I’ve etched powder coated metal before, looks great. No worries.
I have a bunch of metal samples… Popped a logo in, zooms and pews, ta da. It STINKS! Like worse than acrylic. 'Tis also very sticky on the etched area. Now worried, I check the label… 'tis not “powder coated” as I thought, but “baked enamel.” Hmmm…
Only did a 10 minute etch, so I don’t think I’ve permanently damaged anything, nor believe I’ve poisoned myself, but I am worried that perhaps this coating is not ‘laser safe.’ The smell is definitely giving me a headache, as does acrylics. And I feel dumb for assuming the samples were the same as others I’ve done and didn’t check first.
Also, my googlefu is failing as I can’t really find an answer on whether it’s safe or not…
I guess it doesn’t matter if it is or isn’t at this point. Definitely NOT doing that again. Smell is awful.