Can the K40 Laser Engrave Metal? REVISITED!

[@ArtVanAuggie]

Using salt to etch might release chlorine gas. Try sodium carbonate instead.

[@kostasdaffy]

use black tempera which can be removed with just water. I engrave glass with this method

[@VenomTheCat]

I engrave glass too but i don't use anything on top of the glass. Why use a paint?

[@Rocky-sy9zt]

After watching a video review, and building up the courage to waste $70 USD for a can of spray, I just tried LaserBond 100, it's ungodly expensive, but it works really well.

[@wthile]

Have you tried wrapping the piece in vinyl? Then cut and etch?

[@MancaveEffects]

Have not tried that yet, but i suppose that the vinyl will shrink when cutting it making the cuts uneven

[@Info5183]

Venyl is verl toxic

[@Tarex_]

Same as with PCBs you can use Ferric oxide, but you should really use sandpaper on the metal first, removes the oxide on the metal and makes much cleaner engravings, also if the spray paint coat is thick enough you can also use fine steel wool after engraving to clean up the engraved part before etching. For the plastidip there are nowadays many cheaper alternatives

[@bmpcc4ktech852]

Great video 👍🏽 what was the max etch depth you were able to achieve?

[@sinformant]

I'm curious if you could spray powder coating powder on a metal part and run the laser at a very low power to melt it into the metal where you want it if that would work? I once used my tiny 1 watt laser engraver to burn off powdercoating on a thing aluminum sheet that was already baked on but I can't control the power level of my laser. Just fyi if you try it you better have your fume extractor cranked up full blast. Burning powder coat puts off some very noxious fumes.

[@MancaveEffects]

Let me see what i can do in the future, maybe a friend can help me out powder coating some parts for experimenting. However the laser may be controlable in its current but it wont make the actual beam less hot, so i think it will burn it to ashes ;)....

[@sinformant]

@@MancaveEffects maybe you could turn the speed up. ah I was unaware. It was my understanding that you could control the lasers intensity. Now I know better. My idea was to lay raw powder on the plate and use the laser to melt the powder where you want it to stay..I'd imagine you'd have to turn off the air feed at the lense, but that may result in the lense getting dirty from fumes.

[@MancaveEffects]

You could be right with the speed. What temperature does powder for powder coating need to melt?

[@sinformant]

@@MancaveEffects it usually wets out around the upper 300's Fahrenheit but cures around 400°F that being said different brands and finishes may have different wet out and cure times. I've only used a few different brands of powder coatings myself. Another idea would be to maybe use embossing powder. It way work better and require less heat.

[@MancaveEffects]

400f i quite low for a burning laser but maybe with the right speed and some white powder coating it may work.... i will get in to that in the future. Thanks for sharing!

[@Caetano.Galli.Gonzalez]

thank you, I will try the spray paint!!

[@nickhill9445]

I use a self-adhesive photopolymer and make a printed transparency. You could just sandwich the piece in tape. Eg box sealing tape instead of paint.

[@matthewrowlett2566]

Have to tried Cermark spray that is specifically for engraving metals with a CO2 laser?

[@MancaveEffects]

No i have not tried it yet as they charge over $70 a bottle, but as the dry moly lube works for some people i think that the K40 simply insn’t powerful enough.

[@shewmonohoto]

Cermark is great stuff, but it does not engrave, it is an enamel that bonds to the surface of the metal.

[@uedaarts]

I use thermal paste and the result is very good

[@joemanta504]

Thin layer of Mustard ,but it might mess up your laser after time .

[@MancaveEffects]

Sounds interesting!

[@HeyNickNick]

Yep, mustard oxidizes.

[@RinksRides]

Takes about ~150W CO2 to "engrave" metals, and ~4KW and forced Oxygen assist to cut metals.. Wavelength plays a big role, and most metals act as mirrors to infrared.

[@COASTER1921]

What is the song used in the first half of the video?

[@MancaveEffects]

I do not have access to my editing station for now, so it is hard to tell but all of the music can be found on “epidemicsound.com”

[@BobSteege]

Try mustard on Stainless slow hot raster. It actually marks the stainless.

[@MancaveEffects]

Thanks, i will give this a shot! 😊

[@handbanana6205]

You'll have a hard time marking aluminum oxide with only 40w. You either need to chemically anodize it (like you did with etching by masking) or more power to melt the upper layer of aluminum oxide which has a very high melting point.

[@vilaintrolltrollinsky8007]

Merci pour ton bon travail.

[@peterrusanoff1010]

You should of added oxygen to the mix as all lasers that cut metal use oxygen assist

[@MancaveEffects]

I was thinking of that and certainly will try this out in the future but therefore i need to take the laser to the outsides ;) I will definately come back to this idea at one point

[@edgotbait]

You need to clean the scale off the metal then test How ever the stencil you just made with the laser will work great in the salt water How ever use one of the steel bars instead of that nickel or cad plated bolt you used

[@MancaveEffects]

I should have give the bars a pass with the mill to get rid of any oxydation... i litterally grabbed the first bolt that i could find ;-p but youre right it would work even better with a raw steel bolt

[@BaronvonBavert]

gut zu wissen mit Rallye-Spray ;-)

[@nanneborn4523]

Functioneert das auf aluminium, rvs ..... ?

[@kweezynonya955]

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[@Blueknight1960]

So the answer is still NO, the k40 laser will not engrave metal. But not a big surprise, the k40 is not a metal engraving laser. Yes you burnt the covering you used on the metal, but then you etched the metal.

[@ArenzMedia]

Hey Mancave, ein großes Kompliment an deine Videos, man sieht das Du dir viel Mühe damit machst. Nebenbei Du hast eine top Sprecherstimme! Ich habe für meine Firma gerade auch einen K40 gekauft da wir täglich mit Adobe CC arbeiten ist der Start für uns glücklicherweise nicht all zu dramatisch. Unser Abo hast du beste Grüße Mitch Arenz www.arenz-media.de