Acrylic plastic parts often need to be polished to create a high clarity. When machined, the acrylic takes on an opaque surface finish. The specifications will often require a clear, polished surface finish. While large parts with simple geometry can be polished by hand, smaller parts or more complex shapes cannot be processed by hand.

The above part (before on left, after on right) was tumbled in a barrel tumbling system for 48 hours. Using a Hardwood Peg Media with Microlyte Polishing Cream in a dry process producing a significant improvement in clarity after 48 hours. A dry process can produce a very fine polish and high clarity but can often require long cycle times.