I'm trying to find out what would be the "Heaviest" (densest - most weight per square inch) material that can still be engraved and cut with a 60 watt laser. All suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Phil
I'm trying to find out what would be the "Heaviest" (densest - most weight per square inch) material that can still be engraved and cut with a 60 watt laser. All suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Phil
I would suggest Ikon metal and Corian.
Mike Null
St. Louis Laser, Inc.
Trotec Speedy 300, 80 watt
Gravograph IS400
Woodworking shop CLTT and Laser Sublimation
Dye Sublimation
CorelDraw X5, X7
Acrylic is pretty darn dense,and since it acts like a waveguide to the laser, you can cut some surprisingly thick specimens. Ever tried to lift a 1" thick 4'x4' piece of acrylic? Can anyone say hernia?
Hi-Tec Designs, LLC -- Owner (and self-proclaimed LED guru )
Trotec 80W Speedy 300 laser w/everything
CAMaster Stinger CNC (25" x 36" x 5")
USCutter 24" LaserPoint Vinyl Cutter
Jet JWBS-18QT-3 18", 3HP bandsaw
Robust Beauty 25"x52" wood lathe w/everything
Jet BD-920W 9"x20" metal lathe
Delta 18-900L 18" drill press
Flame Polisher (ooooh, FIRE!)
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With my Epilog I engraved 2" concrete corner stones weighing around 60 pounds each. I had to do my heigth adjustment before putting the stone on the table. It would not raise the table with the stone on there.
Vytek 4' x 8', 35 watt. Epilog Legend 100 watt, Graphtec plotter. Corel x-4, Autocad 2008, Flexi sign, Adobe Illustrator, Photo Impact X-3 and half a dozen more.
James,
I'de like to see you cut those things... ;-)
Hi-Tec Designs, LLC -- Owner (and self-proclaimed LED guru )
Trotec 80W Speedy 300 laser w/everything
CAMaster Stinger CNC (25" x 36" x 5")
USCutter 24" LaserPoint Vinyl Cutter
Jet JWBS-18QT-3 18", 3HP bandsaw
Robust Beauty 25"x52" wood lathe w/everything
Jet BD-920W 9"x20" metal lathe
Delta 18-900L 18" drill press
Flame Polisher (ooooh, FIRE!)
Freeware: InkScape, Paint.NET, DoubleCAD XT
Paidware: Wacom Intuos4 (Large), CorelDRAW X5
Fortunatly I have a wet saw for things like that. And to be perfectly honest I think all laser engravers should have a good wet saw.
Vytek 4' x 8', 35 watt. Epilog Legend 100 watt, Graphtec plotter. Corel x-4, Autocad 2008, Flexi sign, Adobe Illustrator, Photo Impact X-3 and half a dozen more.
Thanks for the responses so far.
I'll try the Corian & Ikon Metal (A little concerned with the sparks from one of the other posts on cutting the Ikon). I'm looking at making some small weights approximately 1/4" x 1/2" x 2 1/2". I've considered making a mold and pouring them, but if I can find something dense enough that I can just laser cut & engrave would sure go a lot quicker. I've checked some of the woods, but the denser ones seem to have a lot of "oil" content so cutting is more of an issue. I may go with acrylic and try to engrave a spot to attach a lead weight.
Thanks again to all!
Phil
cast some lead in a plaster mold? Make a wax carving, cast it in plaster, one side open, melt the lead with torch (good ventilation), pore the lead, cool, dip it in urathane varnish or vinyl coating if your worried about contact.
art
Or just cut them out of lead sheet or bar. Coat them.
Art
Hey Art.....do you know of anything else you can melt (metal, that is) other than lead? I want to make a metal shape using a mold......
Epilog Mini 24 - 45 Watt, Corel Draw X5, Wacom Intuos Tablet, Unengraved HP Laptop, with many more toys to come.....
If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange apples then you and I will still each have one apple. But if you have an idea and I have one idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas... George B. Shaw
Epilog Mini 24 45W/various other dangerous implements the wife has ok'd over the years
It's not the cheapest solution, but no-flux solder can be picked up in 1-pound and 5-pound spools at your local Borg in the plumbing section. You'll have no issue melting it.
Hi-Tec Designs, LLC -- Owner (and self-proclaimed LED guru )
Trotec 80W Speedy 300 laser w/everything
CAMaster Stinger CNC (25" x 36" x 5")
USCutter 24" LaserPoint Vinyl Cutter
Jet JWBS-18QT-3 18", 3HP bandsaw
Robust Beauty 25"x52" wood lathe w/everything
Jet BD-920W 9"x20" metal lathe
Delta 18-900L 18" drill press
Flame Polisher (ooooh, FIRE!)
Freeware: InkScape, Paint.NET, DoubleCAD XT
Paidware: Wacom Intuos4 (Large), CorelDRAW X5
McMaster has low temp casting alloys.
http://www.mcmaster.com/#metal-alloy...pounds/=496py2
I saw a demo of cuttlefish bone casting at a conference a couple years ago and thought about trying to engrave the mold with the laser. I never got around to it, but I still think it would work.
http://www.jewelryartistmagazine.com...onecasting.pdf
-kg