1/16 Cast Acrylic Curve

[Mike Fuller]

Been around for a while and having my first issue that I'm hoping someone can help. When I try to engrave 1/16" acrylic and then vector cut an outline to it the cut out curves (or bows). I tried to engrave at a lower power and run 2x, but get the same results. Any thoughts, suggestions?

I'm running them on a Epilog 35W at 100 speed and tried 50 power and 30 power 2x. Air assist is not hooked up.

Thanks

[Richard Rumancik]

Are you saying it "bulges" outwards (inwards) from the engraving? If you are rastering a lot of material from the face then it may be causing unequal stresses on the front and rear, causing it to dish. The air assist would help keep it cooler. Maybe a photo would help troubleshoot the problem.

[Frank Corker]

Well air assist would definitely help your situation. It's the heat that is distorting it. You could also try checking to see if you can cut it at less power. Engraving it too slowly with high power will also distort such thin material. Try two passes with a lower raster setting you will still get the same engraving finish but possibly without the distortion.

[Eric Edgette]

I do similar work and when I engrave large areas I pause the laser periodically to let it cool before continuing. This seams to help me, along with taking less material off (lower power) and doing two passes.

[Joe Pelonio]

Air will help but any time there's a lot of engraving close together on that material the heat is going to cause some warping, especially at high DPI/Frequency. If it's bad enough that the last parts of the cut go out of focus, try using a few pieces of thin 2-sided tape under it and stick it onto a scrap sacrificial piece of 1/4" acrylic to keep it flat until removed.