How to Make a Styrofoam Cutter
Projects like creating model landscapes become a snap if you have access to an effective Styrofoam cutter. You can also use the cutter for sculpting surfboards, creating parts for model boats and airplanes and cutting out display letters. You can build a simple Styrofoam cutter for just a few dollars. Most of the inexpensive parts are available at your local home improvement store, and some of the rest are items that you might find in your basement.
Things You'll Need
- 2 ¼-inch by 1-inch by 36-inch lathe boards
- Electric drill
- Wood saw
- Utility knife
- 6 ¾-inch bolts and 8 nuts
- 13 feet of heavy-duty thread
- Wire cutters
- Screwdriver
- Pliers
- Electrical tape
- 2 wire ties
- 10 feet of electrical lamp cord
- 3½-foot piece of nichrome wire
- Dimmer switch
- 10 amp 6 volt transformer
- Short extension cord with the female plug end cut off
- Small wooden box, approximately 6 inches by 6 inches by 6 inches
Instructions
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1
Cut one of the 36-inch boards into two 18-inch pieces.
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2
Drill holes into the center all four ends of the smaller boards, about ½ inch from the end.
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3
Drill a hole in the center of the 36-inch board, about 6 inches down from one of the end holes.
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4
Bolt the two smaller pieces to the larger piece. One piece will be bolted perpendicularly to the larger piece at the hole opposite the end with the two holes at ½ inch and 6 inches. The second small strip should be bolted into the hole that is 6 inches in. When you are done with this step, it should look like a wide "H" with a handle on one side.
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5
Put bolts into two of the holes on the ends of the short legs of the "H" and screw the nuts onto the bolts, but do not tighten them.
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6
Strip ½ inch off the ends of the wire, wrap it around the bolts installed in Step 6 and tighten.
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7
Split about 3 feet of the wire to about 3 feet from where it is attached to the bolts. Split about 1 foot off the other end of the cord.
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8
Anchor the electrical cord to the lower leg of the "H" on each side with wire ties.
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9
Insert the thread into one of the holes of the "H" and tie.
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10
Wrap one end of the nichrome wire around the bolt that holds the electrical cord; put another nut on top of that and tighten securely. Pull the wire tight and wrap around the second bolt; put another nut on top and tighten.
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11
Run the thread through the other hole, cross it diagonally to the bolt in the middle of the right leg and then cross it straight over to the left-center bolt. Cross diagonally to the right and tighten the thread until it is tight and the nichrome wire hums when plucked.
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12
Split about 3 inches of the extension cord and strip about ½ inch of covering to reveal bare wire.
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13
Twist one wire from the dimmer switch and one wire from the extension cord and tape thoroughly with electrical tape.
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14
Twist the other wire from the dimmer switch onto one of the black transformer wires and tape securely with electrical tape. Attach the other black transformer wire to the second wire of the extension cord.
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15
Attach the yellow wires from the opposite side of the transformer to the wires from the Styrofoam cutter.
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16
Put the transformer and dimmer switch in the small wooden box. This is just to give them a contained space so they won't flop around. You can drill a hole in the box to put the dimmer switch through and glue down the transformer.
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Tips & Warnings
Never start working with the dimmer switch on, but turn it on gradually until it is not too hot but will nicely slice through Styrofoam.
Use your Styrofoam cutter in an area that is free of combustible material.
