I know its pricier but Cherry engraves very well.
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And to add to the conversation, I think it is just like a corrugated roof, or picture threading cloth. You can see up close on the cherry I just posted that my engravings have the same lines and I do a 45 right and 45 left. It must just be the different grain patterns and wood densities.
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I’ll test it out tomorrow on mine.
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One thing I found that helps a lot is to hit the piece with some 320 grit sandpaper (I use my palm sander) before lasering.
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I like to hit mine with a nylon brush to remove any excess charring. Then I hit it with a couple coats of spray lacquer. Once mine is back up I am going to be experimenting with Arm-R-Seal for a project I am finally finishing up. Not sure how much the engrave will like being wiped though.
I hit mine gently with the air compressor to knock off any dust and then a spray clear coat…I agree with @RickPeterson about not brushing a finish on the laser etching.
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What about model/RC boat kits?
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These are all me playing with different power ranges, woods, and lasers - mostly birch, both with a diode and a CO2 40w, and I can’t remember what the wood with the heavy grain is. These are all done in LightBurn with no pre-processing of the image.
140mm x 90mm, 40w CO2 (needed to bring up the low-end power, so the whites are washed out):
75m x 50mm, 40w CO2:
140mm x 90mm, 3W diode, and you can see a dithered gradient test at the top right of this one:
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This is totally a personal pet peeve, but when people use multiple fonts, especially ones from different families, it boggles my brain. I think sticking to a single font or ones in the same family would make your business cards look much more professional.
LightBurn is the best spot to keep up with it for the moment.
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Want to know why even the big budget companies have such stupid, outlandish, idiotic advertisements?
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It’s with the 3.8 at Full power 100ipm
Try a test on Basswood.
Pick a power level, say 200.
Laser engrave a test at 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 125 inches/min.
Watch that the lower feed rates don’t start a fire.
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Hard to tell from the images.
I would guess the engraving was done at highest power low feed rate to burn as deep into the wood as possible, then charred material removed to return to the wood look, or carved.
I think I’ll stick my neck out and say ----- carved.
@PhilJohnson I use GOJO with pumice like this and a scrub brush to remove all the char from the laser. but it will make the engrave lighter (which is a problem with some woods as it makes the image hard to see). but it can be made darker with stain if needed.
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Those were probably just done with a higher wattage CO2 laser, right at the focus point. Material is heated so fast it vaporizes before it has a chance to really char. I have a 100w laser and have to go quite slow with low power to get shallow burn, or crank the power, which gets it darker, but goes quite deep.
These are done on the 100w at 350 or 400 mm/sec, 60% to 70% power, I think:
https://www.sarajasonmakers.com/collections/stuff-for-your-house/products/all-humans-pee-poo-bathroom-sign
Click through and look at the close up pic and you can see the depth.
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This photo is maybe the first thing I ever did with my K40 (CO2) laser and it appears to show the effect you’re looking for. There was no post processing or sanding. I really have no idea what the settings were and I’ve since replaced the software and controller with totally different ones.
So really all I can say is that when you are asking for is possible with some combination of settings and not post processing, though possibly it depends on the type of laser you’re using.
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@PhilJohnson
Examples here. 3.8 watt J-tech
you will be amazed at how much char will come off the work piece.
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I plan to add a sign that says something like “Reminder: Do not fire laser into remaining eye”
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Faster feed with CO2 laser.
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