Acrylic Colors and Transparency Levels Available
Acrylic sheet comes in more stock colors and transparency grades than most people realize. I've been cutting, polishing, and cementing acrylic for sign shops, museums, and OEM parts since 2007, and every year somebody calls asking for a color that "doesn't exist." Usually it does exist - they just never looked past the first page of McMaster or the home-center rack.
The three main transparency categories people actually buy
Clear (0000 or 2447) Transmits 92 % visible light, same as glass. Thickness for thickness, 1/8" casts are 0.2–0.3 % haze, extruded runs 1–3 % haze. Extruded is cheaper and warps less when you laser-cut it, cast polishes to water-clear on a flame wheel.
Translucent Lets light through but you can't read text on the other side. Common grades: white 2444 (30–35 % transmission), 7328 white (10–12 %), reds 2423/2793, blues 2424/2050. Sign guys love these because a couple edge-lit LEDs make the whole sheet glow evenly.
Opaque Zero light transmission. Blacks 2025 and 9330, whites 7508 and 7328 opaque, pretty much every solid color. These are what you use for routered letters or back-painted museum cases.
Standard stock colors that actually ship same-day from the big three (Acrylite, Lucite, Plexiglas)
Clear 0A000 Black 2025, 9330 White 2444 (trans 30 %), 7328 (trans ~8 %), 7508 (opaque) Red 2423 (trans red), 2793 (deeper red), 2157 (opaque fire-engine) Orange 2114, 3030 Yellow 2208 (sunflower opaque), 2037 translucent Green 2108, 2414, 3031 Blue 2424 (most common), 2050 (deeper), 2064 ice blue Gray 2064 smoke, 2074 dark gray, 2370 bronze tint Ivory 2146, beige 3157
That's the bread-and-butter list. Every distributor keeps 48×96 and 48×96 sheets in 1/8, 3/16, 1/4 in those colors.
Special runs people order by the pallet
Neons: edge-lit colors that look black until you light them - 4N51 green, 3N81 yellow, 4N64 red. Museums love these for display pedestals. Mirror grades: gold 1300, silver 1400, bronze 1600, two-way 1450. Non-glare 9963 (matte one side) and abrasion-resistant grades (AR1, AR2) for storefront windows that get touched. Bullet-resistant Level 1 through 3 - usually clear or light bronze tint, 1.25" to 1.5" thick.
Quick cheat-sheet I keep taped above the saw
| Code | Color / Type | % Transmission | Typical thickness stocked | Notes most shops forget |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2447 | Clear cast | 92 | .060–1.5" | Flame polishes best |
| 2069 | Clear extruded | 92 | .060–0.500" | Laser cuts cleaner than cast |
| 2025 | Black opaque | 0 | .118–0.944" | |
| 7328 | White trans ~8 % | 8 | .118–0.500" | Standard back-lit sign white |
| 2423 | Red translucent | ~25 | .118–.236" | Most common red |
| 2424 | Blue translucent | ~20 | .118–.236" | |
| 4N51 | Neon green edge-lit | 0 dark / high edge | .236–.472" | Looks black until edge-lit |
| 2074 | Gray tint | ~30 | .118–.236" | Reduces glare on outdoor menu boards |
| 1450 | Two-way mirror | mirror one side | .118–.236" | Needs 4:1 light ratio to work properly |
Bottom line: if you're ordering less than ten sheets, stick to the standard codes above and you'll get it next day from Laird, Regal, or Piedmont without minimums. Anything outside that list usually means full-sheet minimums and 4–8 week lead times. I always tell new designers to pick from the stock list first and save the custom color match for the jobs that actually pay for it.
