LUCITE EMBEDMENT GUIDE
There are a lot of factors that determine the cost of your embedment project, as well as the success rate of embedment. Note that a combination of factors is what determines an item’s overall risk of embedment. We cannot predict exact outcomes, but we offer this guidance to help you determine what items are more likely to successfully embed.
Low Risk: We have high confidence that the item will embed well. Small defects may occur, but are historically rare.
Medium Risk: We have had mixed results embedding these items. They may persistently have small defects, or vary in quality from one embedment to the next. If you have extra items as backup, or are willing to take the risk, we will proceed with production.
High Risk: We believe this item will almost always fail, or will produce unsatisfactory results. Depending on the item we may refuse to embed it out of safety precautions or cost of production.
FACTORS
Low Risk:
- High Heat Tolerance
- High Pressure Tolerance
- Items smaller than 3 inches
- Weighs < 1lb
- Little to no color or ink
- Smooth surfaces
- Rounded or beveled edges
Medium Risk:
- Low Heat Tolerance
- Low Pressure Tolerance
- Items between 3 and 6 inches
- Weighs < 3lbs
- Paint or enamel color
- Textured surfaces
- Square edges
High Risk:
- Flammable Items
- Flimsy or Crumbly Items
- Items larger than 6 inches
- Weighs 3lbs or more
- Printed inks or dyes
- Rough or porous surfaces
- Sharp Edges
Examples
Low Risk:
- Badges (minimal color)
- Business Cards
- Cardstock Paper
- Challenge Coins (minimal color)
- Coins
- Cork
- Golf Ball
- Medical Parts (Metal)
- Metal Shavings
- Nuts/Bolts
- Paper Currency
- Sand (in glass vial)
- Smooth Stones/Rocks
Medium Risk:
- Aluminum Cans (Full)
- Crystal
- Dried Flowers
- Dried Insects
- Glass
- Hard Plastics
- Liquids (in glass vial)
- Medical Parts (Plastic)
- Metal Pipes/Tubes
- Metal Sheets
- Printed Circuit Board
- Rough Stones/Rocks
- Wood
High Risk:
- Aluminum Cans (Empty)
- Acrylic
- Clay
- Fabric
- Food
- Knives
- Leather
- Organic Material
- Paper (printer, tissue, etc)
- Patches and Fabric Badges
- Ping-Pong Ball
- Plaster
- Plastic Pipes/Tubes
- PVC
- Sharp Objects
- Soft Plastics
- Wax
FACTORS THAT AFFECT EMBEDMENT SUCCESS:
Heat and Pressure Tolerance
During embedment, your item is submerged in a liquid form of acrylic and baked at high temperatures and pressures. The lucite will partly protect your item from the direct heat, but it will still experience some of its effects. Consider whether your item would drastically change shape or be compromised when heated.
The high pressure environment helps remove bubbles and air pockets, working the lucite into the crevices of your item. This pressure can also damage, warp or even crush delicate or fragile items. Consider whether your item could withstand being squeezed, pressed or put under pressure for an extended period.
Size
The size of your item has the biggest influence on the cost of your embedment. Larger items will require more raw materials and will increase the weight of the finished product. Larger items may also change shape more than smaller ones when under heat and pressure, which could cause pull-away or even cracks. Weight is a significant limiting factor to an embedment’ s max size: lighter items can be larger than heavier ones.