Laser Cutting Basics

With very little set up time, no tooling and the advent of CAD to CAM production, lasers are often utilized in prototyping and production parts. Well suited for intricate details and irregular contours, additional economies can be obtained through the nesting of parts when laser cutting.




Tolerances – The feature to feature tolerance on for the laser cutter is +/-.004"(+/-0.1mm) but is typically held much closer. The smallest cut possible is dictated by the width of the beam or .008" (+/-0.2mm)wide.

Material restrictions – Materials have three factors that restrict them from laser cutting. These factors are reflectivity, thickness and flammability. Reflectivity causes a problem because the cutting beam gets scattered. Material that is too thick has the same problem: molten metal scatters the beam before the part is fully cut. We can cut metal as thick as 3/8" (9.5mm)but the edge quality suffers greatly. The degree of material flammability is another important factor. Some parts considered flammable can be used. It is best to test flammable or heat sensitive materials before releasing a production part. Below is a list of some of the material we have used.

Acceptable Materials
• Any raw steel (Stainless, CRS, HRS)
• Aluminum Some deburring issues
• Plastic Check heat & flammability
• Cardstock Check heat & flammability
• Galvanized, Galvaneal

Unacceptable Materials 
• Copper Highly reflective
• Paper stock Unless treated with flame retardant
• Silver & other prec. Metals Highly Reflective

Localized Hardening – Due to the intense heat associated with laser cutting, the edges of the material can become hardened. This area is referred to as the Heat Affected Zone (HAZ). This is especially important for secondary operations such as reaming and tapping. The HAZ increases in thicker materials.

Hole diameter – The entry diameter is larger than the exit diameter, creating a slightly tapered hole. Minimum hole sizes are related to stock thicknesses and can be as low as 20% of the stock thickness.