I'm planning a mod to an Airport (Snow) Base Station. I need to make a few cuts into the top and I'm wondering what tools / techniques are best.

Thanks in advance.

Scott

If you're really well-skilled with one, you can use a Dremel with a cutting wheel, to cut out the inside area, then a grinding wheel, to slowly carve away the rest, followed by some light sanding to smooth and polish your cuts. I've also found that an exacto is great for precision work, though more patience is necessary, as it doesn't cut straight through, so you'll need to make several (sometimes many) passes over the cut to get through, but its cuts tend to be cleaner and more exact. Sometimes, I end up employing a combination of techniques, too.

Or, you can always pay a company to do it with machines or lasers, if time's an issue and you're good with technical drawing.

I have found using a wood carving set works great for trimming plastic. Use a dremel for a ruff cut then trim it with a sharp blade then finish it off with some fine sanding if needed.

I use to use a hot knife for cutting plastic but it's hard to find the refill blades. Basically it's a solder iron with a exacto blade on it.