Laser Cutter Materials
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This list is not complete, a material not listed here is NOT necessarily safe. Be sure to do your research and ask others in charge if you don't know about the material you are using.
This list is adapted, and to a large degree copied, from ATX Hackerspace.
NOT SAFE
| Material | Problem | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| PVC (Poly Vinyl Chloride)/vinyl/pleather/artificial leather | Emits pure chlorine gas when cut | Don't ever cut this material as it will ruin the optics, cause the metal of the machine to corrode, and ruin the motion control system. |
| Thick ( >1mm ) Polycarbonate/Lexan | Cuts very poorly, discolor, can catch fire | Polycarbonate strongly absorbs infrared radiation, which is the frequency of light the laser cutter uses to cut materials, so it is very ineffective at cutting polycarbonate. |
| ABS | Emits cyanide gas and tends to melt | ABS does not cut well in a laser cutter. It tends to melt rather than vaporize, and has a higher chance of catching on fire and leaving behind melted gooey deposits on the vector cutting grid. It also does not engrave well (again, tends to melt). |
| HDPE/milk bottle plastic | Catches fire and melts | It melts and gets very messy. |
| PolyStyrene Foam | Catches fire | It catches fire, it melts, and only thin pieces cut. This is the #1 material that causes laser fires!!! |
| PolyPropylene Foam | Catches fire | Like PolyStyrene, it melts, catches fire, and the melted drops continue to burn and turn into rock-hard drips and pebbles. |
| Fiberglass | Emits fumes | It's a mix of two materials that can't be cut. Glass (etch, no cut) and epoxy resin (fumes) |
| Coated Carbon Fiber | Emits noxious fumes | A mix of two materials. Thin carbon fiber mat can be cut, with some fraying - but not when coated. |
| Un-coated Metals | Reflects the laser | While coated or painted metals can be etched to remove the coating, the laser will not mark or cut the metal itself. |
Safe
| Material | Cut? | Etch? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wood | Yes | Yes | Avoid oily/resinous wood |
| Plywood | Yes | Yes | Contain layers of glue which might become exposed |
| MDF/Engineered Woods | Yes | Yes | ' |
| Paper/Cardstock | Yes | ? | |
| Cardboard | Yes | Yes | May start fires if too thick. |
| Cork | Yes | Yes | |
| Acrylic/Lucite/Plexiglas/PMMA | Yes | Yes | Cast acrylic cuts and etches very well, extruded acrylic cuts but doesn't etch well. |
| Delrin | Yes | Yes | |
| PLA (3d printed model) | Yes | Yes | |
| Cloth/Felt | Yes | ? | Not plastic coated or impregnated. |
| Leather/Suede | Yes | Yes | Real leather only. |
| Rubber | Yes | Yes | Make sure rubber does NOT contain chlorine. |
| Magnetic Sheet | Yes | Yes | |
| Corrugated Plastic | Yes | Yes | Difficult to cut. |
| Glass | No | Yes | |
| Ceramic Tile | No | Yes | |
| Anodized Aluminum | No | Yes | |
| Painted/Coated Metals | No | Yes | |
| Stone/Marble/Granite | No | Yes |