Plastic Engraving/Cutting - Epilog Fusion M2 32 Manual

SECTION 14: MATERIAL ENGRAVING TECHNIQUES
The male image should be produced without the use of outlines around the text or graphics. Add a .007 to .010 inch
(0.178 mm to 0.254 mm) outline to the text and graphics of the female die. This outline creates a large enough void
between the male and female dies to emboss paper without tearing.
Apply a .001 outline around the seal to define the outside edge of the seal. Use the Combined Mode to first raster
engrave the seal and then vector cut out the seal.

Plastic Engraving/Cutting

There are two types of available engraving plastics: rotary plastics and laserable plastics. Rotary plastics are designed
for rotary engraving systems that use a mechanical spinning bit to remove material. Therefore, the depth of the top
layer or "cap sheet" was designed to make it easy to rotary engrave. Cap sheet thickness was approximately .010
inches (0.254 mm) thick and laser engraving was nearly impossible because by the time you applied enough power
to get through the cap sheet the laser melted and deformed the plastic.
Laserable plastics have been developed with a thinner cap sheet that is .002" to .003" (0.051 mm to 0.076 mm)
thick, providing much better engraving and cutting characteristics. These plastics are commonly referred to as micro
laminates; micro-surfaced, or simply laser engraveable plastics. These plastics are generally very easy to engrave with
a laser since they all have similar characteristics.
Because there is such a broad range of plastics it is necessary to experiment to determine if a particular type of
plastic is laser compatible. Different color plastics, even if they are from the same manufacturer, will have unique
speed and power settings. Use the guidelines in this manual as a starting point when determining the correct speed
and power settings. If you do not get acceptable initial results with the recommended speed and power settings, start
experimenting by first changing only the power setting. If adjusting the power setting does not work, start over and
adjust only the speed setting. Once you have acceptable results, record those settings for that particular plastic so that
you do not have to repeat the experimentation process.
Plastic Engraving Techniques
• Always remove the clear protective cover layer before engraving.
• Once you have the correct speed and power settings you can improve your engraving results even more by
taking the focus lens out of focus (lower the table) by about 1/16 (1.5 mm) of an inch. This technique enlarges
the focus beam a little bit and provides more beam overlap on each pass of the laser. The greater overlap
produces a smoother engraved surface on the plastic and eliminates the grooves that you sometimes see when
engraving plastic.
• With some plastics it is best to engrave using two passes. The first pass cuts through the cap layer and the
second pass cleans away the residue that some plastics leave behind.
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