Cutting glass bottles with acetone and string

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By Matt Mets
Posted 2010/01/18 @ 7:06 pm
Category Craft, General

Here’s another method for cutting glass bottles, by Mike is bored: How to cut a wine bottle with acetone and a string. It doesn’t look nearly as precise as the score-and-heat method, though. Anyone try this out? [Thanks, Mandy!]

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10 Responses to Cutting glass bottles with acetone and string

JD on January 19th, 2010 at 1:54 pm said:

this method is in the improvised munitions handbook for the army.

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Stunmonkey on January 19th, 2010 at 2:03 pm said:

I never had a consistent success with it, but it does work if you have no other easy options, or have a surplus of bottles in case you screw one up.

JD is right, they used to teach using the punt on the bottom of a wine bottle for forming field-expedient shaped charges. Funny stuff.

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mikeisbored on January 19th, 2010 at 5:05 pm said:

Thanks for posting my video and the link to my page.

I can tell you for sure it is not by anymeans a precise method but it is a fun one. If I am cutting bottles well I use my dremel tool and a diamond cutting blade.

http://mike-is-bored.blogspot.com/2009/10/how-to-cut-wine-bottles-with-dremel.html

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Todd on January 19th, 2010 at 6:06 pm said:

You should try a combo of your acetone method with the scoring. Just use your acetone (or try denatured alcohol) string in place of the torch.

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Jim McCorison on January 19th, 2010 at 7:00 pm said:

Acetone is absorbed through the skin quite readily. Please wear gloves when handling it.

Also, it should be noted that acetone vapors are also flammable.

Not saying that you shouldn’t do this. Just saying to exercise appropriate caution.

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mikeisbored on January 19th, 2010 at 7:00 pm said:

for a while i would score lightly before doing the string but i did not find it made a big difference. I did often score too low back then though. I find the break is usually just a bit above the string. maybe ~3mm higher where the heat is highest.

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krs on January 21st, 2010 at 3:20 am said:

and what about a thin copper wire used as resistor to heat up the bottle? Could produce more precise break.

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- mikeisbored on January 23rd, 2010 at 2:00 pm said:
  
  Yeah I like that system. I think it does a very clean break. Never tried it. I think you do it with a little spray bottle of water. Something strikes me as odd about water+electricity but I would love to try it.
  
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- mikeisbored on January 23rd, 2010 at 2:05 pm said:
  
  Yeah I like that system. I think it does a very clean break. Never tried it. I think you do it with a little spray bottle of water. Something strikes me as odd about water+electricity but I would love to try it.
  
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Tiffany Eaton on December 22nd, 2011 at 3:00 pm said:

Tried that this morning; didn’t work. Just bought a $6 glass cutter at a craft store, and about to attempt that instead!

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