Help with Power/Speed on Bamboo Cutting Board

Welcome to the forum.
I am not exactly sure what “line of char” you are referencing, but my guess is that this is just the nature of bamboo. Mike’s designs are beautiful and I think deserve a more uniform material than bamboo offers.

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Thank you i see the part that burned darker is due to the bamboo itself. I will try it on something different thankyou… And I agree Beautiful designs.

First of all, welcome @avodon2018 to the forum. Congratulations on your first piece posted on the forum. I find it superb.

Bamboo technically is a grass not a tree, however since it grows very fast in relatively slender stalks, it is used as a building material by laminating strands of bamboo with resin under heat and pressure to form boards.

On your cutting board you may have strands from different stalks of different age, density and humidity, and therefore they engrave lighter or darker. This is the nature of bamboo. I consider this gives character to the piece, similar to knots in regular wood.

On the other hand, plywoods are made with a veneer shaved of a rotating tree trunk, and therefore produce a uniform surface that usually comes from the same section of the the same tree trunk. When this veneer is engraved you get a more uniform result that highlights the details of the artwork, which is what @dklgood is suggesting in his post.

In any case I find your work superb. Congratulations

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Thank you very much for your clear and informative answer… I guess my lesson here is to learn my materials :grin:. I agree it is still a beautiful piece and I am very happy with my second item made in my Glowforge ever… Love this machine :heart_eyes:

What he said! I’ve been a woodworker for 25+ years now and I’m always amazed everyday with wood. It will NOT cut, bend, shape, burn, turn or work the same way every time. You can get close if you’re sticking with quartersawn lumber that’s milled perfectly flat and has no defects, but good luck finding that stuff now a days with any consistency. Best bet is to go with the flow and see things as how they turn out. Perhaps when that piece is finished with some beeswax / mineral oil the “burn” will be a really cool highlight. You never know!

I actually accent pieces now with defects and “mistakes”. A few of the frames I’ve recently created have highlighted knots, burls, grain patterns, that add to the beauty. Frankly I think that cutting board is beautiful and would love to see it with some mineral oil on it. It may make that area pop.

Embrace the defect! :slight_smile:

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working on my first board now, I used your settings. it is coming out great. thanks for sharing.

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Awesome!!! Can’t wait to see it!

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That turned out great!

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thank you! I am really proud of it.

How do you load the boards? Do you take out the tray or elevate another way?

I always take out the tray, elevate with the “risers” from the “Free Designs” section, and use the “no math focus ruler” (also from the free designs) to make sure I have it the proper height.

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Do you mask?

Welcome Christine! Yes, I would recommend masking the cutting board. Trying to sand it will ruin the finished surface.

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Thank you!


Love doing detail work on bamboo . This where my settings for this artwork

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