Laser Cutter Materials List
From Oxford Hackspace
Contents |
Materials Whitelist
Materials on this list are safe to cut if you follow the advice in this guide.
| Material | Max thickness | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Acrylic | 6mm (max attempted) | Beware transparent styrene sold as acrylic; it looks similar but doesn't cut well. |
| Laser-safe plywood | 9mm | 9mm is on the limit of the cutter's capability and entails multiple passes and risk of fire. |
| Laser-safe MDF | Untested | |
| Paper | Any | Be aware loose pieces of paper can be blown around by the air blowing from the nozzle, causing unexpected results. |
| Card | Any | |
| Mylar | 200 μm (max attempted) | Good for stencils. Over-power can leave messy cuts; select parameters carefully |
Materials Blacklist
Do not cut any of the materials on this list.
| Material | Reason |
|---|---|
| PVC | Produces chlorine when cut; damages optics |
| Vinyl | Produces chlorine when cut; damages optics |
| ABS | Produces cyanide when cut |
| Carbon fibre composite | Resin burns, fibres don't cut. Laser not powerful enough, even at maximum settings |
| Cork >3mm | Laser doesn't penetrate. Burns, blackens, catches fire |
| Metals | Much more powerful laser is needed to attempt this |
| Any chlorine-containing plastics | Produces chlorine when cut; damages optics |
Cutting parameters guide
The table below shows parameters that have been shown to work well in test cuts. Use these settings with the 'Cut' option in the Lasercut software. Often it's possible to increase cutting speed and power for faster cutting, but this can lead to a less clean cut.
| Material | Thickness | Cutting parameters | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Speed (mms-1) | Power (%) | |||
| Acrylic | 2mm | 15 | 60 | |
| Acrylic | 4mm | 10 | 80 | |
| Plywood | 4mm | 14 | 100 | |
| Plywood | 9mm | 8 | 100 | At limit of cutter's capability. May not cut cleanly. |
| MDF | 3mm | 18 | 100 | |
| MDF | 8mm | 5 | 100 | Struggles to cut this thick, expect blackened edges. |
| Card | 450gsm | 60 | 90 | |
| Low quality card | 2mm | 40 | 100 | |
Engraving parameters guide
Use these settings with the 'Engrave' option on Lasercut.
| Material | Engraving parameters | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speed (mms-1) | Power (%) | ||
| Acrylic | 150 | 25 | Enough power to leave an opaque surface with negligible cutting depth |
Useful external links
Austen Texas Hackerspace laser cutter materials guide (Useful list with many materials)
