I did consider using aluminum, but its more expensive and i dont really have the tools to work ith aluminum. I really wanted to avoid glass, because of the expense and weight along with it might break during moving. I will have to look into it more and see if home depot can cut the glass for me and what not, it might be cheaper to go with polycarbonate, which is stronger then plexiglass, but it might have the same problem with bowing.