Where you can get Plastic/Sheet Styrene, I'm not asking, I'm showing. Online Retailer Cost Breakdown Options

[Dedwrekka]

Alright, long time, no post, but I was doing some diligence for a friend who does prop work and was looking for prices for sheet plastic. I figured since this forum is still probably bombarded with the occasional "where can I get plastic" topic, I'd give you all a look at what I've got.

So, to start with here's a little introduction. Sheet plastic is known to pretty much every non-modeling company as "Sheet Styrene" and more specifically as "High-Impact Polystyrene Sheet" also referred to by costume designers and prop makers as "HIPS plastic". It's vacuum-moldable, bendable, and easy to work with. It's pretty ubiquitous as far as all types of model making goes. If you go into most hobby shops with a train section, you'll see a stand of white plastic sheets (usually Plastruct or Evergreen).

There is another type of plastic called ABS, but from what I understand it doesn't have the same flexibility (work-wise) as Polystyrene and will melt easier too in some situations (Seriously, direct sunlight screws this stuff up), though I don't have much experience with it.


Anyways, so what I've done is put together a spreadsheet in OpenOffice, then converted it to a GoogleDoc so everyone can see it without needing to download it. What's in it is a list of some common retailers, including one I've gone through frequently on Amazon. Everything is broken down pretty simply; Retailer, Thickness, Size, Cost per sheet, Cost per Inch, and Retail Package Size. I've highlighted the cheapest retailer, but it's also the one that sells the largest size sheet (though they do offer to cut it down to size with a "Cost per cut" plan). Seriously though, when I started making larger orders with US Plastics the size of each sheet was longer than my couch (they're delivered rolled up inside a box roughly 4.5ft x 1.5ft), and the ePlastics ones are larger than that.
So, take note that even if it's cheaper, you may want to seriously consider just buying a smaller size unless you have access to industrial cutting equipment or a lot of patience and thick carpeting.

Everything is based off of a .060" thickness sheet which is roughly 1/16 of an inch thick. It's really just based on what I was looking for at the time, but the prices scale pretty evenly with different thicknesses (except for Evergreen and Plastruct which tend to just charge one rate for all sizes and vary prices by thickness). Due to that though, I did leave out one place to get sheet plastic, so I'll include it here:

Garage Sale Signs/Yard Signs
Retailer: Various (Wal-Mart, ect.)
Thickness: 0.03"
Size: 15" x 19"
Price: Varies

Without further ado, here's the Google Doc. Let me know if you have something to add or problems with it.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key...ZUS2sxUXc#gid=0

[Dedwrekka]

Might as well add some tips for working with it while I'm at it.

- It sands easily, so sand paper and files will work quickly on it without dulling the teeth on files (though they will clog it after a while). It's best to wear a dust mask for this, though I feel I have to point that out whenever sanding is involved with any material. Breathing plastic dust isn't good for the ol' lungs

- When cutting sheet styrene, especially thick sheets, you can save time by taking an exacto blade, box cutter, or scribe and cutting or scoring lightly on one side of the plastic (this is also called "scribing", hence the tool made for this is called a "scribe"). Bending it over will cause the plastic to separate along that line you just cut into it.

- Don't melt styrene. BUT! If you do, you mad modeler you, don't put it directly into flames or in direct contact with the heat source. It will catch fire, bubble, burn and generally destroy what you're trying to work on quickly if it's too close to your heat source. Plastic is also a bad conductor and will cool pretty quickly. It smells terrible when you heat up styrene, and just remember that if you sniff burning Styrene fumes "You don't get high, you die". Not immediately, but it doesn't take much and some of you are probably much too young for it to take much of anything.

[RhythmDoctor]

Awesome work Dedwrecka - might be worth everyone researching different thickness prices, say in USD and then popping up the various online retailers.

Good to help us 'scratchers...

Cheers!

RD

[Greyhound]

Thanks a lot.

Unfortunately for those living in Australia the cost is still quiet prohibitive. It costs AUD 18.48 (roughly the same as USD) to get it delivered.

If anyone knows how to source these cheaply in Australia please shout in this thread.

[RhythmDoctor]

At the moment, I've been using Toyworld and local games stores... which is pretty cack in Brissy to be fair.

I've heard it banded about that Back 2 Base-Ix sell the cheapest plasticard in Aus, again not so sure but worth a look. Here's their site:

Back 2 Base - Ix

They've got a range from .5mm up to 3mm, and $2 a sheet for 265mm x 165mm is much cheaper than what I usually pay, think I'll be putting me some orders in there!

Damn cheap plastic tube too! Check it out!

It's also worth checking out their resin bases too, I've been using a lot of their 'desert' bases in 40mm, the 28's are cool but very tricky to place most standing minis unless they're on one foot. I'm using the 28mm bases for my stormboyz, and am going to wire them up like a mini flying base


Another thing for us Aussies is to check out all resources from Aussie model rail fellas, those 'sandal and socks' types know a bargain when they see one...

[Greyhound]

Cheers mate good to know.

For those like me who are just starting to experiment with plasticards, aside from the .6 mm any other size could be handy for ork vehicles?

[RhythmDoctor]

I only really use 1mm, 1.5mm and for fine detailing or for precision work around curves I use .5mm.

I'd say you'll mainly use 1mm for most of your plating and riveting work, though if you do need to build basic hull or box structures I recommend using 2mm.

[Greyhound]

Thank you!

Maybe we can get all this information compiled in one place at some point, I'm sure the Europeans will have different suppliers as well

[Drakon7]

Internet or local modeling stores.

[Spacecat]

@Greyhound, I concur with RhythmDoctor's opinion about what sizes styrene to get. I got 0.5 mm, 1 mm and 1.5mm plastic sheets and there's very little I cannot build with those sizes. 1mm makes nice solid detail, easy to do battle damage to. It's just a little woobly for big armor boxes. 1.5mm is nice and tough for those 'main structures'. 0.5mm is flexible and easily cut with scissors - just don't expect to easily wrap it around a shoota barrel, that's about the limit of its flexibility.

It's just a wee bit off topic but as part of someone's 'first purchase of plastic' for building stuff, I cannot recommend strongly enough the purchase of a few tubes. I can say from looking at their websites that Evergreen make their tubes with the intent of telescoping them into one another with a good fit - just take part numbers +2 or -2 to get a fit. Plastruct does too but there's just a tidbit more space between the inside and outside diameters (And that's why I use Evergreen from now on - hey, green is orky!)
Anyway, those tubes? They mean scratch-built shootas and guns, jacks (Oh I so love hydraulics), chimneys, exhausts, bazookas, round know-wots of all kinds... They open up so many possibilities!

So for the new builders, I just want to mention a good 'starter set' for tubing, sizes recommended by yours truly (and part numbers if you pick evergreen's line):
-4.8mm OD tube, part No 226 - That's a tube the width of a shoota barrel, good usability.
-3.2mm OD tube, part No 224 - That's the size of the gunpoint of the shoota, and has a hole for bullets.
-1.6mm rod, part No 222 - That rod fits inside the bullet hole, helps to make small jacks and makes decent rivitz too.
(Edit: Turns out those rivets are a little too big, I've gotten 0.8mm rod to make smaller rivets now, that smaller size matches battlewagon rivets)

And if you feel like splurging, get a bigger tubing or two (228, 230) and some 'fun rod' like H-beams or square tubing.
(Edit: 0.5mm sheets just isn't flexible enough for many purposes, recently got some sheets of 0.25mm for thinner details and rounded/flexible stuff, it's ace! A good early purchase.)

[Dedwrekka]

If there's any tips anyone wants to add on how to use plastics, what to buy, or where to buy it from* it's not off-topic. I'll keep an eye on this and try to update to doc in my post to keep everyone informed.

*Especially outside the US, I know we aren't all yanks on here and I honestly don't have the faintest clue on what to suggest for easy to nab plastic sheets outside CONUS.

[Agatheron]

I'm going to move this over into the Tekneeks forum where it belongs! Good topic...

[Entity]

spent ages looking for something like this, learned more in 5 mins reading than i did in 3 hours one night reading online! cheers guys!

[Spacecat]

I learned something new last month! It's about recycling old plastic...

I wanted something thinner and more flexible than my 0.5mm plasticard so I thought I'd clean up an empty pot of yogurt and try gluing that... No dice, it wouldn't stick anywhere even with superglue. I learned from Big Mek Tank Krusha that I can check the recycle symbol under a pot to know what -kind- of plastic those pots are made from, there's letters like PP (Polypropylene, almost impossible to glue), PE, PT etc...

Long story short: if you can find anything made with 'PS' (I found some small pots of a greek yogurt made with that) that's polystyrene and therefore usable with our regular glues. Recycling is green! It's orky!

[Spacecat]

Plastruct and Evergreen are easy to find big names in North America, I ended up with a smattering of tubing from each maker and I -think- I noticed something...

When I cut tubing by Evergreen, it's pretty tough plastic. Regularily I go to my hobby saw or I'll put a bend in the tube as it doesn't cut easily. Whereas when I cut Plastruct tubing the xacto is plenty - it cuts through smooth and easy.

It might just be a fluke. I'm wondering if someone else has a mixture of Plastruct and Evergreen and could confirm that indeed Plastruct use a softer, easier to work plastic. That might be worth noting for us hobbyists worried about breaking xacto blades.

[big mek tank kru...]

Plastruct and Evergreen are easy to find big names in North America, I ended up with a smattering of tubing from each maker and I -think- I noticed something...

When I cut tubing by Evergreen, it's pretty tough plastic. Regularily I go to my hobby saw or I'll put a bend in the tube as it doesn't cut easily. Whereas when I cut Plastruct tubing the xacto is plenty - it cuts through smooth and easy.

It might just be a fluke. I'm wondering if someone else has a mixture of Plastruct and Evergreen and could confirm that indeed Plastruct use a softer, easier to work plastic. That might be worth noting for us hobbyists worried about breaking xacto blades.

i think i got some evergreen and some plastruct, and i founf the evergreen brilliant, easy to cut & the like, wheras the plastruct was tougher, thicker and it was a shiny plastic that didn't glue very well... think i might have bought a dud there.

[mr_maxime]

Can you add a column with shipping included into the cost?

[Sukigod]

My friend and I routinely order styrene from this place: McMaster-Carr

http://www.mcmaster.com/#plastics/=khn3gy

It looks all industrial (it is) but they ship small orders for a reasonable price. They're close for us being in Minnesota but I would assume shipping is pretty close for most of the midwest. They've got tons of stuff, I mean a ton.

Choose the Polystyrene from the menu at left after choosing your type (sheet, tubing, rod, etc.)

Here's their cost/size for sheet styrene…



Like the other company mentioned earlier, they roll the larger sheets and ship them in a tall box, just enough to not deform the sheets or make them permanently curved.

[Spacecat]

I just discovered that Evergreen offers 'Variety packs'. For the price of one of their packs you get a variety of tubing and sheet. It's even possible to order on Amazon.com.

'Evergreen odds and ends' will contain sheets plus some rods/strips/tubing.
'Rod & Tube Assortment' is a variety pack sans sheets.
'White sheet assortment' is a few sheets of varying thicknesses.

A good way to try some of their stuff for cheap, and have a lot of various sizes for variety in projects!

[scotsco]

Atm, hoobycraft have packs of plastic sheet reduced. From £7 to £2 (some are even £1).