Laser Cutter Materials

Discussion
1

Hello!

I’m wondering what materials the laser cutter is able to cut. I would like to cut neoprene and foam - does anyone know if that is possible?

Best,

Hope

2

If you search the forum for Trotec there is a list of approved materials… Main use is acrylics and laser safe ply but it can cut other materials

Courty

3

You might need to be a bit more specific than ‘foam’.

Anything with chlorine in (PVC) is a strict no no, for example.

4

We try to cut Depron foam with @tomnewsom a while back. It did require a lot of try and error to get the laser cutting settings right than be prepared to waste a bit of material.
The cut where not straight (vertically I mean) even on 2mm sheet as the heat of the laser tend to melt the foam more on the top (I should have listen to @unknowndomain he was right and told us that will happen).

I think a wire cutter might be better for foam and I thought that it will be really nice (to super cool) to build a cnc/3d printer type machine but with a wire cutter :slight_smile:

5

That’s an intriguing thought :slight_smile:

Depending on how thick the material you want to cut is, it might be easier to do a “soldering iron in the spindle holder of a CNC router” sort of arrangement, rather than trying to move a whole sheet around a stationary wire…

6

I was actually seeing a stationary sheet and the moving gantry holding the wire. But the challenge is to avoid the sheet from sloping under his own weight will be prominent with sheet under 5mm thick. But if the gantry has a type of sabot or press fit in place the sheet (don’t know how to call it in english) it will resolve that issue.

So many idea so little time

1 Like
7

Back on topic - cutting foam is tricky with the laser. You need so little heat to melt it, so any discrepancies in the speed of the cutting head result in varying cut width. This means every corner and every curve has a ragged look. You might have to cut past each corner to get a good finish. Start with low power and high speed and experiment.

But most importantly, know exactly what the foam is made of first and check back here to see if it’s safe to cut.