One shop told boss they couldn't because it would reflect light.
Another said they didn't know how. Is it possible

I've had brass laser cut with no problem. It was 16swg. The edge finish
is a bit rough, certainly not as good as stainless steel and steel I
have had cut.

ken wrote:

One shop told boss they couldn't because it would reflect light.
Another said they didn't know how. Is it possible

ken wrote:

One shop told boss they couldn't because it would reflect light.
Another said they didn't know how. Is it possible

We have stopped quoting brass or copper laser cutting because of damage to the
polished copper mirrors in our Mitsubishi lasers. It seems there is some kind of
feedback that sometimes happens, and when it does, $ flies out the door.

David

David Billington wrote:

I've had the brass done by these guys
http://www.freshlook.co.uk/Laser_Cut...r_cutting.html . They said
they could do it and they did. I recall a friend said some years
previously that they didn't do copper but they have subsequently done
it having sorted the cutting parameters. I found it interesting that
they can cut glass. The guy said it was normally OK but could be trouble
if cutting a tight scroll, where it might crack across, rather geometry
dependant.

Tim Williams wrote:

"David R. Birch" wrote in message
...

We have stopped quoting brass or copper laser cutting because of damage
to the polished copper mirrors in our Mitsubishi lasers. It seems there
is some kind of feedback that sometimes happens, and when it does, $
flies
out the door.

I didn't say it couldn't be done, just pointed out the problems we had. We also
no longer quote Plexiglas, which cuts just fine but stinks up the shop for up to
a week. Other shops have different problems.

David

(ken) wrote in message . com...
One shop told boss they couldn't because it would reflect light.
Another said they didn't know how. Is it possible

It depends on the type of laser. A co2 will not be able to cut brass.
A Yag will be able to do it pretty well. I have no experience with
other types of lasers. You have to match the frequency of the light
generated to the properties of the material being cut. Yag will pass
right through lexan with no problem. A co2 laser will etch/burn it.
Metals are similar. They don't reflect/absorb all light frequencies
the same.

A lot of lasers are co2. They are MUCH cheaper to build and operate.
Yag is more expensive. There are other types(that I can't think of at
the moment) that are even more so.

JW