EVA Foam Settings for Cosplay Projects

Grizzarkhov · February 22, 2019, 8:57pm

I received a huge box of EVA foam rolls from TNT yesterday! The laser cuts through the foam like butta.

billy · February 25, 2019, 12:18am

Thank you!

sophy · April 5, 2019, 8:38pm

Thank you for posting these settings! I used them to cut the foam pieces for my spacesuit and helmet project, and ended up reducing power just slightly to ensure the first pass did not cut all the way through the foam. I used 6mm foam and 4mm foam from TNT as well, have used it for other projects in the past and it’s very reliable.

One note: I found that heat sealing the foam with a few passes of a heat gun on both sides BEFORE putting it into the Glowforge did two awesome things: 1. it pre-shrank the foam so that my pieces were cut to the correct size and stayed that way, and 2. it relaxed the curve in the foam so that it could lay flat and not pop up while being cut. I still used low profile magnets to hold the foam down while cutting.

After heat sealing, I used calipers to measure the thickness of the foam and entered that into the material settings. Even straight out of the box, I find there is a variance in the thickness of EVA foam, so it’s always good to find the actual thickness with calipers.

jamesdhatch · April 5, 2019, 10:46pm

Super. Good trick with the heat gun. Could have used that last weekend

kittski · April 6, 2019, 1:26am

Wow, great job, it’s so realistic! That helmet is pretty spectacular too.

T_Dub · April 6, 2019, 3:44am

Wow, you look amazing! Helmets are my albatross. Tell me about the visor, curious minds want to know

c_and_ngreen · April 20, 2019, 10:01pm

Thanks for the tips this is one of the reasons I just order mine. Going use it on my monster Hunter cosplay.

marmak3261 · April 22, 2019, 4:57am

So the banner says to welcome @c_and_ngreen. Howdy. Looking forward to what you have come up with for the Glowforge. Did you just buy? Has it been delivered?

c_and_ngreen · April 29, 2019, 12:04pm

its so pose to be delivered on the 10th of may i can’t wait.

c_and_ngreen · May 9, 2019, 6:31pm

Thanks for the setting final got a chance to do a test run

the logo from deadly class

kittski · May 10, 2019, 5:10am

I don’t work with foam and didn’t know it could engrave this well. Nice job!

T_Dub · May 10, 2019, 5:38am

Wow, this looks great! I’m kind of surprised at the level of detail on the snakes

jennifer · July 18, 2019, 5:35am

Thank you! Super helpful!

ca_worth · July 18, 2019, 6:15pm

they have EVA foam at HF? I haven’t seen any.

jbv · July 19, 2019, 8:19pm

I got eva foam anti-fatigue mats at HF to cut in the glowforge. Then I realized I actually needed anti-fatigue mats, so I never ended up cutting them.

ca_worth · July 22, 2019, 2:05am

I never noticed them there before. thanks for the heads up.

jbv · July 22, 2019, 2:36am

Granted that was like three years ago…

jamesdhatch · July 22, 2019, 2:48am

They still have it. I picked up a package (4 tiles) last time I was there.

https://www.harborfreight.com/4-piece-anti-fatigue-foam-mat-set-94635.html

T_Dub · August 8, 2019, 10:37am

I’m late, DragonCon crunch, the rolls are that much thinner than the mats. Depending on your project that might still be useful. If you buy mats at HF, check the label. The last couple I have encountered were neoprene. I talked to a store manager who confirmed the suppliers vary,so maybe there are still some EVA mats floating around.

T_Dub · August 8, 2019, 10:38am

Reminder, the tiles are Neoprene, and likely not GF compatible.