Continuing the discussion from What are the most unique materials you plan to use?:
We have had a good discussion on the CDs themselves. What about the cases? A cheap source of material. It is polystyrene. What I note is that it burns being a hydrocarbon and leaves CO2 and water and soot. Flammable too. Anyone with laser experience use these?
Edit for clicking help: Here’s the link to take you to vimeo and all the other videos in his series “Can You Etch It”.
Nice resource there! He has 35 videos of engraving various things, including a tennis ball! He also apparently has a pet skunk.
I keep getting a 404 error on the address would someone post a link? thanks!
The entire site is down because of an issue with the domain registration.
From what I can see his blog and website are down. He hasn’t posted anything new in years.
However his videos remain on both YouTube and vimeo. Just search for “can you etch it” on youtube, on vimeo you should be able to just click on his name and it’ll bring you to all of his videos.
It’s been a while since this was discussed, but we now have more people on the forum who might have experience.
Will a CD jewel case cut well?
What’s a CD? 
Oh snap! … Is that phrase used anymore? 
Of course it is! That’s my jawn!
Psych. It’s not.
Dag! I had you goin’ there though.
Wyrd.
I asked google, and she told me that “CD jewel cases are made from injection molded polystyrene. Clam-shell alternatives use polypropylene.”
Tiny little LaserDisc
-or-
Things that hold music that you can still play after someone hacks and jacks your itunes, soundcloud, bandcamp, and pandora accts. Also works off network and doubles as a coaster or small frisbee.
AOL once tried to cover the entire earth with them.
Round shiny things that used to litter the earth until the woman a couple houses down covered the pine tree in her front yard with them for Christmas one year. I don’t remember if that was before or after the 24-hour house makeover when it suddenly became purple with pink shutters and trim (or pink with purple trim - I just remember the colors.)
I miss her, she kept the neighborhood interesting.
Yes, I was able to google that as well. But I was asking if anyone had experience with actually laser cutting one.
Someone does.
I don’t, so I asked google again. I found an etch.
putting the term “laser-cut cd case” into google image search also yields some other interesting results for non-jewel-case cd cases.
You may recognize this video from the OP. I didn’t. 