Here is set of photos showing the progression of vapor polishing a plastic part. The first shot is of the part before polishing. The second is during vapor polishing. We only polished half of it to show the difference in finish that vaporing can offer. The final photo is of the part fully vapored. Many potential customers ask about having us vapor parts that they machined. Normally, we do the machining in house but we also offer vaporing as a service. The thing about vapor polishing though, is that any surface imperfections can be magnified. For example, if you give us a piece of machined acrylic, ultem, or polycarbonate that has heavy feed lines or chatter, the vaporing will bring out the poor finish. The truth is, poor finish in = shiny poor finish out. If your machining is fundamentally good and your surface finish is smooth, vapor polishing can brilliantly polish your plastic parts. Engineers and Machinists should also know that overly aggressive machining can impart stress in the finished parts. This can be problematic during the vapor polishing process because the parts may end up with crazing visible inside the material or on the surface. Ultimately, we like to do our machining in-house so we can be sure the parts our customers receive will be as good as possible. However, If your in-house machining work is strong, you will be very satisfied with East Coast Precision Manufacturing’s vapor polishing service. Can’t wait to hear from you!
Archive for the ‘Milled Work’ Category
Tips for Customers and Engineers Who Want Vapor Polished Plastic Parts
Thursday, October 29th, 2009G10, FR4, and Fiberglass Machining at East Coast MFG
Wednesday, October 7th, 2009At East Coast Precision Manufacturing, we not only provide our customers with machined plastic but also other composites. This is an example of G10 machining. Some engineers may recognize it as FR-4 but we often refer to it as “fiberglass” here at the shop. It is a laminated composite held together by an epoxy binder. It is mainly used in circuit board applications but is also structurally superior to many other materials and finds its way into applications that can take advantage of that. For some, it is difficult to machine. It is very abrasive to tooling, easy to burn, and may de-laminate if the machinist is not experienced in cutting it. Here at East Coast, we do an excellent job of cutting it due to our time proven methods. Send us an RFQ, we’d love to work with you.
Milled & Vapor Polished Polycarbonate Coverplate
Monday, September 14th, 2009This part is an example of our milling department’s capabilities. It is machined out of a sheet of polycarbonate and vapor polished to a perfectly clear finish. Engineers designing parts that require visually or optically clear finishes should know that polycarbonate is an excellent material choice. Acrylic works well too but polycarbonate polishes to a clearer finish almost every time.
This part is used in a light housing and is implemented as a lens. The inside of the lens has been cosmetically machined to help with light diffusion.
Machined Teflon / PTFE Manifold
Wednesday, August 12th, 2009Here is a PTFE manifold we recently machined on one of our mills. We have developed techniques that allow us to mill Teflon in such a way that burrs are either minimized or eliminated, thus saving part deburring time. This customer has East Coast do some light assembly work for them as well. We install the push to connect fitting you see in the first picture.
Teflon (PTFE) is often selected for manifolds for its inert qualities. Many chemicals do not affect PTFE.
East Coast Precision can work with you to produce great parts in Teflon or any other plastic material.
Machined & Vapor Polished Polycarbonate Lens Housing
Monday, August 10th, 2009Polycarbonate is a material often found in environments where it may be subject to impact forces. This lens that we machined is no exception. It was milled on East Coast’s state-of-the-art vertical machining centers. To ensure a clear finish, the polycarbonate was vapor polished after machining. In some cases, our customers are not sure what they ultimately need in their plastic parts. When questions, concerns, or changes need to be addressed, our customers speak directly with engineers and machinists that are directly working on their part. That is one of the many benefits of working with East Coast Precision Manufacturing.
If you need plastic machining of polycarbonate or any other materials, we would love to be considered.
Machined Polysulfone
Wednesday, June 17th, 2009This part is made out of Polysulfone. Polysulfone is known for being tough, wear resiting, and high temperature stability. It is also a dielectric material that can be used in capacitors. Dielectric means that it will not transmit electricity.
This part is milled in the milling department here at East Coast Precision. It is approximately 1.5 inches square. It features a milled out body, some threaded holes and a polished top. Due to the geometry, the part is actually able to spring a little bit.
Milled and Vapor Polished Acrylic Manifold
Monday, June 8th, 2009Take a look at this acrylic manifold we made for one of our customers. It features four ports connected to a main track. Each port features thread-milled threads.
This part also showcases our vapor polishing process. Not only can we polish the exterior of a part, we can polish interior features that would not normally be able to be polished otherwise.
The mainfold is approximately 3″ x 1″ x 3/4″

















