4 ms·

Delrin/acetal has incredible properties and is great material to laser cut. Make sure to ventilate, small amounts of formaldehyde produced.

jacquesm 3y ago
That's a material I had not thought of yet, I did try some others with unusable results, which I will document when I have a bit more time. Ventilation is a must, I really think the manufacturers of this gear are doing their customers a disservice by suggesting that you can just use them in a dwelling. edit: holy guacamole, that stuff is expensive!! I've found some but it is so expensive that I'll look around a bit longer to see if I can find a coupon for a test somewhere. https://perlaplast-kunststofshop.nl/catalogsearch/result/?q=delrin https://perlaplast-kunststofshop.nl/catalogsearch/result/?q=... another local source: https://richkunststoffen.nl/product/pom-plaat-zwart-6mm/ https://richkunststoffen.nl/product/pom-plaat-zwart-6mm/
- AdamTReineke 3y ago
  I'm pretty sure I recall hearing that if you cut features that are too thin in Delerin, it gets too hot and catches fire easily. I don't think you were allowed to cut it at the maker space I was at. But it's been like 7 years so I could be fuzzy on that.
  - jacquesm 3y ago
    That's one of the reasons I started with this article in the first place: there is so much knowledge about all of this stuff floating around but it is very fragmented. I wanted to have a single notebook for myself to keep track of what I've figured out, what works and what does not and then it seemed a natural to share it with others. Over time I intend to keep fleshing it out.
Animats 3y ago
Yes. I used to laser-cut Delrin using a 75W Epilog in my TechShop days. Probably the strongest plastic you can safely laser-cut. Acrylic can be laser-cut, but polycarbonate in air, no.
- jacquesm 3y ago
  How thick could you cut with that particular laser? Any big difference between white, blue and black? (I would expect black to the best).
  - Animats 3y ago
    About 3/8" stock. The limitation was focus, not power.
    - jacquesm 3y ago
      Ok, I've ordered a 6 mm sheet, curious if it will work at all and if so how well.

jacquesm 3y ago

That's a material I had not thought of yet, I did try some others with unusable results, which I will document when I have a bit more time. Ventilation is a must, I really think the manufacturers of this gear are doing their customers a disservice by suggesting that you can just use them in a dwelling. edit: holy guacamole, that stuff is expensive!! I've found some but it is so expensive that I'll look around a bit longer to see if I can find a coupon for a test somewhere. https://perlaplast-kunststofshop.nl/catalogsearch/result/?q=delrin https://perlaplast-kunststofshop.nl/catalogsearch/result/?q=... another local source: https://richkunststoffen.nl/product/pom-plaat-zwart-6mm/ https://richkunststoffen.nl/product/pom-plaat-zwart-6mm/

AdamTReineke 3y ago
I'm pretty sure I recall hearing that if you cut features that are too thin in Delerin, it gets too hot and catches fire easily. I don't think you were allowed to cut it at the maker space I was at. But it's been like 7 years so I could be fuzzy on that.
- jacquesm 3y ago
  That's one of the reasons I started with this article in the first place: there is so much knowledge about all of this stuff floating around but it is very fragmented. I wanted to have a single notebook for myself to keep track of what I've figured out, what works and what does not and then it seemed a natural to share it with others. Over time I intend to keep fleshing it out.

Animats 3y ago

Yes. I used to laser-cut Delrin using a 75W Epilog in my TechShop days. Probably the strongest plastic you can safely laser-cut. Acrylic can be laser-cut, but polycarbonate in air, no.

jacquesm 3y ago
How thick could you cut with that particular laser? Any big difference between white, blue and black? (I would expect black to the best).
- Animats 3y ago
  About 3/8" stock. The limitation was focus, not power.
  - jacquesm 3y ago
    Ok, I've ordered a 6 mm sheet, curious if it will work at all and if so how well.