Material | Bed | Cut | Engrave | Notes | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Plywood | Honeycomb | X | X | Laser ply is required. Normal plywood is not laser compatible. | |
MDF & LaserMDF | Knife | X | X | Dirty. Cleanup required. Do not use honeycomb bed. | |
Wood Veneers | Honeycomb | X | X | ||
Cork | Honeycomb | X | X | ||
Paper | Honeycomb | X | |||
Acrylic | Honeycomb | X | X | ||
Styrene (sheet) | Honeycomb | X | Emits heavy smoke. | ||
Brass, Bronze, Copper | Honeycomb | X | Lead-free alloys are preferred. Can be engraved with Cermark. | ||
Steel | Honeycomb | X | |||
Aluminum | Honeycomb | X | Anodized or Powder Coated only | ||
Slate | Honeycomb | X | |||
Silicone (thin sheets) | Honeycomb | X | Anything else chars and doesn't cut. | ||
White Delrin/Acetal | Honeycomb | X | Fire hazard. | ||
Polypropylene | Honeycomb | X | It will cut up to about 2mm. Fire risk. | ||
GPPS/Polystyrene/HIPS (thin sheets) | Honeycomb | X | Foam variants are highly flammable and prohibited, dense sheets only. | ||
Cloth/Felt/Cotton/Silk/Hemp | Honeycomb | X | |||
Non-chlorinated rubber | Honeycomb | X | |||
Leather | Honeycomb | X | X | ||
Depron foam | Honeycomb | X | The only approved foam for laser cutting. | ||
Magnetic Sheet | Honeycomb | X | |||
Glass/Ceramic | Honeycomb | X | |||
Whiteboard/Blackboard Masonite | Honeycomb | X |
Material | Notes |
---|---|
PVC | PVC releases chlorine which combines with moisture in the air to create hydrochloric acid. The acid damages the laser and the ventilation system, and is hazardous if inhaled. |
Plywood | Normal plywood glue is incompatible with laser cutting. Can release formaldehyde |
HDPE (milk cartons) | Clogs the bed. |
ABS | Clogs the bed, emits cyanide. |
Black Delrin/Acetal | Contains black carbon which can be toxic. |
Teflon | Toxic. |
Nylon | |
Polythene/polyethylene | |
Lexan/Polycarbonate | Absorbs IR light, reducing laser efficiency. Yellows when cut. |
Fibre glass | Unknown resin, glass particles. |
Carbon Fiber | |
Magnesium | Magnesium fires are especially difficult to extinguish. Because of this hazard, magnesium cutting/etching is not permitted. |
Asbestos laden materials | Any process that releases asbestos is forbidden by Federal and state law. |