Is this just the nature of these small lasers? I used to sub out parts to a company and they would cut everything in acrylic or styrene up to 1/4". The parts had nice smooth edges. They must have had a powerful machine.
Phil,
Iāve etched the top surface of a glass mirror with a laser diode by spraying a thin even coat of flat black enamel on it, but have not tried clear acrylic myself. I do think that to cut a clear acrylic is probably not doable with a laser diode. The laser has to be able to burn/heat/melt the acrylic all the way through the thickness rather than just on the surface as when etching. Iāve never worked with a CO2 laser, but maybe others will know.
Iāve been reading a LOT about using lasers. Here are some tips Iāve come across;
Acrylic comes in two forms: Cast and Extruded.
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Cast acrylic has a sweet smell, when bent it will snap easily. It turns white (or frosted) when engraved.
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Extruded acrylic stinks when hit by a laser, and when bent it will flex. It remains clear when engraved.
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For best results, acrylic is reverse engraved on the back side of the item.
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When engraving acrylic, set the focus so the acrylic is slightly further from the lens than normal. Lowering the focus by approximately 1/16 inch (1.6 mm) will make each individual raster line blend better with the lines above and below.
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Not all acrylic is āpureā acrylic . Some contains what they call regrind, which is made from partially reused acrylic. This type of acrylic will not laser well.
I was watching a video today where the guy was talking about a new type of acrylic made for laser etching. I tried to find some online but I couldnāt find any. I will be contacting him for more information about this type of acrylic. The film on one side has a silver finish from what I remember. I wonder if aluminum foil would have the same effect.
Pretty slick, IMO. Maybe some day I will just have to invest in a CO2, but for now my list of projects and wants is just too long now for an old guy to easily manage. 
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CO2 lasers do a decent job of it. As you can see, even with a commercial model its not a super quick process.
What speed can you cut 3/8" cast with? Can you post a pic of the edge straight off of the machine? It looks like I have a need to cut acrylic now.
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Is there a benefit to cutting acrylic with a laser, verses cutting directly on the X-Carve?
I only have experience with co2 but Iāve done stuff on there they say you canāt do I think itās possible with a jtech. . Itās all about settings. Finding that sweet spot to focus and speed to not burn. If someone with a jtech wants to try my method. Put something under the plastic so it stops the beam and set your focus to just about that material. Your not gonna cut 1/2 material like this but I think it should work with 1/4 and smaller.
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Someone else on here had mentioned inverting the image and engraving on the back. I second that looks a lot cleaner.
With a simple torch you can get perfectly smoothed edges.
I like the idea of the JTech, but I think itās under-powered / over priced considering everything else thatās on the market now. Thankfully more and more options show up online everyday.
Be careful to read the specās on the higher power laser diodes. While they may be able to obtain the wattage advertised many of them have a short duty cycle. Look for the power level they can maintain with a 100 percent duty cycle.
Iām with Robert on the JTech. For engraving I couldnāt be happier. It makes some stunning images on wood. Cutting isnāt its strong point but for me thats not really an issue as I didnāt buy it to cut. For the cost if you mainly want to cut I would say buy the CCL. For engraving and customer support you cant beat the JTech and Jays customer service.
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There are a lot of variables that will affect what the edge looks like. They include the speed and material and what power is used. For the most part itās pretty straight and can be cleaned up with a torch.
I know you live in Canada and unfortunately the cost is more than what is in the US. I bought mine on Ebay for $300.00 delivered and a second one that had minor issues for $150.00. Yes it takes up more room than my small XCarve but I am glad it was not in the thousands!
Be very careful if you do decide to buy one, you will want the bigger, badder one in no time! (just like the XCarve!)
Can we Do a pro and con for the 3 types of laser?
The 40 watt co2 China one
The 3,8 watt from jtech
The 7 watt from China
I have the jtech 3.8, I love it, and their Jayās customer service
I looked a long time at the 7w, but thereās just so little good documentation, and no other reviews. If Iām going to spend the $$ for that, for a few bucks more I can get the 40w, and it has a huge fan-base.
Only downside to the 40, is size, Iām spoiled by the XC and 1000x1000, so i would probably use it until I exceeded the capacity, then rip out the guts, put them on a larger markerslide increase the size. I see that as the least cost alternative, and with an XC I can fabricate much of what id need.
I donāt get any real free time until June, but I plan to have a few more opinions based on actual experience with the 40 by the end of Juneā¦
40 watt for cutting
4 and 7 watt for engraving.
40 watt has a complicated setup with a tube, mirrors, watercooling etc.
4 and 7 watt are an all-in-one compact module that can easily be mounted on an xcarve.
Thats about it for the tradeoff.
And yeah i know you can cut with 4 watt lasers too if you really want to but lets be realistic here.
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