Materials and suppliers

+1 on the Craigslist. I have done several searches trying to locate some local materials on the cheap and after lots of sifting, have come up dry.

Love the look of cocobolo. Have done some boxes in it years ago (sans Glowforge). Don’t know how it lasers though.

After seeing the Glowforge bone tests, I added some to my collection.

About 1lb in various sizes, 1/4" thick or less. $18 with free shipping.

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Thanks for that source, @chevalier_jeanpaul! So much better than trying to cut my own blanks.

Yup. I never had an issue with wood dust but then I worked on cocobolo and I thought “I am having a hard time breathing”

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Bought a $30 sample pack of paper and a $2 Utility guide from French paper company.
http://www.frenchpaper.com/sample-packs.html
The info leaflet on the Kraft-tone line in the French paper utility guide states " laser compatible". My wife and I are excited to try and verify this claim when our Glowforge arrives!

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I have to wonder if they mean laser printer compatible instead of laser cutter compatible?

Universal Laser Systems, Mid-West 3D solutions has a good resource site on materials.It includes a drop down materials menu and a searchable database. It has some fine illustrations and definitions for laser work. Note that the information on the site includes information on lasers that are both more powerful and of a different type than the Glowforge, so more specific information needs to be noted. However, the information on materials hazards and behavior under a laser is very helpful.

Also Laser Cutting Shapes is a well-made site with lots of materials information and also how-tos on laser technique.

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Doh! You’re right. It’s just so hard not to think that everything’s laserable when waiting for your Glowforge! I’m sure the paper will work in the Glowforge, but they probably meant laser printer compatible. I remember when laser printers were the cool thing people oohed and ahhed about. You know, back when dot matrix ruled the printing world. :blush:

This showed up as a gift during the holiday season! I don’t think I have seen much discussion about matboard cutting and etching yet. A quick internet search brought up some pretty amazing results for laser cut matboard. Really excited to try it both for framing art/photos in exotic ways but also in other applications.

Sheet size is 16x20. In the photo I have already resized them to 12x20 and will use the scraps for smaller projects and testing. $36.27 prime.

This pack can be found here at: http://smile.amazon.com/16x20-Matboard-Mat-Board-Blanks-ASSORTMENT/dp/B00W8YCEE6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452012343&sr=8-1&keywords=20+mat+board

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Another gift I received! This is a 45 sheet pack of 12"x12"x1/8" Baltic birch plywood. A look around all the cut edges of the stack shows no voids and only a few very small knots. I am hoping they prove to cut well. $50 prime.

http://smile.amazon.com/12-Baltic-Birch-Plywood-Woodpeckers®/dp/B013NT3OAC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452013003&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=1%2F8"+baltic+birch+plywood&psc=1

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The mat board is a brilliant idea. It’s worth noting that this Amazon selection is for white-core mat only. Black core, of course is another option is likely to be more fun for engraving purposes (colored paper stays in some areas, while black is in the engraved parts). Either one would be a good, cheap option to test designs you’re planning on running in two-color acrylic.

Also, art supply stores usually have a bin of mat scraps beside their whole sheets, ones that are cheap and nicely GF-sized.

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Thanks to @lcuellar63 for this suggestion! I ordered two packs of Kraft-Tex from Amazon but with some shipping mix up received two of each color. I like the stuff so much I decided to keep it all. The package is labeled as 19"x54", Amazon says 18"x54", but my rolls measure just shy of 20". I have cut two of the rolls down to size and left the other two full length should we want to make longer straps or something larger than the basic Glowforge can deal with.

The stuff is amazingly tough! It comes in a number of colors too. About $12 prime depending on color/supplier.

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I agree about black core! Some of the examples I saw online showed both and used the etching to expose in some really nice ways.

Also a great point about the scrap bin!

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Worbla:

I purchased this for a non-Glowforge project, but will save the leftovers for the laser. It is really interesting stuff and I thought I would post a couple photos of it here.

I bought this from www.cosplaysupplies.com


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The selection of mat boards you recieved @chevalier_jeanpaul looks different than the image shown in the link. Was there an option to select certain packages or was out the luck of the draw? I like the idea of cutting mat with the Glowforge. I prefer the tapered cut layering mats with straight cuts can look nice. I made this for my brother in law several years back, a laser wound have saved me a lot of time.

Reading the reviews, it seems its luck of the draw. Some people complained that the colors they received were not to their liking. I am quite pleased with the colors that I received. I suspect if you have a specific project in mind, it would be best to get exactly what you need.

I liked the selection in your picture also and then was turned off by what they show on amazon as a sample…

A lot of great posts here from you @chevalier_jeanpaul! I ordered my Craft-tex from Joanne’s, they only had ‘stone’ & ‘chocolate’, picked up some glass etching cream as well. Soon I’ll have to start re-sawing some of the 1500+ board feet of hardwood that I have, to fit in the GF.

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Just this past weekend I spent some time experimenting with resawing on the band saw. Mainly just to see how consistent I could get to 1/8" with various types of wood. The results were quite promising! The largest piece I tried was three inches, but even that maintained 1/8" pretty well.

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