Laser Cutter/Parameters
From London Hackspace Wiki
If you found some sweet settings please share them here.
Background
Thick Material
Do not try to cut anything thicker than the thickest width listed for that material on this page.
Corner Power
When the path goes round curves, or a straight line passes close to previous line (TBC), the laser will slow down. As a consequence, the Corner Power needs to be lower to compensate. Typically about 80% of the Power setting.
Tried but DIY parameters
- Laser rubber has been used (mainly for stamps) it works well but you'll need to experiment for engraving/cutting
Parameters
Cutting
Acrylic - Perspex
| Thickness (mm) | Speed (mm/sec) | Power (%) | Corner power (%) | Examples / Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 6 | 100 | ||
| 4 | 3.5 | 100 | 21 | |
| 5 | 3 | 100 | ||
| 10 | 1 (not enough?) | 100 |
PLY
| Thickness (mm) | Speed (mm/sec) | Power (%) | Corner power (%) | Examples / Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| .5 | 25 | 80 | This seemed to work really well with not much burn on the edges for the super thin ply. | |
| 1.5 | 8 | 100 | ||
| 3 | 5 | 100 | ||
| 5 | 2 | 100 | ||
| 6 | 1 | 100 |
MDF
| Thickness (mm) | Speed (mm/sec) | Power (%) | Corner power (%) | Examples / Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 5 | 100 | 20 | |
| 4 | 4 | 100 |
Misc
| Material | Thickness (mm) | Speed (mm/sec) | Power (%) | Corner power (%) | Examples / Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acrylic - Palglas | 3 | 6 | 100 | 21 | Cubauble | |
| Corrugated Cardboard | 3 | 12 | 100 | |||
| Hardboard | 3 | 3 | 100 | |||
| Paper | 60 | 15 | ||||
| Card | 35 | 40 | ||||
| Mountboard | 12 | 100 | ||||
| Engraving Laminate | 15 | 80 | ||||
| Funky Foam | 25 | 25 | ||||
| Curian | 1 | 100 | Four passes required | |||
| Laser Rubber | 6 | 100 | 25 | |||
| Suede | 1 | 25 | 100 | 25 | ||
| Suede/Leather (line engraving) | >1 | 150 | 10 | 10 | ||
| Leather | 3 | 4 | 100 | 100 (needs more testing) | ||
| LD45 Plastazote | 12 | 25 | 100 | 20 | ||
| Unknown clear thermoplastic | 4 | 10 | 10 - 15 | 10 | These box lids melt easily but can be cut with multiple passes at low power. | |
| Polypropylene sheet | 500micron (0,5mm) | 14 | 40 | 17 | ||
| Polypropylene sheet - scoring | 500micron (0,5mm) | 60 | 60 | 15 | This will produce a score. useful if you want just to mark a point or fold. | |
| Polyester "paper" - NeverTear | 300micron (0.3mm) | 40 | 60 | 40 | Never tear is a polyester sheet that can be laser printed like normal paper. | |
| Polyester "paper" - NeverTear - Scoring | 300micron (0.3mm) | 100 | 15 | 40 | This will produce a score. useful if you want just to mark a point or fold. |
Engraving
| Material | Speed (mm/sec) | Power (%) | Corner power (%) | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acrylic - Perspex | 200 | 21 | ||
| Birch PLY | 200 | 17 | ||
| MDF | 200 | 25 | ||
| Corrugated Cardboard | 200 | 20 | ||
| Hardboard | 200 | 20 | ||
| Paper | 200 | 15 | ||
| Card | 300 | 20 | ||
| Mountboard | 200 | 20 | ||
| Engraving Laminate | 200 | 21 | ||
| Curian | 3 | 100 | ||
| Laser Rubber | 200 | 70 | ||
| Anodized aluminium (dyed black) | 450 | 90 | ? | LHS logo on black phone |
| Anodized aluminium (Macbook Pro) (Vector - in "cut" mode) | 100 | 100 | 80 | Russ's Macbook Pro |
| Suede | 250 | 15 | 80 | |
| LD45 Plastazote | 200 | 10 | 10 | At 10% engraves 2-3mm deep. Laser doesn't seem to come on at all at 5% or engrave at speeds >200 mm/s so may not be possible to engrave less deeply than this. |
