| Acrylic Mirrors
can easily be cut to any size using a "Band Saw" ,
"Table Saw" or any saw with
small teeth and a relatively high speed. (Routers also work well.)
A veneer saw blade works well when using a table saw.
1. The mirror will be
protected with a removable, clear plastic coating on both
sides. The plastic coating on the coated side will pull off
quite easily while the non coated side is noticeably less easily
removed. We suggest
that you protect the coated side with a heavy paper,
like construction paper, before doing any cutting. Cut the construction
paper (anything can be used which will protect the lens from being
scratched) to a size smaller than the area you are going to cut but large
enough to cover any exposed surface area. Use
masking tape to tape over the area where you plan to cut the mirror. Tape
the protective paper over the remaining area. By doing this
you could save the mirror from accidental damage from
scratches.
2. Measure and draw the
"cut-line" on the masking tape. You will be cutting through the tape. This will
help protect the acrylic surface from getting scratched.
3. It helps to use a table
stop or guard when cutting straight lines.
4. Feed the acrylic through
the cutting blade slowly. If you feed too quickly, there is a risk of the
teeth catching the acrylic and breaking out small areas. The general rule
is to NOT FORCE THE CUTTING SPEED
. NOTE: This is especially
true when using a table saw or jigsaw. (Rip saw blades do not work well.
If possible use a fine tooth blade on a table saw or jig saw.)
5. When you have finished
cutting, check the size before removing the tape. If it is correct you can
use a sanding block or belt sander to smooth the edge. (OPTIONAL)
6. Do not remove the tape
and protective clear plastic coating until you are ready to mount or use the
mirror. This will minimize the chance of it being scratched.
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1. There is no difference
in what side faces in or out when using the mirror, however, the side with
the easily removed clear plastic coating is the COATED side of the mirror. If you
want to protect the mirror coating form being scratched off, then you will
want to protect the COATED side. For
example: If this is to be used with a camera, then place the
COATED side on the same side as the camera.
This way, if the mirror is scratched on the non-coated side (not the camera
side), it will only result in a scratch in the mirror and the two-way
affect will still be working.
2. After the mirror coating
is applied on the clear acrylic at the factory, the clear finish is
sprayed over the aluminized coating forming a "LATTICE"
structure, which is how the mirror works. Even though this lattice
structure is small, a good camera with an auto focus may try to focus on
that structure. When this happens, the picture is similar to looking
through a screen-door. To avoid this, position the camera as close as you
can to the mirror but not against the mirror (within 1 or two inches) so
the auto focus will tune-in on the images coming through the mirror rather
then on the mirror itself.
3. There is around a 60%
to 70% light loss which means that only 30% to 40% of the light is getting through. The
area your viewing should be bright enough and the camera sensitive enough,
to function on 35% light. You also want the camera side to be as dark as
possible. Even a small amount of light getting through from the camera
side could show up on the mirror side as a faint shadow and therefore
expose the camera.
4. It is important to note
that some of the light from the mirror side will be getting through to the
camera side. The nice thing is that our eyes tend to focus on the
reflection or bright image AND as long as there is enough light reflecting
from the mirror, it appears exactly like a regular mirror. There is a
problem when too much light is getting through the mirror. The excess
light (40%) getting through will reflect off the camera and or area around
the camera. 40% of that reflection will return back through the
mirror and may be seen from the mirror side . To avoid this situation,
do not place anything directly against the back of the mirror (Camera Side)
and do not have any white dry-wall or shiny objects that will reflect a lot
of light back through the mirror. We have seen this problem when there was
a bright light directly beside the mirror, which made so much light go
through the mirror that the 40% returning was enough to expose the camera.
USES and IDEAS
INFINITE REFLECTION
The fact that light
can get through the mirror is not always bad. If you place a mirror behind
the two-way mirror (around 2 inches away) and box it in, then there will
be an infinite reflection of your image when looking at the two-way
mirror. This can be used for many things like placing the mirror behind
flowers to make them appear infinitely deep or... well you can use your
imagination on this one.. Note: A ROUND CONVEX Two-Way (see-through)
mirror works even better than the flat two-way mirror. With the convex
two-way lens, it looks like your looking into another dimension because
the concave side of the mirror (facing inside the box) is reflecting the
image at many different angles. It is difficult to explain but it really
looks neat. (Convex two-way mirrors must be ordered special. We do not
stock these mirrors and will only make them on a special request. The lead
time depends on when we are running the flat two-way mirrors so I would
expect a two or three week lead time. Also: We can not accept any returns
on special ordered items. If you would like to order one of our standard
mirrors with the two-way coating, call us at 770-642-2104 or send a fax to
770-642-8246. The price will be calculated on the quantity and size of the
mirror you desire. Just as a point of reference, the special order two-way
lens would cost around the same, or less, as the standard mirror with no
back. see CONVEX MIRRORS. There would NOT
be a mount on the mirror.
SCARY MONSTER IN A BOX
Make a box
with a two-way mirror on one side. In the box place a few Christmas-tree
lights and a skeleton or picture etc.. When the lights are NOT turned on,
it looks just like a mirror but when the lights are ON, you will see the
object in the box through the mirror. This is a fun idea for a Halloween
project. If you want to get fancy, you can cut a hold in the bottom of the
box, large enough for someone to put their head into the box (please allow
enough ventilation so the person can easily breath). You will have to find
a way to hide the rest of your body under a table etc... When someone
looks into the mirror, the person with their head in the box can turn up
the light around his face and appear to be a ghost (or what ever you want
to be) looking back at the person. This can be fun but please use good
judgment when doing this! Young children should not be exposed to a scary
monster in a box. |
