Will need
It is better to finely chop plastic lids in advance. This will allow the raw material to melt faster and become homogeneous, which will improve the quality of the product. To work you will need the following tools and devices:
- metal baking tray;
- wooden template with a slot;
- faulty padlock;
- electric or gas oven;
- two clamps with bolts;
- adjustable wrench;
- hammer and flat blade screwdriver;
- abrasive stone, sandpaper, etc.
The process of making a plastic cutting board
Place a metal baking tray, greased inside with vegetable oil, on a flat, heat-resistant surface.
Closer to one of the narrow sides we install the lock with the shackle up.
Pour the crushed plastic lids into the mold, distributing them evenly over the entire area and compacting them with your hands.At the same time, pay attention to the corners and the area around the castle.
The thickness and packing density of small plastic items should be no less there than in other places. We remove detected foreign inclusions, including sealing tabs made of special plastic.
We try on a wooden template on top of the plastic so that its hole fits onto the lock. We also press the template with our hands several times to compact the raw materials. Then we remove it.
Place the baking sheet with the contents in the oven for a few minutes, preheated to 200-250 degrees Celsius. As a result, the raw material melts, turning into a homogeneous fluid mass.
We return the mold with the melt to the table and place a wooden template on top, greased along the contact plane with vegetable oil to prevent sticking.
We place a baking sheet with melted plastic and, covered with a template, between two clamps and begin to evenly tighten the nuts by hand, then with an adjustable wrench. Having tightened the bolts of the clamps to the point of completion, we leave the plastic to cool for several hours.
As soon as the plastic hardens, unscrew and remove the clamps. We insert the tip of a screwdriver into the gap between the walls of the mold and the template and separate them.
We take out the template with the lock and the hardened plastic board stuck to them from the mold. Separate the wooden and plastic boards using a screwdriver. Then, using a hammer, we remove the lock from the hole in the plastic board.
The rough plastic cutting board is ready. All that remains is to process it. First, use an abrasive stone to remove sagging and burrs along the edges.
Next, alternately using medium and fine-grained sandpaper soaked in water, sand the board on all sides until it is smooth visually and to the touch. Finally, wipe with a dry soft cloth and the cutting board is ready for use.
