Laser
cutter tips from http:// http://atxhackerspace.org/wiki/Laser_Cutter_Materials
NEVER CUT THESE MATERIALS
WARNING: Because many plastics are dangerous to cut, it is
important to know what kind you are planning to use. Make has a How-To for
identifying unknown plastics with a
simple process.
|
Material
|
DANGER!
|
Cause/Consequence
|
|
PVC
(Poly Vinyl Chloride)/vinyl/pleather/artificial
leather |
Emits
pure chlorine gas when cut! |
Don't
ever cut this material as it will ruin the optics, cause the metal of the
machine to corrode, and ruin the motion control system. |
|
Thick
( >1mm ) Polycarbonate/Lexan |
Cut
very poorly, discolor, catch fire |
Polycarbonate
is often found as flat, sheet material. The window of the laser cutter is
made of Polycarbonate because polycarbonate strongly absorbs infrared
radiation! This is the frequency of light the laser cutter uses to cut
materials, so it is very ineffective at cutting polycarbonate. Polycarbonate
is a poor choice for laser cutting. |
|
ABS
|
Emits
cyanide gas and tends to melt |
ABS
does not cut well in a laser cutter. It tends to melt rather than vaporize,
and has a higher chance of catching on fire and leaving behind melted gooey
deposits on the vector cutting grid. It also does not engrave well (again,
tends to melt). |
|
HDPE/milk
bottle plastic |
Catches
fire and melts |
It
melts. It gets gooey. Don't use it. |
|
PolyStyrene
Foam |
Catches
fire |
It
catches fire, it melts, and only thin pieces cut. This is the #1 material
that causes laser fires!!! |
|
PolyPropylene
Foam |
Catches
fire |
Like
PolyStyrene, it melts, catches fire, and the melted
drops continue to burn and turn into rock-hard drips and pebbles. |
|
Fiberglass
|
Emits
fumes |
It's
a mix of two materials that cant' be cut. Glass
(etch, no cut) and epoxy resin (fumes) |
|
Coated
Carbon Fiber |
Emits
noxious fumes |
A
mix of two materials. Thin carbon fiber mat can be cut, with some fraying -
but not when coated. |
Safe Materials
The laser can cut or etch. The materials that the laser can cut materials like wood, paper,
cork, and some kinds of plastics. Etching can be done on almost
anything, wood, cardboard, aluminum, stainless steel, plastic, marble, stone,
tile, and glass.
Cutting
|
Material
|
Max
thickness |
Notes
|
WARNINGS!
|
|
Many
woods |
1/4"
|
Avoid
oily/resinous woods |
Be
very careful about cutting oily woods, or very
resinous woods as they also may catch fire. |
|
Plywood/Composite
woods |
1/4"
|
These
contain glue, and may not laser cut as well as solid wood. |
|
|
MDF/Engineered
woods |
1/4"
|
These
are okay to use but may experience a higher amount of charring when cut. |
|
|
Paper,
card stock |
thin
|
Cuts
very well on the laser cutter, and also very quickly. |
|
|
Cardboard,
carton |
thicker
|
Cuts
well but may catch fire. |
Watch
for fire. |
|
Cork
|
1/4"
|
Cuts
nicely, but the quality of the cut depends on the thickness and quality of
the cork. Engineered cork has a lot of glue in it, and may not cut as well. |
Avoid
thicker cork. |
|
Acrylic/Lucite/Plexiglas/PMMA
|
1/2"
|
Cuts
extremely well leaving a beautifully polished edge. |
|
|
Thin
Polycarbonate Sheeting (<1mm) |
<1mm
|
Very
thin polycarbonate can be cut, but tends to discolor badly. Extremely thin
sheets (0.5mm and less) may cut with yellowed/discolored edges. Polycarbonate
absorbs IR strongly, and is a poor material to use in the laser cutter. |
Watch
for smoking/burning |
|
Delrin
(POM) |
thin
|
Delrin
comes in a number of shore strengths (hardness) and the harder Delrin tends to work better. Great for gears! |
|
|
Kapton
tape (Polyimide) |
1/16"
|
Works
well, in thin sheets and strips like tape. |
|
|
Mylar
|
1/16"
|
Works
well if it's thin. Thick mylar has a tendency to
warp, bubble, and curl |
Gold
coated mylar will not work. |
|
Solid
Styrene |
1/16"
|
Smokes
a lot when cut, but can be cut. |
Keep
it thin. |
|
Depron
foam |
1/4"
|
Used
a lot for hobby, RC aircraft, architectural models, and toys. 1/4" cuts
nicely, with a smooth edge. |
Must
be constantly monitored. |
|
Gator
foam |
Foam
core gets burned and eaten away compared to the top and bottom hard paper
shell. |
Not
a fantastic thing to cut, but it can be cut if watched. |
|
|
Cloth/felt/hemp/cotton
|
They
all cut well. Our "advanced" laser training class teaches
lace-making. |
Not
plastic coated or impregnated cloth! |
|
|
Leather/Suede
|
1/8"
|
Leather
is very hard to cut, but can be if it's thinner than a belt (call it
1/8"). Our "Advanced" laser training class covers this. |
Real
leather only! Not 'pleather' or other
imitations! |
|
Magnetic
Sheet |
Cuts
beautifully |
||
|
NON-CHLORINE-containing
rubber |
Fine
for cutting. |
Beware
chlorine-containing rubber! |
|
|
Teflon
(PTFE) |
thin
|
Cuts
OK in thin sheets |
|
|
Carbon
fiber mats/weave |
Can
be cut, very slowly. |
You
must not cut carbon fiber that has been coated!! |
|
|
Coroplast
('corrugated plastic') |
1/4"
|
Difficult
because of the vertical strips. Three passes at 80% power, 7% speed, and it
will be slightly connected still at the bottom from the vertical strips. |
Etching
All the above "cuttable" materials can be etched, in some cases very
deeply.
In addition, you can etch:
|
Material
|
Notes
|
WARNINGS!
|
|
Glass
|
Green
seems to work best...looks sandblasted. |
Only
FLAT GLASS can be engraved in our cutter. No round or cylindrical items. |
|
Ceramic
tile |
||
|
Anodized
aluminum |
Vaporizes
the anodization away. |
|
|
Painted/coated
metals |
Vaporizes
the paint away. |
|
|
Stone,
Marble, Granite, Soapstone, Onyx. |
Gets
a white "textured" look when etched. |
100%
power, 50% speed or less works well for etching. |