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Mary Helvey
10-09-2006, 10:01 PM
HI,

I am new to engraving and I have been doing some of the ornament cutouts but can not seem to keep from burning the backs. Is there a good way to lift it off the surface to prevent this? What settings are best for cutting 1/8" wood? I have a universal 25w.

Thanks,
Mary

Nancy Laird
10-09-2006, 10:14 PM
HI,

I am new to engraving and I have been doing some of the ornament cutouts but can not seem to keep from burning the backs. Is there a good way to lift it off the surface to prevent this? What settings are best for cutting 1/8" wood? I have a universal 25w.

Thanks,
Mary

Mary, if you have a cutting table, the burning is almost non-existent. However, before we got our honeycomb table, we were having a lot of trouble with flare/burning, and decided to tape the back of the material with masking tape.

We were using a piece of 1/2" ply with 1/4" hardware cloth pinned/stapled to it for airflow under the piece (sort of like lath for plastering). Between that and the masking tape, we pretty much eliminated the burning.

The tape adds a couple of extra steps, but it's worth it.

Nancy

Linda Tetreault
10-10-2006, 7:44 AM
Mary,

You can use some risers, small pieces of wood that will raise your work piece off the table, just put them under the corners of the wood you're using. If you have any residue on the back just wipe it off with denatured alcohol (if the wood has a finish).

Linda

Mike Null
10-10-2006, 7:52 AM
Mary:

It is necessary to elevate the item to be cut above the table. It is very important to maintain the proper focus throughout the cut and to experiment until you find the speed and power settings to just cut the material but not to blast through it.

A vector cutting grid will work better than the wood blocks, although they will work, because it is flat and will support the material so that parts of it do not fall to the table.

If you do a search for vector cutting grids you will find some that are not expensive.

Mike Mackenzie
10-10-2006, 12:24 PM
Mary,

Besides the good information regarding the cutting tables you should also be using a PPI setting of 200-300 depending on the wood. If you are using a higher PPI setting then you will experience more burning when cutting woods.

Try using 100 power 2% speed and 200 ppi this is just a suggestion I do not know what kind of wood you are using.

Jim A. Walters
10-10-2006, 5:45 PM
There is always the good old 2' x 4' egg crate type drop ceiling light grid available at all big box stores. You can cut it to size with wire cutters. I will warn you that you might have a bit of flash on the back side when the laser cuts through the wood on top of one of the grids. They cost about $11.00, and if you cut one in half you have two 12 x 24 grids!

George M. Perzel
10-10-2006, 6:41 PM
Jim;
Are you talking about metal grids or plasitc? I have been looking for metal grid material for quite awhile-found some from an air con vent cover but it's rare. If you have a source for metal- HOLLER! Thanks
George

Mary Helvey
10-10-2006, 8:38 PM
Thanks for the help. I will look into a metal grate. I guess I will play around with the settings also.

Mary