Can I engrave our Traeger cutting board?

[tamralinfrancis]

First time I have posted and we are having a blast with our GF! What I would like to do is engrave the bamboo cutting board that came with our new Traeger smoker…problem is, it’s a giant magnet as well

It sticks to the tray beautifully, but I am afraid since the entire thing seems to be magnetized, that it will screw something up if I try to engrave. And yes, the Traeger is the Timberland 1300…

Anybody done it? Should I?

Thanks in advance for your help!

[evansd2]

So I’ve never heard of anyone engraving that specifically, but there are lots of bamboo projects on here if you search for them. “bamboo board in:first” will probably get you exactly what you’re looking for.

Like this: https://community.glowforge.com/search?q=bamboo%20board%20in%3Afirst

Now the magnet part, that’s trickier. It all depends on how strong those magnets are. If they’re super strong, they can trick the glowforge into thinking that the air assist fan isn’t working properly and it can shut your job down in the middle of things.

If you want to be absolutely sure before you try it, here’s a good trick. Tape a piece of cardboard on top of the cutting board, then set your power to 1. Run the job.

The laser will go through all the motions like it’s engraving, but the low power won’t damage the cardboard or your cutting board. If the job completes, then you should be good to go. Remove your cardboard, up your settings, and go for it.

So, I will add:

This is your first post. In case you’re new to the glowforge… cutting boards tend to be a little too thick for the glowforge. If the board (plus cardboard) is more than 0.5" thick be sure you know how to work without the crumb tray before you try it.

[ekla]

The Traeger board I’m familiar with has pretty weak magnets on the underside - so that’s probably fine. It was also chunkier than 1/2" if I’m remembering correctly so you’ll definitely have to take the crumb tray out as @evansd2 mentioned. Being bamboo, don’t be surprised if your engraving darkness comes out looking very uneven.

[deirdrebeth]

You can also find a ferrous tool (a screwdriver for example) and wave it closely over the cutting board - if the tip dips then the magnetic force will likely trip up your fan, if not, then they’re either directional, or not weak enough to get through the wood.