Chris J Anderson
02-27-2014, 6:47 AM
I would just like to share this process that I use when cermarking Stainless Steel.
I'm not sure if this improves the marking on brass etc, but would be keen to find out.
Following a recent thread concerning marking of larger / thicker plates, all of the suggestions related to slowing down speed / increasing dpi etc.
All this does, is increase the heat at the metal surface where the laser strikes.
I had a client request a photo and text etched on to a large 1/4" thick SS plate supplied by him.
I was concerned about the etch not 'taking' to the metal properly...
so I preheated the plate after applying the cermark in a toaster oven.
The results were amazing. I have done several cermark jobs since and I always preheat after applying the cermark, and the difference is vey noticeable, it also ensures the cermark is completely dry before marking.
On one larger job I also used an air/heat gun to re-warm the plate during a pause in the job, again keeping the material hot.
I hope this info helps, it really is worth a try, and does make the result more consistent and reliable.
(My toaster oven is a $50 cheapie we use for surface mount pcb soldering as well).
Cheers to All.
Chris
I'm not sure if this improves the marking on brass etc, but would be keen to find out.
Following a recent thread concerning marking of larger / thicker plates, all of the suggestions related to slowing down speed / increasing dpi etc.
All this does, is increase the heat at the metal surface where the laser strikes.
I had a client request a photo and text etched on to a large 1/4" thick SS plate supplied by him.
I was concerned about the etch not 'taking' to the metal properly...
so I preheated the plate after applying the cermark in a toaster oven.
The results were amazing. I have done several cermark jobs since and I always preheat after applying the cermark, and the difference is vey noticeable, it also ensures the cermark is completely dry before marking.
On one larger job I also used an air/heat gun to re-warm the plate during a pause in the job, again keeping the material hot.
I hope this info helps, it really is worth a try, and does make the result more consistent and reliable.
(My toaster oven is a $50 cheapie we use for surface mount pcb soldering as well).
Cheers to All.
Chris