Are all ceramics safe?

I have many of these plate sets (they have a cup that go with) and would like to try and engrave on them. This will be one of my first cuts to practice on. If its engravable would anyone be will to share a good cut setting to start with? Thanks!

Testing is really the only way to be sure of what you are getting. I would sneak up on the settings using tile. If you could determine the clay used like porcelain etc. you could match the tile.
Testing for result is like a treasure hunt. :sunglasses:

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If they are white and safe to eat on they would be safe to laser like regular tiles. not so sure about safe to eat on after the laser as the rough would make good places for critters to hide, and you would want to have a colorant solution.

Not eating safe to start would imply a lead glaze which would make a lead mess…

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What’s the purpose of the engrave?

Presumably you have seen all of the tiles people engrave and then color? What is happening there is the laser is destroying the glaze (and probably some of the ceramic tile). When freshly lased, the engraving is nearly impossible to see. With the glaze removed the coloring agent can adhere to the rough tile underneath. If this is what you want, I guess you could give it a try. If the surface of your plate is even a little bit rough I wouldn’t expect your coloring to work (it would adhere everywhere.)

If you want to engrave and have your engrave turn dark, like in wood or leather, then try. I would expect it to not turn dark, but I’ve been wrong before.

Another thing to consider is will these plates be for display only or will they be used for meals? If they are used for meals then they will be washed regularly. What kind of color are you going to use that won’t be affected by repeated trips through a dishwasher or by hand washing?

As for settings, just search for tile in Beyond the Manual. I would start with one of those and then dial it in for your purpose.

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thank you! I’m going to try and engrave them for the holidays “cookies for santa”. I was just going to see what it looked like after Engraving before I do any other alterations. What do people use for color fill ins? Paint? I will likely suggest hand washing since this will likely only be used once a year.

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Depends on the look you’re going for. A marker (Sharpie usually, but also expensive fine art markers) and acrylic paint seem to be the most popular. There are lots and lots of threads on tile. They go into details on what they used and how they removed the excess. No one way to do it.

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thank you for the reply!

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After you engrave, you can probably re-glaze (or find someone who can) the finished product, sealing in the artwork and restoring it to food-safe status.

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