Clean up on cut wood edges

[Larry Robinson]

I have a laser on order with the idea of cutting wood, mostly 1/4" plywood. I am curious to know how much clean up is needed after I laser cut the wood. Are the wood edges rough and in need of sanding. Does it take much sanding to take the black chared look off?

Larry

[James Jaragosky]

I have a laser on order with the idea of cutting wood, mostly 1/4" plywood. I am curious to know how much clean up is needed after I laser cut the wood. Are the wood edges rough and in need of sanding. Does it take much sanding to take the black chared look off?

Larry

Larry this question has many variables.
How powerful is your laser?
The type and grade of the plywood will make a difference as well.
The type of glue used in the plywood will affect the quality of the cut.
The laser can make accurate and relative clean cuts if you can account for the variables above.

[Larry Robinson]

Thanks James,

The wattage will be 80, the wood will be mostly 1/4" baltic birch. We currently use a cnc router to cut all of it and there is definetely a need to sand the edges. Just not sure if the laser edges will require as much sanding.

Larry

[George Brown]

I cut a lot of wood. The laser produces a beautiful clean edge that requires no sanding. HOWEVER, the edge, depending on the wood, etc. will be medium brown to black. Depending on the details of the cut, it will be difficult or impossible to sand off the discoloration. However, it is not objectionable, and can be incorporated into the design of the piece. It would probably be more work sanding off the black than cutting with cnc and sanding out the roughness of the cut.

[Martin Boekers]

Experiment with frequency, if you can.

I have a 75watt Epilog and I cut .25" with a freq about 250, gives it a nice carmel color with a smooth edge that
doesn't rub off. Too high an it chars which is a mess!

Marty

[Joe Pelonio]

I like to apply finish before cutting, usually stain then clear, or just clear. When finished apply another coat and hit the edges with it to seal the black or it will come off on people's hands. I prefer that dark edge look but with detail it is really hard to sand and easier to spray especially by airbrush. With my 45 watt I can cut some woods with the caramel color but plywood usually does turn black.

[Dmitriy Kumets]

To clean up the edges try fast orange hand cleaner. Epilog posted this tip on their site and it works great. Take the cleaner with no water added, put it on a stiff brush and scrub. I would recommend applying transfer tape (signmaker's tape/wide masking tape) before lasering and leaving it on during the clean up.

Warning: if you don't mask off the flat surface the soot on the burnt edges will dissolve with the hand cleaner and spread to the surface. You can always sand the flat stuff easily but it's much easier to just mask before you cut.