Thank you!! i had no idea! ill definitely
have it hooked up anyways! How do you know that?
I used to have a job in a shop that made formica laminated furniture.
Routing off the overhanging material after glueing up the laminate was a super stinky operation if you let the router bits get dull (which they always were).
We did some research to find out if the boss was killing us. 
3 Likes
good to know! I work at a place just like that right now!
Fabric. Burlap and canvas, maybe even some silk if the other stuff comes out well.
We have a thing for reclaimed wood - old mill flooring, 100+ year old furniture parts, bowling alley lanesā¦ anything we can rescue that has a interesting story to tell. Maple, Mahogany, Walnut, Cherry - we have LOTS of nice strips, cut offs and usable scraps to work with. Yes, itās wood - but some pretty unique woodā¦
2 Likes
Just read this article on making a bowl from recycled magazines. I imagine it would save time to cut stacks of magazine pages at one time. But now Iām wondering if there is a greater risk of fire with that much paper. Also, perhaps it has to be pre-glued and if the pages are pre-glued, then I would have to research what type of glue works best with a laser since i have read in other threads that the glue can cause issues. At any rate it appears the layers of the above mentioned bowl were folded several times first in the close-up photo.
The topic from @Christopher on dry moly lube has me wondering if it will be possible to bond a layer of graphite to an object, to be used as a substrate to electroplate on. It could provide for some interesting effects if workable. Or maybe it will be a cheap way to make graphene.
You may want to look into electroless plating. We used an electroless nickel process at my old job. I was able to nickel plate a 3d printed pla Owl.
Thank you, but, Iāve tried a few different types and was unimpressed with the results.
Micarta and G10
I am planning on engraving soap bars. This is low-brow compared to the wonderful ideas I see posted by others. But, as a novice to all of this I am all about āwhat can go wrongā! And, "who doesnāt love a bar of soap with a picture of either your āloved oneā or your āloathed oneā to improve shower time!
2 Likes
I also want to try some tile. Not coaster sized ones, but 1"x1" tiles to replace some board game pieces.
The most unusual material I plan on trying is avocado seeds. I noticed that they turn very dark as they dry out. Iām curious as to what the laser will do to them. I have a few drying now. They tend to warp as they dry, so Iāll probably cut them into slices first to even the surface. If I can cut them thin enough without breaking, Iāll try cutting a silhouette into them.
After hearing about the tagua nuts, Iām looking forward to hearing how that turns out.
I couldnāt help but laugh at this! And for some odd reason, I began thinking up tag lines to go with engraved soap bars. āDonāt get yourself into a lather about itāā¦
We love reclaimed wood and upcycled materials too. We have a lot here in hippie capitolāBoulder, CO haha. I look forward to seeing what you come up with!
1 Like
ICYMI - hereās the follow up post by @shaug: Laser Thursday: Masquerade Masks using Sting Ray
So sick!
1 Like
Me too! I make all our own soap and think this would be fun as part of our gifts we give to family.
Welcome to the forum! I was in Boulder for vacation and loved every minute of it. In fact. I brought a cat back home from a friend. Heās is a Boulder cat, spawned in Ward. His name is Rumi. Go figure. I have so many ideas for laser work from the cool shops on Pearl Street.
1 Like
I havenāt tried soap but it should engrave fabulously.
I lived in Ward for seven years. Some tough cats up above 9,000ā.
1 Like