Laser Cutting thin Lexan

[Neal Schlee]

Anybody cut .030" thick clear Lexan with their laser? This would be for flexible paint stencils.

TIA,

Neal

[Mark Sipes]

Go to Michael's (8571 Old Seward Hwy, Anchorage) see if they have Martha Stewart Stencil corner...... Package of 3 11 x 17 material... works great... Lexan melts/. not sure about .030 but I know Marthas works great.

[Mitchell Tutty]

Don't try and cut it in one pass, it will melt and leave an ugly sticky edge. For stencils I use PETG, and comes up a treat at reasonable speeds too.

If for whatever reason you want to keep using Lexan, try two or three passes on a lower power but it will still melt, just less.

[Joe Pelonio]

I never had a problem cutting .03, or ,0625. When I cut 1/16 to 1/4" I get yellow smoke, which is somewhat disconcerting, and it does take more than one pass for a decent edge.

[greg lindsey]

No problem cutting/engraving with my 60 watt lasers. I have been cutting 1/16th for the last several days with no issues, yes it does yellow the edges slightly but for a stencil this should be no problem. FYI on 60 watt settings are 35s 80pwr and 2500 freq.

[Richard Rumancik]

I have cut .030" Lexan (polycarbonate) and it produced a decent edge which is gold in color. But the smoke will discolor the surface - if you are selling these it will not look that great unless the material is masked. I know it wouldn't matter for the intended use but it just looks bad if unmasked. If they are for yourself, then no issues.

Beyond .030" I get progressively worse carbonization of the edge - rough, porous edges which turn black from the carbon. I have cut some .090 which were used as a window in a control panel - since the edge was embedded in adhesive it did not matter. Of course I masked the material though.

If you can get the polycarbonate with paper mask I'd go that route.

[Neal Schlee]

Thanks all!

Neal