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| − | | + | #REDIRECT [[Laser_Cutter#Materials]] |
| − | == '''NEVER CUT THESE MATERIALS''' ==
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| − | '''WARNING:''' Because many plastics are dangerous to cut, it is important to know what kind you are planning to use.
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| − | * ''...put image here of yellow material...''
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| − | * Detailed information to test unknown material testing
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| − | ** [http://makezine.com/2011/09/22/identifying-unknown-plastics/ Identifying Unknown Plastics]
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| − | ** Watch this video [https://vimeo.com/1615418 Polymer Identification by Burnination]
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| − | *** [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beilstein_test Beilstein test]
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| − | ** You should read this (pdf) chemistry lab written by [David A. Katz] to learn [http://www.chymist.com/Polymer%20Identification.pdf how to identify what type of plastic it is]
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| − | ** ...and read this on [http://www.nclark.net/Density_Column.pdf Density Column Using Recyclable Plastics]
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| − | {| class="wikitable sortable"
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| − | ! Name !! DANGER !! WARNING
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| − | | 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).
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| − | | 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
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| − | | Fiberglass || Emits fumes || It's a mix of two materials that cant' be cut. Glass (etch, no cut) and epoxy resin (fumes)
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| − | | Milk bottles/HDPE || Catches fire and melts || It melts, gets gooey. DON'T. Someone has to clean the hex worktable.
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| − | | 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. Bubbles yellow, smokes alot, STINKS!!!!!
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| − | | Ceramic || ||
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| − | | Ceramic || ||
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| − | | Ceramic || ||
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| − | | Ceramic || ||
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| − | |}
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| − | == '''Approved Materials''' ==
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| − | ''' Organics and Plastics '''
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| − | If your material is not on the list, check with Mike
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| − | {| class="wikitable sortable"
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| − | ! Name !! Engrave !! Cut !! Max thickness !! Notes !! WARNING
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| − | | Acrylic (aka Lucite, Plexiglas, PMMA) || x || x || 1/2" || Cuts well, leaves a smooth polished edge. Higher powers can leave smoke/scorch marks along edges. Some people remove paper/plastic protection sheets before cutting. ||
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| − | | Cardboard, cartons || x || x || thicker || Cuts well, can catch fire || FIRE hazard!
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| − | | Ceramic || x || || || ||
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| − | | Cloth (cotton, felt, hemp) || x || x || || Cuts easily || NO plastic coated or impregnated cloth!
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| − | | Corian || x || x || || ||
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| − | | Cork || x || x || 1/4" || Cuts nicely, the quality of the cut depends on the thickness and quality of the cork. Engineered cork has a lot of glue in it, may not cut nicely. ||
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| − | | Delrin || x || x || thin || Comes in a number of shore strengths (hardness), the harder tends to work better. Great for gears! ||
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| − | | Fiberglass || x || x || || ||
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| − | | Glass || x || || || Has a sandblasted look, green glass works best ||
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| − | | Leather, suede || x || x || 1/8" || Leather is very hard to cut, can be if thinner than a belt thickness ||
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| − | | MDF, engineered woods || x || x || 1/4" || May experience a higher amount of charring when cut ||
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| − | | Magnetic sheet || x || x || || Cuts easily ||
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| − | | Marble || x || || || ||
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| − | | Matte Board || x || x || || ||
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| − | | Melamine || x || x || || ||
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| − | | Mylar || x || x || 1/16" || Works well if it's thin. Thick mylar has a tendency to warp, bubble, and curl || Gold coated mylar will not work
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| − | | Paper, card stock || x || x || thin || ||
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| − | | Plywood, composite woods || x || x || 1/4" || Contain glue, and may not cut as well as solid wood ||
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| − | | Pressboard || x || x || || ||
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| − | | NON-CHLORINE Rubber || x || x || || || Beware chlorine-containing rubber! If you're not sure, assume you've got chlorinated rubber, and don't cut it.
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| − | |-
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| − | | Tile || x || || || ||
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| − | | Wood || x || x || 1/4" || Avoid oily/resinous woods || FIRE - Cutting oily woods, or very resinous woods can catch fire.
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| − | | Wood Veneer || x || x || 1/4" || Contain glue, and may not cut as well as solid wood ||
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| − | |}
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| − | ''' Metals '''
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| − | {| class="wikitable sortable"
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| − | ! Name !! Engrave !! Cut !! Notes
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| − | | Anodized Aluminum || x || || Vaporizes the anodized layer away
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| − | | Bare Metals || x || ||
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| − | | Brass || x || ||
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| − | | Coated Metals || x || ||
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| − | | Painted Metals || x || || Vaporizes the paint away
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| − | | Stainless Steel || x || ||
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| − | | Titanium || x || ||
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| − | |}
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| − | * CO2 lasers will engrave metals when coated with an added metal marking solution.
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| − | == '''Suppliers''' ==
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| − | ''Under construction''
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