Composite board

Beyond the Manual
1

Does anyone know if you can engrave on composite board. I have a friend that is making a bench and would like it to say buddy bench?

Thank you for any help anyone can give me.
Chris

2

Welcome to the forum.

Composite board is a pretty broad description of the material. What, specifically, is the product? Composite decking material, for example, might have a vinyl wrap which would make it unsafe to laser.

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3

Ditto. I’ve worked with wood for 4 decades and have no idea what “composite board” is…

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4

Yes the boards that you would use for decking.

5

Trex or Timbertech

6

I know at least one of Timbertech’s lines has a vinyl wrapper - so definitely no on that. Get the SDS for the one your friend is using and quadruple check for vinyl (or anything that will hurt you if on-fire). If there’s nothing, get a sample and run some tests!

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7

I think Trex (at least the trex products I know) are mostly polyethylene, which tends to melt rather than cut or engrave. Follow @deirdrebeth’s advice for sure.

For a little more context, check out #6 and #4 here:

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8

Thank you

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9

Thank you all for your help

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10

How about making the sign with a known laserable wood, and then using a router to cut down the composite board in the shape of your sign so it sits in it flat? More work, but could be a work-around. Just a thought.

11

Thank you, but we are trying to make the bench as maintenance free as possible.

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12

A plaque on the back might be the ticket?

Should be maintenance-free more or less.

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