Glowforge Spark and CerMark Ultra Laser Marking Aerosol

I have a Glowforge spark, and I want to be able to engrave/mark stainless steel. I see a lot of people here have used the CerMark Ultra Laser Marking Aerosol. I was reading reviews on Amazon about this spray, and some people with diode printers said that it wasn’t working correctly. I’m wondering if this will only work with more powerful lasers?

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There have been previous discussions about this, maybe they’ll help?

https://community.glowforge.com/search?q=Aura%20cermark

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AFAIK, and scanning the links @evansd2 provided, I don’t think anyone has posted with proof positive for the diode lasers.

You might try some of the home options before springing for Cermark, or reach out to their customer service specifically “does this work with a diode laser?” and see what they say.

Home options:

You’re not going to damage metal, so while the settings linked are for CO2 models, go with full power/low speed.

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Thank you all! I’m not sure what I’m going to try yet, but I’ll let you know if I have any luck with anything! I was also trying to etch on white ceramic tile, and no luck there either! I’m beginning to wish I had gotten one of the higher-end models!

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Yeah, I think white is one of the no-go colors for the diode lasers. I engrave white tile all the time on my GF Pro. You still have to find something to fill the engrave with to be visible. Fortunately, Sharpies work fairly well for that.

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You are correct, however oddly enough…you can cut and engrave on white paper…either regular printer paper or white card stock. I don’t understand it, either.

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Oh yeah…I didn’t even think of that. Wonder what the deal is.

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I think it’s because the paper is not fully reflective of the blue light and it has very low thermal mass, so even partial laser power is enough to carbonize the paper.

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