Can I cut MDF?

[Peter Boyford]

I just got a request from a customer wanting a logo cut from 6mm MDF. I haven´t tried this material before and wonder if there are any experiences from you guys? Perhaps another kind of wood that resemble MDF?

I have a 25W GCC Mercury.

Best regards
Peter

[Frank Corker]

6mm MDF is going to be difficult for you to cut. It really is high density and as a result wood thins actually cut better. When I have done some work with MDF I found that there was a lot of charring and cutting wasn't very pretty. These were only tests that I carried out which were not very intensive, I was interested mainly in marking.

[Dan Moffett]

I just got a request from a customer wanting a logo cut from 6mm MDF. I haven´t tried this material before and wonder if there are any experiences from you guys? Perhaps another kind of wood that resemble MDF?

I have a 25W GCC Mercury.

Best regards
Peter

The problem with MDF is you are not just cutting wood, you are cutting wax and a resin binder. Difficult to cut through.

Corel Draw X4
Epilog 36 EXT 60W

[Joe Pelonio]

I have cut 6mm MDF several times, and as the others said it's a little more difficult than wood with more char on the edges but does do OK with smooth edges on my 45 watts. With only 25 watts I'd think you would need to make more than one pass resulting in a rougher edge.

In this kind of situation you need to find out what the customer is going to do with it, in order to recommend a good substitute material.

[Lee DeRaud]

It varies somewhat. I've got a 25W machine and the 1/4" stuff from Home Depot cuts fine. Some older stuff I had (of unknown origin) wouldn't cut consistently: that stuff was coarser-grained (for lack of a better description), heavier, and probably had a higher glue content. It takes more power than most solid woods of the same thickness, but is generally easier to cut than 1/4" birch ply.

[Peck Sidara]

Agree with the comments made. It can be cut but is difficult due to the glues, small air-pockets et. whatever else is used for mfging.

As Joe has stated, look for an alternate substrate.

[Jon Colley]

I also agree with the other comments.

One other thing to consider is the effect of the glue in the MDF if you are running an exhaust filtration unit. This clogs up the filter very quickly so be sure to price your job accordingly.

[Sandra Force]

I love cutting MDF for fine designs but I have a 100w and 150w lasers and they run fairly slow at that. If I were going to try it I would run 1 run with standard focus and a second one with the focus halfway through the MDF. I don't have trouble with rough edges but there is some char.

[Zvi Grinberg]

We stopped using MDF, after a short cyber trip.
Look at MDF at Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medium-density_fibreboard

Read more about formaldehyde and make your decision.

[Dennis Headberg]

I've been cutting 1/4" MDF successfully using about 10% faster speed and 90% power on my 45 w Epilog. Decent edge and consistent cuts. It's a good material for prototyping due to its low cost.

[Rags Alan Ragland]

Peter
I cut MDF all the time. In fact almost all of my wood projects are done with MDF. Wine Boxes, etc. 1/4" cuts with S20 P 65 Cuts with a slight char that is easily sanded off. I cut 1/2" with S10 P85 and make two passes through it. I raster it a lot with the Wine boxes, frames, etc. I do have to clean the lens and focus plunger more often than with plywood, but then I clean my lenses a lot anyway.
As for clogging up my exhaust--I have not found that to any problem at all.
Dr.Rags


Epilog Legend EXT36 75W with rotary -Rayzist Sandblaster cabinet, chroma crystal with CorelX3

[Justin Harrington]

I cut a huge amount of both 3mm and 6mm MDF on my 75watt laser, what you need to look out for is the consistency of the MDF. Here in South Africa we get two types, one that is a darker brown and courser - it cuts with a charded edge and can cut through in one spot and not in another. We then also get a much lighter MDF which is a light yellow colour, this one cuts beautifully with a nice clean edge, no charring and a consistent cut over the whole sheet. Apparentley it is imported and is currently in short supply but it may be different where you are. So look out for the lighter stuff if you want to keep your hands clean.