PAINT MASKING WITH A LASER CUTTER

[@HiredHits]

Super awsome technique!! So many possibilities with this!! Thanks steve!! 👊👊🔥🔥🔥✅

[@SteveMakesEverything]

Thanks! It's a pretty easy way to get awesome paint jobs on anything

[@mrgrinch61]

very nice thank you

[@SteveMakesEverything]

Thank you too

[@Zack-xz1ph]

you can use mod podge for the first layer or a flexible cutting board + pushing down with a scraper to prevent paint bleed

[@SteveMakesEverything]

I honestly don't know, but as always, when standing on the edge of a cliff, I recommend just giving it a try. What's the worst that can happen? In the best case you make a discovery that you either share with the rest of us, or you get some kind of market advantage if you have a small business. Either is a good thing. 😀

[@sallyann-nicolemiller5625]

Thanks, Steve. I was recently wondering how to engrave on tile.

[@SteveMakesEverything]

Happy to help Nicole. Engraving on tile is pretty straightforward since you can basically hit it as hard as you want with the laser and it won't suffer any ill effects. As shown in the video if you mask the tile off before engraving you can then easily paint what you engraved to really make things pop. Krylon paint seems to work best

[@CageIn09]

So could you do a white tile painted black video?

[@SteveMakesEverything]

You mean just paint a tile black? Don't really need a laser for that. If you just want a black tile take a palm sander to it and rough up the surface and then spray it with Krylon paint

[@ohjaekwon3337]

Hello, which masking tape should I use? Does it leave any sticky residue behind?

[@SteveMakesEverything]

I just use blue painters tape most of the time. It’s cheap and pulls off without leaving goo behind

[@johnkemas7344]

Hi Steve, Good video. I want to engrave brass plaques with Ferric Chloride and then after etching wash off the brass plaque and spray paint the "etched" image with spray paint. I then peel off the masking material with nice results. I have used Vinyl contact shelf covering from Big Box stores with success but I don't like laser cutting the Vinyl masking due to the toxic and corrosive nature of the burned gasses coming from the Vinyl. I do have high airflow ventilation in my laser cabinet which removes about 90% of the smoke and also use higher pressure air assist to keep the Chlorine gas and other nasties off the laser lens but it still stinks! Can you recommend a good masking material for its chemical proof abilities but not so toxic for this application?? In the old days I used to silk screen my plaques with "Etch Resist" made for the application (basically solvent based tar) But the lase would make it so much easier. The other option would be to get a Vinyl cutter and make my stencils that way but another big and not often used expense. Thanks!

[@SteveMakesEverything]

I had to read this a couple of times to figure out your process. So you engrave an outline temple with your laser and then paint in Ferric chloride to do the etching, right. As bad as your setup is for layering, I can’t think of another way to do it. This process is not going to be good for the longevity of a laser even with good ventilation…all personal safety issues aside

[@SteveMakesEverything]

Maybe you should consider a fiber laser and laser engrave the brass directly without any of the vinyl or chemicals

[@johnkemas7344]

@@SteveMakesEverything No you got it all wrong. The laser engraves a simple stencil into a sheet of resist materials that has been pressed onto the brass or copper (circuit board for instance) and leaves a clear spots to etch. The back of the copper or brass board is then covered over to protect it from the etchant. The board is then dunked into the warmed/agitated Ferric Chloride solution to etch a relief with the Ferric Chloride into the metal through the clear spots the laser burnedinto the resist paper (Or Vinyl) When the relief is deep enough into the metal it is removed from the etchant tank, washed and neutralized and dried. The board or brass plaque is then sprayed with black paint to fill the etched relief. When the paint is dry the stencil is removed. This is basic photo fabrication done for a 100 years. Instead of doing the artwork by hand, then applying it to the artwork with photo sensitive etch resist, expose the negative to the art with UV light and then develop it to get the stencil, you can eliminate many of the steps with the laser and software to cut the stencil directly. I make a lot of electronic circuit boards this way but the stencil material is not good if made from vinyl. But finding a laser cutable stencil material that will resist the etching chemicals (ususally Ferric Chlroide, Sodium Hydroxide or Hydroclric acid solutions without generating toxic fumes is the tough part. In the old days the screen printed etch resist was made from refined coal tar or similar and would resist almost any chemical you used to do your etching. Ferric Chloride being the most common. I know one company who makes it but won't sell it to anyone but professional fabricators with a sales tax license. Pretty basic process actually.

[@SteveMakesEverything]

@@johnkemas7344 Sorry, what you describe is what I was thinking. I made circuit boards using the old etching chemical, which was actually pretty nice to use. You would be wise to avoid anything with chlorine in it.

[@tonycharbine594]

Hey there, I was wondering if you could recommend a laser cutting machine but preferably a small one with budget price of 200$, thank you

[@SteveMakesEverything]

Hi Tony. In this price range you would be looking at a diode laser and most likely a 5W version. You could look at an Ortur Aufero Laser 2 and maybe the Longer Ray 5 (both of which I reviewed a while back) Note that there are limitations to each type of laser and each level of power so I'd suggest doing a bit of research to understand what you want to do and match that to the laser you need.

[@michaela4141]

I would like to try this method on granite. I have a 7w diode laser. I was told by the manufacturer that it won't "see" and cut through the white tape. Can I use this method with blue painters tape?

[@SteveMakesEverything]

Well you should always experiment, but in this case I expect the manufacturer might be correct. Granite is pretty hard and the energy density of a diode laser might not be high enough to crack through the surface

[@michaela4141]

@@SteveMakesEverything Thank You, I'm not 100% sure I stated that correctly. The manufacturer said the laser won't cut through white tape. They said the laser will just reflect off the white. They said to use a different colored tape.

[@SteveMakesEverything]

@@michaela4141 Well that statement seems a bit dubious since it's a UV laser that has no regard to visible color. Regardless, if you are trying to engrave through tape, then blue masking tape is always a good choice.

[@CageIn09]

Do you have some starting setting for this by chance sir

[@SteveMakesEverything]

While this video isn't specifically about engraving on tile, the settings are typically something like 30% speed with maybe 80% power and current on a Muse 3D. The main focus for this video is to just cut through the tape to create a masking and in the case of tile just enough power to engrave off the glaze so the paint sticks

[@CageIn09]

Thank you

[@mountainbikingforyouth5992]

What masking film did you use?

[@SteveMakesEverything]

I normally use this masking (amzn.to/3f9bu1S) though seems to have taken a big leap in price lately.

[@DesignCutters]

If you are painting solid colors, there is no need to engrave the masking. Just make a cut line, weed out the unwanted masked area then spray your paint. Engraving the masking probably takes longer than just using cut lines, weeding out the unwanted mask, and engraving the mask sometimes leaves a gummy residue where you want to paint, in my experience. If you have really small text or graphics, then engraving the mask does make more sense than trying to weed tiny stuff.

[@SteveMakesEverything]

Definitely you are correct for a simple overcoat; however, with shiny ceramic surfaces it's hard to get paint to stick for the long term (especially for anything that is outside. So I usually also engrave through the top surface to get to a point where the paint can attach to a rough surface. Of course you could do this with a vinyl cutter as well and avoid painting completely. But where's the fun in that? 😉