Vector-Cutting Thin Rubber?

[Scott Balboa]

I have a potential customer who wants me to vector-cut what appears to be very thin rubber (approximately 1/32" thick) to use as gaskets for an industrial application on electic panels. Some of it is clear, some of it is black, but it all smells and feels the same. I have tried playing with it this morning and it is bringing back awful memories of when we tried making rubber stamps on the laser engraver. It seems no matter how slow and low I go on power, or high and fast, it flames up and makes a nasty mess on the whole surface of the material, not to mention it stinks like burning tires and creates a lot of black smoke (vented out but is still nasty and strong). I don't see any need to fine-tune settings too much here because it just looks and smells awful and definitely isn't a "clean" cut shape when I'm done with it. I tried masking it with low-tack tape and it's barely an improvement.

I think I'm going to turn down the job due to all the aforementioned factors, but I was just curious if anyone here has done similar type of jobs or has any tips/tricks to cleanly cut rubber sheeting. In my opinion you can't pay me enough to work with this stuff! Any replies/opinions are very appreciated.

FYI: The laser engraver I'm working on is a ULS 40w.

[Scott Challoner]

I cut thin slicone sheets with an adhesive back that I get from McMaster-Carr without much odor at all. It may be pricey for what you're doing though. I would see if they're willing to try different materials like EVA foam, cork, etc.

[Andrea Weissenseel]

I have not cut other rubber than the one for rubberstamps and silicone, but that one without smoke or smell.

[Robert L Stewart]

Scott,

I vector cut a shape from EPDM .060 black rubber. So far no issues like you are having. I use air assist, cut at 10s-35p, fc 500 on my 45 W Epilog. It may be the material but the smell is not as bad as I have read about here. No doubt about the "burnt rubber" smell, hard to avoid.

No masking and a small amout of clean up with dna, aka "the secret sauce". I loosely brown bag the cut pieces and set them outside for few hours to air. A day is best if the time permits.

[Bill Cunningham]

Rubber produces oils, smoke, and dust. The oils and smoke are what kills the deal for most folks, particularly if your in a urban environment, or can't vent where your neighbors can't smell it.. For the dust, I usually have sheet metal base below the rubber to allow me to pick it up out of the laser and not dump it, or spill any in the shop until I can get to the sink, and wash it off with cold water. Real rubber stinks, if you can't smell it in your shop, then your neighbors are enjoying it. Expect complaints :(

[Mike Mackenzie]

Scott,

We have cut lots of different rubbers two key factors are high air pressure with the air assist and low PPI settings (150ppi). This has worked well for many different type of rubber. The smell and debris is still part of the process but you can get clean cuts.

[Robert L Stewart]

Mike,

How does the low PPI setting (150) help? Is it less bursts equal less potential for a flair up?

[Dan Hintz]

Mike,

How does the low PPI setting (150) help? Is it less bursts equal less potential for a flair up?
In a nutshell, yes. By providing short, controlled bursts of energy rather than continuous heat, you're allowing the material to cool between pulses.

[Robert L Stewart]

Thanks Dan,

Did not think of that until this post. I will give it a try. You guys are great, I learn a thing or two everyday here.

[Dan Hintz]

In a nutshell, yes. By providing short, controlled bursts of energy rather than continuous heat, you're allowing the material to cool between pulses.
My description isn't technically correct, but you get the idea. In reality, the burst is short and hot, which doesn't allow enough time to heat up the surrounding material. You are vaporizing a tiny spot without affecting the surrounding material.

[Allan Wright]

Thanks for this thread. I'm glad I did a search before asking this exact question.

The creek is always a great resource!

[Keith Outten]

I cut some rubber sandblast mask yesterday that cut clean with absolutely no oder at all. In the past I have had occasion to cut magnetic rubber which chars badly no matter what my settings are and it smells bad.

There are so many types of rubber it would be impossible to rate them all as to their cutting characteristics.

[Richard Rumancik]

Since the material is thin you could consider a shorter FL lens, if you have one. You will need to ensure that the gasket material lies reasonably flat so you stay in focus. If you cut with a .003" kerf rather than .005" kerf then you will burn less material hence less smoke and debris. You will need to have good air assist to make sure you keep smoke away from your lens.

I have cut Poron (urethane) foam for electronics gasketing and although it smokes when cut, it is tolerable to run it.

[Dan Hintz]

Thread's over a year old, guys... just an FYI...

[Chuck Stone]

Thread's over a year old, guys... just an FYI...

It is a 'seasoned discussion'.

[Richard Rumancik]

Gee, I hate it when this happens. I usually look, but after the first person or two responds it "looks" like a current discussion and it is easy to get drawn in.

Oh, I guess I will say it once more - old discussions should be closed. But I know there are many members who feel it is okay to keep adding to old discussions, even if the member is long gone or if their problem is ancient history.

Many forums will close the thread from discussions after 3 or 6 months. In general I think it makes sense to start a new thread after such a period of time.

[Bill Cunningham]

There is nothing in this discussion that is not as relevant today as it was a year ago, and sometimes it's nice to rehash some stuff and get some new perspectives on a general subject..

[Keith Outten]

Most Forums delete threads after a short period of time. This saves server hard drive space and more importantly clock cycles since there isn't much use for a search feature.
You can literally watch people develop their skills here over the years and sometimes they even change their minds about certain subjects :)

Here we believe that the value of every thread and post never decreases and I agree with Bill that topics generally remain relevant.
.

[Allan Wright]

I have some loose bird shot for re-loading shotgun ammunition. Putting some of this in a sandwich bag to use to weight things down works well. The lead is nice and heavy and being a loose 'granular' product it fits in any space. Use the baggies to keep the lead from soiling your products. You can get a large bag of the stuff for a reasonable price at the local gun mega-mart.

[Richard Rumancik]

Sorry Keith, perhaps you misunderstood - I did not suggest deleting the threads. I just suggested that the thread be closed for new comments. I agree that the content can remain relevant for a long period and that he search feature is valuable. But I guess I'm not that nostalgic that I want to continue a discussion that is a year old. Time for a new discussion. I assume that since Scott had the problem in Feb 2011 he has probably resolved it . . .

Also it is important for new posters to recognize when they should be starting a new thread, as opposed to adding to an old one.