Where to get large diameter styrene tubing?

Rogviler · Post by **Rogviler** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 2:58 pm

I'm needing styrene tubing with inside diameters of at least 13mm up to around 20mm, or just over 1/2" to about 3/4". I say inside diameter because that's more important, but it would be nice if it also had a standard thin (1mm or so) wall like other styrene tubing. I'm not going to be picky though.

Plastruct and Evergreen don't have anything remotely that large (1/2" OD looks to be it), which worries me. Nothing comes up for me on eBay or Google. I swear I've seen stuff that big before, but maybe I'm just crazy. PVC or brass just isn't going to work for me, I need it to be able to solvent weld with other styrene and become one.

-Rog

Johnnycrash · Post by **Johnnycrash** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 4:10 pm

Rogviler wrote:Plastruct and Evergreen don't have anything remotely that large...

Oh yes they do. I mean, Plastruct does. I just placed an order (like 10 minutes ago) for some up to 3" in OD. OK. Sorry. That's NOT styrene. That stuff is Butyrate and ABS. But it all can be cut, glued (regular solvent glue too), and sanded just like styrene.

Download their PDF catalog, and go to pages 22-26 (20-24 of the catalog). They list OD, ID, and wall thickness. Comes in lengths (depending on code) from 14" to 18", and is available in double those lengths as well.

Butyrate: TB-20 (1/2" ID), TB-24 (5/8" ID) and TB-28 (3/4" ID).

Other IDs in that range are available. Don't forget to download the current price list as well.

Kylwell · Post by **Kylwell** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 5:34 pm

I usually switch over to acrylic and order through US Plastics.

Rogviler · Post by **Rogviler** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 5:45 pm

Okay, so I know there are multi-plastic cements, but wasn't clear if that meant it would permanently bond one to another... If I can go ABS to styrene with the same seamless bond as styrene to styrene then that definitely opens up those other options. A little bummed that the wall thickness goes up with those other materials, but like I said I won't be too picky.

I've never even seen butyrate, what are its properties? Looking for something 100% rigid mostly, but not brittle like polycarbonate can be.

Thanks.

-Rog

EDIT: Looks like one of Plastruct's own glues will bond different plastics to styrene, anyone have any feedback on the bond quality? It's going to be used mostly structurally, so bonding it so that it's basically one solid material is important.

Johnnycrash · Post by **Johnnycrash** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 6:06 pm

Rogviler wrote:Okay, so I know there are multi-plastic cements...

I have glued (strongly and permanently) butyrate to acrylic, and ABS to acrylic with standard Testers liquid. Works just fine.

I've never even seen butyrate, what are its properties? Looking for something 100% rigid mostly, but not brittle like polycarbonate can be.

It's a little more flexible than styrene, but other than that, it's very strong, and not brittle at all. The stuff I have right on hand is solid white, unlike the semi-transparent milky look of styrene tube.

Kylwell · Post by **Kylwell** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 8:02 pm

Either you go with a stiffer material or you go with a thicker wall. Usually both. A styrene tube an inch in diameter with Evergreen's usual wall thickness would offer very little rigidity.

As a note, polycarbonate comes in a huge variety of densities but in general it's softer than acrylic. It has better thermal characteristics which make it easier to machine than acrylic.

TazMan2000 · Post by **TazMan2000** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 10:46 pm

When dealing with larger diameters, styrene really isn't easily available, I have found. As many members have chimed in, you may have better luck with another type of plastic and another manufacturer. Many plastic manufacturers can offer product in specific internal and external diameters in increments of a millimeter. You really can get a lot of knowledge from surfing their sites and learn about uses and strengths of different materials.

Yes, styrene is the easiest to work with but sometimes going with a different material might allow you to work with designs you never thought possible.

TazMan2000

Kylwell · Post by **Kylwell** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 11:07 pm

You could see if these guys would send you a sample http://genplex.com/materials/polystyrene-plastic-tubing

seam-filler · Post by **seam-filler** » Wed Nov 20, 2013 8:40 am

Rogviler wrote:Okay, so I know there are multi-plastic cements, but wasn't clear if that meant it would permanently bond one to another... If I can go ABS to styrene with the same seamless bond as styrene to styrene then that definitely opens up those other options. A little bummed that the wall thickness goes up with those other materials, but like I said I won't be too picky.

I've never even seen butyrate, what are its properties? Looking for something 100% rigid mostly, but not brittle like polycarbonate can be.

Thanks.

-Rog

EDIT: Looks like one of Plastruct's own glues will bond different plastics to styrene, anyone have any feedback on the bond quality? It's going to be used mostly structurally, so bonding it so that it's basically one solid material is important.

ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) is related to styrene. What is commonly referred to as "butyrate" is actual Cellulose Acteate Butyrate. Butyrate is actually an acid.

Nebdcbdepo · Post by **Nebdcbdepo** » Thu Mar 10, 2016 3:01 pm

Nice posts. Keep posting such needed information. Thank's!

NCC1966 · Post by **NCC1966** » Wed Aug 24, 2016 10:41 am

Wouldn't PVC water pipe work?

Rogviler · Post by **Rogviler** » Wed Aug 24, 2016 12:10 pm

LOL, I don't even remember what project this was for... I moved since then and I'm sure it's still in a box somewhere.

But no, I needed something that would bond to styrene (solvent weld).

-Rog

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Where to get large diameter styrene tubing?

Where to get large diameter styrene tubing?

Re: Where to get large diameter styrene tubing?