Headstones ?

[brian fithian]

There is a family in my neighborhood that lost their mother and cannot afford a headstone for her . I found some through laser sketch and would like to donate one for them. I haven't engraved any marble or granite on my machine. Can anyone help me with which material is best for laser engraving and settings for an Epilog mini 24, 40 watts. Any help will be appreciated.

[Chad Fitzgerald]

Hi Brian, i have doone a decent amount of marble and granite, by no means an expert, but its relatively easy to engrave. Photos takes some practice but if you are ony putting text on it pretty easy. Marble vs. granite, ?? granite is harder, i think marble engraves photos a little nicer, jmo, i have a spirit 40watt and use settings of 70 speed and 15 power for both. Laser sketch will send you a sample of granite and marble for free. practice on them. biggest thing with both is too much power makes things washed out. less power is better. Im sure someone else here with more experience will post soon. good luck, its awesome what your doing.

[Larry Bratton]

You want to use granite for an outside marker, if you expect it to last a long time. However, Lasersketch sells a product they call Absolute Black Marble, I don't know precisely what it is, but it ain't marble. You can test to see if a stone is marble by applying a small amount of vinegar to it. If it mars it, it is marble. I use the ABM from Lasersketch but treat is as though it is granite and it does fine. I use a setting of like 38 power, 100 speed with a 40 watt Epilog. Marble would be opposite with higher power, lower speed. The Epilog manual suggests 25 speed 100 power for 400dpi and 40 watts for marble.

[Everett White]

I have done some simple 12x12 granite tiles cut in half. This is better than the usual 3x5 aluminum tag that usually get placed on the site. It makes for a good temoprary marker but not for a permenent headstone.

BTW does anyone know if these need a sealer so they can last longer?

[Ross Moshinsky]

Many cemeteries will only allow you to install headstones made with certain material and sometimes they go as far as limiting you to certain vendors. I'd look into that before you go to far.

If you can do this, I'd contact the local counter top company and ask them for a piece of granite. You'd be surprised what they might offer you.


You want to use granite for an outside marker, if you expect it to last a long time. However, Lasersketch sells a product they call Absolute Black Marble, I don't know precisely what it is, but it ain't marble. You can test to see if a stone is marble by applying a small amount of vinegar to it. If it mars it, it is marble. I use the ABM from Lasersketch but treat is as though it is granite and it does fine. I use a setting of like 38 power, 100 speed with a 40 watt Epilog. Marble would be opposite with higher power, lower speed. The Epilog manual suggests 25 speed 100 power for 400dpi and 40 watts for marble.

I wouldn't agree with this. 40 power and 100 speed is fine for photos but you should not just be marking the stone, you should be engraving into it. You should be looking to get some depth when engraving things like this.

[Larry Bratton]

Many cemeteries will only allow you to install headstones made with certain material and sometimes they go as far as limiting you to certain vendors. I'd look into that before you go to far.

If you can do this, I'd contact the local counter top company and ask them for a piece of granite. You'd be surprised what they might offer you.



I wouldn't agree with this. 40 power and 100 speed is fine for photos but you should not just be marking the stone, you should be engraving into it. You should be looking to get some depth when engraving things like this.

Well, with a 40 watt machine your not going to "engrave into it" very much. Maybe with marble but not with granite. I also use a white titanium oil artist paint to brighten up the engraving. Granite is one of the hardest substances known to man and your just not going to do much with a low power laser. Some people use different settings for text though.

[Steve Clarkson]

A cemetery probably isn't going to let you place a 1/4" thick tile there.........they'll claim that it will break when the lawn mower goes over it. And if you get a thick piece from somewhere (say 4-5" thick) it will likely be too heavy to put in your machine.

[Joe Pelonio]

I agree with the last two posts, what you can do it use the laser to cut rubber stencil and sandblast the stone for some depth, then paint fill. If you have no sandblast equipment, sub that part out to someone that does and it shouldn't cost much.

[Bill Cunningham]

Steve's right, 'some' will allow the 2" thick from lasersketch, but they usually want to install it on a concrete or bed of screenings, but mostly they want 4" thick minimum granite.. For text and solid artwork (no shading) I usually hit it with 100% power, 25 speed, and 400 dpi.. Photos are hit much lighter in granite.