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Paul Lawrence
02-17-2016, 10:35 AM
The question popped up in a discussion with my DIL, and I said "I'm ignorant!", but I know where to ask.

Can "small" cloth patterns be cut out of "regular" cloth?

"Regular" meaning cotton or synthetic or mixed like scrap clothing being recycled not brand new cloth on a roll where you know exactly what it is made of and how it reacts.

Can the cloth be stacked and cut for production?

David Somers
02-17-2016, 11:32 AM
Morning Paul,

Most fabrics cut just fine, and some even engrave well like denim. For cutting I am very fond of felt, both wool and synthetic. Cuts quickly and beautifully. Sometimes when I make boxes from Baltic Birch I will cut the pieces, glue wool felt to the interior sides, then recut the felt to remove any that interferes with the finger joints. When I assemble it I have an accurately cut felt lined wood box.
The problem with recycled pieces is you may have to play with your settings a bit depending on the material. It is not a gross adjustment though in most cases.
Many materials are quite nice to cut since the cutting process seals the edges and prevents fraying.
One thought though. Be careful with plastic coated material. Many are done with a vinyl which may or may not be a PVC variant. And as we all know PVC is not good in your machine.

Dave

Nicolas Silva
02-17-2016, 6:33 PM
It's now pretty common for fashion designers to use the laser to cut patterns in the fabrics.

David Somers
02-17-2016, 7:47 PM
Paul,

Sorry, missed one question you asked about. Yes, you can stack cloth and cut several at one time. How many? Depends on the thickness of the material and the power of your laser and at what point you start charring the material. You just have to play to determine the capacity of your machine. take lots of notes as you go so you dont have to keep reinventing the wheel.

Dave

Scott Marquez
02-17-2016, 9:12 PM
I purchased my machine specifically to cut fabric for my business.
You can cut multiple layers, you must keep an eye of your thickness because of the lens's sweet zone which has to do with its focus length. You can get smoke between the layers, or melt the layers together depending on the fabric. I also leave my fresh cut fabric outside for a day to air out and get rid of the slight burnt smell.
Since I normally use my machine for prototype work or small runs I normally only cut one layer at a time of 1,000 denier Cordura. Knowing what I know now, if I were to use this as a production machine, it would have in feed and out feed conveyors.
Scott

Paul Lawrence
02-18-2016, 6:57 AM
Thanks to you all. This gives me some "talking points" for a possible acquisition for a project we have in mind.