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View Full Version : Cutting G10 FR4 Sheet



Russell Ludwick
03-15-2011, 10:18 PM
I have a customer that wants me to quote the laser cutting of a flat pattern from .030" G10 FR4 material. Since I have never worked with it, I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with it.

Is it toxic?
Does it cut okay?
What Wattage laser would I need to cut .030 sheet?
Any other experiences?

On a similar note, has anyone done thicker PCB Material or Glastic?

Thanks

Scott Challoner
03-15-2011, 11:18 PM
I have cut .062" thick G10 with my 30 watt but it was slow and messy. Better have good exhaust too. I masked both sides before hand. They were used for carrier pallets for PCBs through the oven so cleanliness wasn't a huge issue. I'm not sure how the flame retardant properties of the FR4 would affect the cut. Of course you won't be able to cut through copper either. I certainly wouldn't want to do it every day, but it's doable. Have you thought of using your CNC instead? When I worked in the electronics manufacturing industry, we had routers for depaneling multi-up PCBs.

Dan Hintz
03-16-2011, 6:11 AM
With a 30W, you may as well not bother quoting. The cut will be extremely slow, and the edge charring will make the piece practically unusable. CNC or waterjet is the way to go.

Michael Hunter
03-16-2011, 7:05 AM
There's a whole industry dedicated to processing PCB material : prices are surprisingly low (considering the work and equipment involved), but there is normally a fairly high artwork setup charge.

Since it is a difficult material to laser, I would question why the customer has come to you and work out the cost on a "value to him" basis.
If the resulting value meets your needs too, then go ahead with a quote, but do warn that the end result will not be up to the standard normally expected for CNC machined PCBs.