Laser Cutting Question

[KushielsTart]

Hey guys- I went to a class at Tech Shop last weekend on laser cutting. I have some ideas drawn up for pieces I want to make, and one I have a few digitized and ready to goi plan on joining to get them all done. However, the test piece that I did in class still smells like, well, charred flesh. Any of you out there have experience with how long the smell takes to fade so the pieces can be sold? Or some technique to fade the smell faster?

[Studio-N]

What you're smelling is indeed charred flesh. If it is Veg-tan, it will not hurt to wash it in the sink to get out the residue which is holding a lot of the smell. Dry it flat between paper towels.

It will still take some time for the smell to fade completely, but the finish will seal it in as well.

[pete]

My partner uses a laser to cut all my pieces for wallets, purses, etc. I leave it until the end. then I take a damp sponge and just wipe off the charring.

Rub in saddle soap(dry glycerine bar) and burnish. The smell is gone and I couldn't get a better edge if I tried to edge, rub,etc... I get a perfect edge that's shiny and slick. Th laser does a better job than when I used to sand it.

pete

[KushielsTart]

Thanks guys, that helps!

[ItsJustNC]

Oiling helps too..! But rmb to remove the soot at the edge first.! Those stuff can stain natural coloured leather really easily...!

[holocene]

Hey! I'm at that same tech shop, on those same Trotec machines! I usually sand the edges right after they are cut- it works nicely to remove a lot of the smell. I also wash off as much of the char as I can.

[KushielsTart]

Awesome! I'll see you there.

[Nuttish]

I've got a Epilog 30W and am working on settings to cut 6 oz Chromexcel. Very difficult stuff to cut so far. What settings are you guys using on the Trotec?

[knazim]

I cut leather on my laser everyday and to remove the smell I use Fabreze Air Freshner - in the shop and also on the leather.

[RiverCity]

Just out of curiosity, how big of a piece can the lasers cut, and how expensive are they? Ive seen some in the 20-30K range

Chuck

[Nuttish]

I cut leather on my laser everyday and to remove the smell I use Fabreze Air Freshner - in the shop and also on the leather.

Can you share what machine and settings you use for which leather?

Just out of curiosity, how big of a piece can the lasers cut, and how expensive are they? Ive seen some in the 20-30K range

Chuck

My working area is 24x12. The Epilog Mini 24 costs about $15,000. I only use it for small pieces so far.

[knazim]

My laser is from a Chinese company called Shenhui. Its an 80W machine with bed size of 900mm (36in) x 600mm(24in). Western made machines like Epilog/Trotec/ULS are very expensive and were out of reach for me. However, I am told that they are easier to use and more reliable. The Chinese machine I have is much less costly and I did not find them difficult to use or unreliable. Furthermore the customer service from the manufacturer in China is phenomenal.

If you are interested in lasers you should check out this laser forum (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/forumdisplay.php?8-Engravers-Forum).

Regards

KN

[Reynolds9835]

I've got a Epilog 30W and am working on settings to cut 6 oz Chromexcel. Very difficult stuff to cut so far. What settings are you guys using on the Trotec?

While I don't have a laser cutter, I have been doing a crapton of research on the subject. Everywhere I've turned has said Chromexcel is not to be lasercut, only veg-tan. Something to do with how the materials in the tanning process completely resist the laser. FWIW...

Edited December 17, 2013 by Reynolds9835

[Nuttish]

I'm finding that to be true for Chromexcel and a new Horween tannage that's a retanned veg vs. chrome. I've gotten clean cuts without substantial charring by drawing unintuitive vectors because of the kerf of the cut on our Epilog. It would be super nice to be able to laser cut for production but my pieces do nonetheless stink and I'm not launching a luxury goods line that smells like burnt hair.

[knazim]

You are right about Chromexcel being hard to cut with laser. Any leather which has oils becomes very difficult to cut cleanly. Veg tan is easiest to cut. Chromexcel will require multiple cut passes with mid level power setting which might make it impractical to be laser cut.

[Nuttish]

Chromexcel and another retanned Horween tannage laser cut just fine once I found the appropriate settings and learned how to handle the burnt hair smell.

[knazim]

@Nuttish: Care to share your settings? I usually cut at 60% power and 60mm/sec speed. ( I have an 80W machine)

[biglew]

Chromexcel and another retanned Horween tannage laser cut just fine once I found the appropriate settings and learned how to handle the burnt hair smell.

I am about to start cutting with a 120 watt laser and I would love to hear any more info on settings and getting rid of the smell . I am going to try chromexcel

[knazim]

@biglew: How did your experiment of cutting Chromexcel go?

[Nuttish]

I'm on an old Epilog 30 watt. After messing around with this enough it's become clear that there's no point in sharing settings. What matters are strategies. Every single tannage will be different. Horween Dublin cuts far more easily than Chromexcel, which sometimes cuts the same as Legacy depending on where on the side the piece came from. It's all highly variable. The strategy that almost always works is cutting through the grain and only a small amount of flesh. The flesh is where we run into trouble as the beam pattern hits more and more of the top edges of the grain as it goes deeper and deeper. This has worked very well. I'm finishing my edges, so the trivial imprecision of hand cutting doesn't matter for me any more than it matters for anyone else. I can also make shallow diagonal stitching marks as I would with a pricking iron that get exposed when I skive my edges before construction. I don't think I could do any of this with a die.

Edited March 4, 2014 by Nuttish