Laser Cutter

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Laser cutter.jpg

About

The Laser cutter allows users to take designs created on a computer and cut and/or engrave using many diferent materials. Laser cutting is a great way to rapidly prototype projects. Interfacing with the laser cutter is performed with LaserCut v5.3.

The laser cutter does require regular cleaning and alignment. This is to be performed by trained volunteers only.


Machine access policy

Use of the Laser Cutter requires attendance in a certification workshop hosted by one of the approved instructors. Workshops are posted on the calendar.


Usage

Safety

Laser cutters pose a fire hazard. A high intensity beam of laser light can produce extremely high temperatures as it comes into contact with the materials it is engraving, marking, or cutting. When using the laser cutter, remember:

  1. You may only use the laser cutter if you have been officially certified according to the machine access policy
  2. Never leave the laser cutter unattended while it was powered on (even if it is not firing)
  3. Never cut materials that you don't know are safe
  4. Never override laser cutter safeties and switches
  5. Know what to do if a fire happens
    1. Hint: Hit the big, red, emergency stop button. This will shutdown the laser and the air supply.
    2. A Carbon Dioxide (CO2) fire extinguisher is located next to the laser cutter

Before starting the laser cutter:

  1. Check the coolant window in the back of the chiller before starting any project.

After starting the laser cutter:

  1. Before cutting make sure the air compressor and the fan motor are on
  2. Refer to the cutting manual for appropriate engraving and speed and power settings for varied materials
  3. Beware of flammable materials while using the machines.

Workflow

  1. Create design or import
    If importing, unite lines (under Tools menu)
  2. Separate layers if necessary (by changing their colors)
  3. Set layer modes
  4. Set layer powers/speeds
  5. Set origin (under Laser menu)
  6. Download
    1. Delete all
    2. Download current
  7. Load media into cutter
  8. Focus laser (in center of media)
  9. Move laser to origin
  10. Run box / test
  11. Close lid and start

Materials

Cutting a bad material in the laser cutter can be dangerous. Only approved materials should be cut, and banned materials should never be placed in or even around the laser cutter. Cutting an unknown material risks bodily harm and damage to equipment/facilities.

Approved materials

Name Notes Warnings
Acrylic (aka Plexiglas, Lucite, PMMA)
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.
Cardboard
Cuts well, can catch fire FIRE hazard!
Ceramic
Mirror surfaces can reflect the laser beam
Cloth (cotton, felt, hemp)
Cuts easily NO plastic coated or impregnated cloth!
Corian
Cork
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.
Coroplast (corrugated plastic)
Difficult to cut through cleanly, due to the ribs. Multiple passes are usually needed.
Delrin
Comes in a number of shore strengths (hardness), the harder tends to work better. Great for gears!
Glass
Has a sandblasted look, green glass works best Mirror surfaces can reflect the laser beam
Leather, suede
Leather is very hard to cut, can be if thinner than a belt thickness
MDF, engineered woods
May experience a higher amount of charring when cut
Magnetic sheet
Cuts easily
Marble
Mirror surfaces can reflect the laser beam
Matte Board
Melamine
Mylar
Works well if it's thin. Thick mylar has a tendency to warp, bubble, and curl Gold coated mylar will not work
Paper, card stock
Plywood, composite woods
Contain glue, and may not cut as well as solid wood
Pressboard
NON-CHLORINE Rubber
DO NOT CUT unless the rubber compound has been tested Beware chlorine-containing rubber! If you're not sure, assume you've got chlorinated rubber, and don't cut it.
Tile
Mirror surfaces can reflect the laser beam
Wood
Avoid oily/resinous woods FIRE - Cutting oily woods, or very resinous woods can catch fire.
Wood Veneer
Contain glue, and may not cut as well as solid wood
Anodized Aluminum
Vaporizes the anodized layer away
Bare Metals
Brass
Coated Metals
Painted Metals
Vaporizes the paint away
Stainless Steel
Titanium

Banned materials

These materials should never be processed in the laser cutter.

Name DANGER WARNING
ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene)
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).
Chlorinated plastics (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!!!!!
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
Fiberglass
Emits fumes It's a mix of two materials that cant' be cut. Glass (etch, no cut) and epoxy resin (fumes)
Galvanized metal
Emits dangerous fumes Zinc fumes are poisonous. Galvanized metal should never be super heated (so don't weld on it either).
Metal
Power needed for LASER to cut metal
Milk bottles/HDPE
Catches fire and melts It melts, gets gooey. DON'T. Someone has to clean the hex worktable.
Mirrored surfaces
Will not cut, reflects laser beam Mirror surfaces can reflect the laser beam, damaging the cutter's interior components. Some mirrored materials can be placed reflective-side down and cut.
Polycarbonate/Lexan
Cut very poorly, disbackground-color, 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.
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.
PolyStyrene Foam
Catches fire Like PolyPropylene. It catches fire, it melts, and only thin pieces cut. This is the #1 material that causes laser fires!!!
Pressure treated wood
Emits dangerous fumes Should never be burned -- not in your fireplace, and definitely not in our LASER
Printed circuit board (FR4 and other material types)

Other resources

Laser Cutter Certified Users

Name Certification Date
Anna Lenhart-Murray 2015-12-16
Audrey Barba 2015-12-14
Brock Milford 2015-12-16
Brad Cooley 2015-11-16
Brian Hertz 2015-12-18
Bryan Barr (FabLab BD) 2015-08-07
Cat Barba-Abay 2015-12-16
Charlie Fair 2015-11-11
Charles Griesel 2015-12-02
Chris Batcheller 2015-12-14
Christian Kindel 2015-12-12
Cory Kertz 2015-11-11
Curt Gridley 2015-12-12
Dana Danaver 2015-12-05
Daniel Towle 2015-12-20
David Springs
Dean Day 2015-12-12
Dominic Canare (instructor) 2015-12-02
Geoffrey Kisch 2015-12-05
Helen Haskin 2015-12-16
Ivan Quiroz 2015-11-16
James Classen 2015-11-11
James Lancaster 2015-12-05
James Seymour 2015-12-12
Jeremiah Loder 2015-12-14
Jerry Carpenter 2015-08-07
Jerry Shubert 2015-11-11
Jim Hammer 2015-12-12
Joel Ewy 2015-12-05
John Alexander (instructor) 2015-12-02
John Harrison 2015-10-30
Jonny Fosnight 2015-11-16
Judah Hansen 2015-12-20
Kenton Hansen 2015-12-20
Kevin Elledge 2015-12-14
Kim Lujan 2015-12-18
Kip Landwehr 2015-12-18
Logan Pajunen 2015-11-11
Marcus Mosley 2015-12-20
Mark Esau 2015-12-20
Melanie Jenney 2015-12-14
Melissa Soutiere 2015-12-14
Mike Barushok 2015-12-18
Mike Doolittle (instructor) 2015-08-07
Mike Hutton 2015-11-11
Mitzi Trout 2015-12-18
Paul Wilson 2015-12-20
Rick Boyd 2015-12-20
Stephen Reckers 2015-11-16
Samuel McConnell 2015-12-02
Samuel Schurter 2015-12-05
Skyler Lovelace 2015-12-02
Stuart Smith 2015-12-14
Thomas Bloom 2015-12-12
Tom McGuire 2015-08-07
Weston Vice 2015-12-05
William Davisson 2015-12-18