I would like to affix a logo or letting to a piece of window glass. Likely to the backside of the glass with the logo/lettering only visible through the glass.
Any suggestions?
Template and paint? Something that can be affixed to the glass? A sticky backed laser compatible material of some sort?
This is what adhesive vinyl is for, isn’t it?
That’s a bingo.
My understanding is that Siser heat transfer vinyl is urethane based (no chlorine) and as such is safe to cut in your machine. It’s available at your local Michaels. Whether the adhesive will stick to the glass without heat setting is something I don’t know.
I asked because I have not a clue in the world. 
So… Siser heat transfer vinyl seems like the answer!
Cool. I have a Michael’s within walking distance. I’ll check it out.
It requires a good amount of heat and some pressure.
It definitely will not stick without heat.
OK-- long and short of it?
Get the right tool for the job and a Glowforge is not the right tool for this job. A cutting machine is.
The Cricut Maker looks like exactly the solution I need. Now to find space for it in the shop.
Cricut explore will cut vinyl just fine, and be a lot cheaper, but the maker is a more capable machine.
You can get an Explore for about $100 on ebay.
This one is $117:
That would likely work just fine for my needs. The Maker does have better creasing, but I really don’t need the knife given that I have a GF.
Thanks!
The newer cricuts are faster. I have a first generation explore (no “air” so no wireless capability), the newer models have upgraded hardware and go roughly twice as quickly.
It has its limits in terms of detail it can manage, kind of like the GF with its overburn issues. With the explore, it’s a physics of a drag blade thing. I’ve said it before, if you’re good at a Cricut before you get a glowforge, you are waaay far ahead of the game.
Likewise, you’ll feel right at home with the cricut. They are very similar in terms of workflow and limits that they really complement each other.
This chart might help you out:
Thank you!!
The GF and the Cricut definitely seem like complimentary tools. And the cricut is bound to be a hell of a lot less stinky.
As much as I really like Brother’s printers and their drivers tend to be top notch, it really seems like Cricut owns this market.
https://www.brother-usa.com/home/cutting-machines/scanncut/scanncut-dx
Wait. There is also KNK.
I have found that slower is better with all kinds of cutting. If I am not in a hurry, I cut vinyl at about the third of the maximum speed my machine can do. It buys you a little safety margin and seems to be a bit more tolerant of a blade that isn’t at its best. If I was only cutting the occasional item, I wouldn’t spend much extra for more speed.
KNK makes good machines. I have the (discontinued) KNK Maxx Air and I have been very happy with it. It’s churned out some pro-quality jobs for me and has a place next to my GF.
adhesive polyester films are available from Oracal in silver, chrome, and gold, (oracal 351) and white/screen- or uv- printable (oracal 352).
Avery has a similar selection, and one that I believe is latex-printable as well.
3M has the PVC-Free solvent- and latex-printable Envision materials, but those are pretty expensive.
Most of the printable options would require you to put the graphic on the outside of the door.
Without printing, you will have way more color options with PVC-based products if you have access to a plotter.
Silhouette also has a pretty good share. I’d pick most Silhouette products over their Cricut counterparts (having owned both), except the Maker. Haven’t used it, but I have a Curio and I’m not impressed. I suspect the Maker is much better.
