I am wanting to engrave into a metal platter but am unsure of what settings to use or if I can even engrave it without hurting my machine! I would really appreciate any help and insight!
It will kind of depend on the depth of that lip.
Here you can see results from previous conversations on this topic:
https://community.glowforge.com/search?q=cermark
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Also you can’t directly engrave metal. There are products such as Cermark (paint or spray) or a Thermark tape (or some home made recipes) that the laser reacts with to leave a mark on the metal–but it’s not going to be like traditional engraving.
And as @hansepe noted, you’ll need to make sure the head doesn’t hit the lip while the area to etch still is obtainable with focal length… And pretty much limit is 1/2" of the top of the lip to the surface you want to etch.
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If I were to put masking tape over it would that work?
No, masking tape just prevents soot getting on the surface of the material you’re working with.
The GF is not the type of laser than can etch metal. Many threads exist about ways to use the products that do induce the chemical reaction to leave a mark or some homemade options that can work to create an image.
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Just to be 100% clear, you cannot engrave the metal.
You can put a mark on it (sort of like the laser version of a Sharpie) using something like Cermark IF it’s the right material. Stainless steel works best. There are a lot of threads here that explain how that works and what it looks like.
And then for safety purposes, I will say that I attempted to mark what I thought was a stainless steel spoon, and the laser reflected back on the camera, causing it to start smoking. So proceed with caution.