materials question

[Craig Hogarth]

Concerning plaques, is there anything that needs to be done to wood to make it engravable? Obviously cutting your own is much cheaper than buying ready made, but is it worth the extra expense of buying them already done?

Looking at transaparent materials, I assume acrylic is at the low end with crystal being tops. But where does glass and lucite fall in with (perceived) value? For awards, which ones are purchased most and is there another that I missed?

[Joe Pelonio]

If you are a woodworker it will save $ to do your own. The key is to finish it with a color that contrasts with the wood color so the lettering will show up better when engraved. I stock some pieces but typically they never want the sizes I have so I end up doing it myself faster than waiting for an order and not all sizes and finishes are readily available.

I find that glass alwayss is considered "classier" than acrylic for corporate awards, though a lot of companies won't pay the additional amount for it.

Crystal actually is better done with sand or chemical etching, it can create problems for laser work.

[Mike Null]

Craig:

I doubt that you will think do it yourself wood plaques will save you money once you've compared them to purchased products.

The wood should be finished. Lasering creates a smoke and stain which is very difficult to remove from unfinished wood but wipes away with water or diluted citrus cleaner very easily.

Don't forget to check out metal plates for the wood plaques. These brass or brass colored steel plates have a lacquer finish which lasers away leaving a very attractive brass image. Most people perceive this as adding value.

I believe lucite and acrylic are the same. There are two types of acrylic used for awards; cast and extruded. The cast is preferable for nearly everything while the extruded is available in thicknesses up to an 1/8" (there may be others but I haven't seen them). Cast is available in all thicknesses and is purchased from an awards house or a plastics distributor. Extruded is used for a number of things such as covers for certificates and pictures, for making jigs and for substituting for glass.

Glass can be laser engraved quite well. The look is not as good as sandblasting but it's faster and cheaper.

[Craig Hogarth]

How do you chemical etch? Is it as much to get set up with that as it is with sandblasting?