-6 for the Local Intranet zone and Trusted Sites zone;

I'm sure it's very similar for IE9 that went live just recently. Another suggestion would be to use a different browser.

I hope this helps!

Posted By: P Neumann on Jun 02, 2011 09:02PM