Flip Flops

[rvogt]

I did a search to see if Flip Flops are safe to laser-couldn’t find what i needed although some hilarious discussion on ‘thongs’ :-). Some of them identify as Eva foam so I’m good there. Some are ‘rubber’ but I don’t know which kind. Any guidance on flip flops in general. I’m looking at the cheap ones to laser for family at the beach…

[dwardio]

Since they are cheap, sacrifice the bottom of one and perform a flame test for Chlorine compounds. I posted some results a while back:

Flame testing foam board, DTFB, EPA foam, & felt pads (Edited)

Based on an earlier discussion regarding the Chlorine-content of DTFB and other paper-backed foam core: I finally got around to flame-testing a number of potentially hazardous materials… But first, the standard disclaimer: This is a hopefully helpful, but non-authoritative post. You should always test all unknown materials before placing them in any sort of laser cutter! Every variety of foamboard / foamcore (DTFB and others) I had sitting around tested clean – yellow flames without a hi…

Here’s a link to the procedure itself:

How To Identify Plastics Before Laser Cutting Them

Dan also posted a very important follow-up:

A word of caution about the chlorine flame test

I’ve seen a number of people refer to this test when determining if products are laser-compatible. I want to share a strong note of caution: there are many potential toxic byproducts of combustion. I believe this video only attempts to test for one. I would not rely on it to determine if a product of unknown composition is laser compatible or not.

[rvogt]

Thanks @dwardio , I’ll give this a try…always seen it in discussion but have never tried it!

[Thumper369]

It’s interesting when you do it. I recommend having a control (one known unsafe item and one known safe item) that you use first. It really helped me to understand the process.

[dwardio]

Yup. Luckily(?) there’s a known-unsafe control on any roll of insulated wire. From my post quoted above:

Control test: PVC insulation on electrical wire – bright green flame = BAD

[MyDogsThinkImCrazy]

I put rainboots in my GF last week…it did NOT turn out right…but more in one of those “well it’s not those settings” ways. Anyways, you need to make sure of the material composition first. So its not simply “Flip Flops” as it is “flat surface with X% silicone”.