A little help with bamboo cutting boards

[Don Young]

I have started engraving bamboo cutting boards as a job for a customer. I have had mixed results with some boards lasering darker than others. Is there anyone out there who has found a way to get darker results using any kind of oil or surface prep prior to lasering ? The depth is perfect but I would like some consistent darkness.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Don

[Mike Null]

Don

I wish I could help but I don't do bamboo for the very reason you've mentioned plus the bottom of the engraved area tends to be fibrous.

[Gary Hair]

If you go out of focus a bit and run lower speed with lower power, it will come out more consistent. I haven't done what I would consider a lot, but what I have done turned out really well. I'd have to look to be sure, but I think I ran the last batch at 40% Power and 30% speed - that's on a 30 watt, 80 ips machine so adjust accordingly for your machine.

Gary

[Martin Boekers]

Are these for display? It seems like there could be food contamination in the engraved area.

[Don Young]

These are definitely not for use with food. Display only. Too many nooks and crannies for use with food.

[walter hofmann]

Hi there
I work just with bamboo and I got steady results see attached pictures . depending on what you wana do engraving ( for picture)
or cutting (text) 238793238794238795
I use for text the cutting settings and for picture or grafic engraving settings. cutting are about 150 to 250 speed and 10.5 to 11.5 power.
engravings settings are about 150 ( for very detailed) to 400 (for rough) speed and 14 to 24% power, dthering at 0.1 to 0.2 .

hope this helps
greetings
walt

[Scott Shepherd]

Walter, I think they are talking about the same thing you show in your middle photo with the two people on it. See how the feet of the people is light and the heads are dark? That's what he's trying to avoid.

[Chuck Stone]

Ah.. if they're just for display, use some color fill over a clear coat. Once filled, sand it back.
Bamboo is all over the place as far as density because most of what we get is put together
from many pieces. It's a grass, so I don't know if you can get very large pieces.

[Jim Reinhard]

At the dallas NBM show Laser sketch had a spray called laser dark that is made just for that .I have not tryed it but looked good on the samples he had there.

[walter hofmann]

you are right bamboo is a grass like wood even with wood there will allways be some shades but this is what makes it unique I allways say laser engraving on wood is not printing on paper.
but I can get even sheets 4x8feet from 1/8 inch to 1/2 inch thick but it is expensive and there allways need to purchase two sheets runs about $ 550 .
greetings
walt

[Chuck Stone]

I can get even sheets 4x8feet from 1/8 inch to 1/2 inch thick

True enough, but look at them closely. I don't know if bamboo will grow large enough for a single
piece of that size. (length, yes.. it might grow 20+ feet per year) so those pieces are often made up
of several smaller pieces using finger joints.

[John Noell]

[QUOTE=...length, yes.. it might grow 20+ feet per year..[/QUOTE] Yes, but...density at the node is quite different than in the middle of a segment and I've never seen nodes 4' long! We make a lot of bamboo name tags. The vast majority get masked, engraved, and color-filled with thick acrylic artist's paint. Much more consistent.

[Chuck Stone]

Yes, but...density at the node is quite different than in the middle of a segment and I've never seen nodes 4' long! We make a lot of bamboo name tags. The vast majority get masked, engraved, and color-filled with thick acrylic artist's paint. Much more consistent.

Exactly... which was why i was saying I don't think you'd see one piece 4'x8'! I also color fill bamboo
because you just never know how it is going to engrave from one inch to the next

[walter hofmann]

I wa not clear enough. all bamboo is mad from strips of about 1 1/2 inch with and then joined together to the desired with and even lenght.
ther are two major version one is horizontal where the stripes about 1/8 thick are glued together overlapping on top of each other this gives the real bamboo look with knotes and the tyhere is the vertical version where the stripes are joint site by site this version has the least distorted look and is pretty even in color for lasering, but it misses the typical knotes .
greetings
walt

[Don Young]

Thanks for the advice. Slowed down the speed, took it a little out of focus and lowered the power and they all turned out amazing. Took a while at the slower speed but the results were perfect.
Don

[Mary Geitz]

So what settings are you now using? Are you going up or down with the focus? A large part of my business is cutting boards but there is only one bamboo board I sell. I generally don't have a problem with text but graphics pick up the striation of bamboo. Also just fyi for anyone who sells cutting boards, I print out an instruction card which says no dishwasher, and I advise them to use the back side of the board so they don't mar the image.