Skip to main content
Laser Cutters

Laser Cutter – Recommended Settings

The following are suggested laser cutter configuration settings for various materials.

There are three Boss laser cutters available in Leazar Hall 220A, next to the Materials Lab, and two Boss laser cutters currently located in 111 Lampe Digital Fabrication Studio MakerSpace.

The laser cutters are available for College of Design students, faculty and staff only.

  • Model BOSS LS-2440 – 155WATTS – located in Leazar Materials Lab
  • Model BOSS LS-1630 – 105WATTS – located in Lampe Digital Fabrication Studio MakerSpace

BOSS LASER SETTINGS

https://bosslaser.com/laser-settings/

Boss Laser Library – Tested Materials

Here is an in-depth list of materials that have been tested with this Co2 LS/HP Series Lasers. The list of materials that are known to be safe for the machine. It is important to review the information below to ensure you are not attempting to cut or engrave a material that is not meant for your machine.

Plastics:

  • ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) (Do not cut)
  • Acrylic (Also known as Plexiglas, Lucite, PMMA)
  • Delrin (POM, Acetal)
  • High Density Polyethylene (HDPE)- Melts Badly (Do not cut) 
  • Kapton Tape (Polyimide)
  • Mylar (Polyester) (Do not cut)
  • Nylon – Melts Badly (Do not cut)
  • Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol (PETG)
  • Polyethylene – Melts Badly (Do not cut)
  • Polypropylene – Melts Somewhat
  • Styrene (Do not cut)
  • Two-Toned Acrylic – two-layer colored acrylic, top layer is a different color than the base color. Used for signs, plaques, and instrumentation panels.

Foam:

  • Depron – Often used for RC planes
  • Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) (Do not cut)
  • Gator Foam – Hard shell of gator foam does well but, the foam core gets burned and eaten away. (may cause small fire flareups, may cut on lasers but watch closely)

Textiles and Other:

  • Cloth- Leathers, suede, felt, hemp, cotton
  • Paper – Cardstock, cardboard,
  • Rubber – These can only be used if they do not contain chlorine Teflon (PTFE, Polytetrafluoroethylene)
  • Woods – MDF, balsam, birch, poplar, red oak, cherry, holly, etc.

Materials that cannot or should not be cut:

  • NO Metals – may damage laser focus assembly
  • NO Polycarbonate (PC, Lexan) – due to the fumes.
  • NO material containing chlorine or PVC (Cintra) – contains chlorine
  • NO Vinyl – contains chlorine
  • NO Glass/Mirrors – may damage laser focus assembly

Additional Materials Settings

Acrylic Engraving

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)35020.065ANY
155W (Leazar)35015.065ANY
Acrylic Engraving Settings

Acrylic Cutting Settings

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THINCKNESS
105W1575N/A1/4″
155W2065N/A1/4″
Acrylic Cutting Settings

Balsa Wood Engraving

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)35020.065Any
155W (Leazar)35015.065Any
Balsa Wood Engraving Settings

Balsa Wood Cutting

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)2555N/A1/8”
155W (Leazar)2550N/A1/8”
Balsa Wood Cutting Settings

Bass Wood Engraving

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)35025.065Any
155W (Leazar)35020.065Any
Bass Wood Engraving Settings

Bass Wood Cutting

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)2555N/A1/8”
155W (Leazar)2540N/A1/8”
Bass Wood Cutting Settings

Birch Wood Engraving

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)35025.065Any
155W (Leazar)35020.065Any
Bass Wood Engraving Settings

Birch Wood Cutting

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)1570N/A1/4”
155W (Leazar)2065N/A1/4”
Birch Wood Cutting Settings

Birch Plywood Engraving

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)35025.065Any
155W (Leazar)35020.065Any
Birch Plywood Engraving Settings

Birch Plywood Cutting

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)1575N/A1/4”
155W (Leazar)2070N/A1/4”
Birch Plywood Cutting Settings

Cardboard Engraving

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)35020.065Any
155W (Leazar)35015.065Any
Cardboard Engraving Settings

Cardboard Cutting

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)1560N/A1/4”
155W (Leazar)1550N/A1/4”
Carboard Cutting Settings

Leather Engraving

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)35018.065Any
155W (Leazar)35015.065Any
Leather Engraving Settings

Leather Cutting

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)1275N/A1/8”
155W (Leazar)1570N/A1/8”
Leather Cutting Settings

Paper Cutting

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)2015N/A1/100”
155W (Leazar)2015N/A1/100”
Paper Cutting Settings

Romark – Multi-Colored Cutting

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)35020.065Any
155W (Leazar)35015.065Any
Paper Cutting Settings

Rubber Engraving

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)35020.065Any
155W (Leazar)35015.065Any
Rubber Engraving Settings

Rubber Cutting

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)1275N/A1/8”
155W (Leazar)1570N/A1/8”
Rubber Cutting Settings

Foam Cutting

WATTSSPEED (mm/s)POWER%INTERVAL /SCAN GAP (mm)THICKNESS
105W (Lampe)2555N/A1/4”
155W (Leazar)2540N/A1/4”
Foam Cutting Settings

If you have other settings you’d like to suggest, please send an email to design_materialslab@ncsu.edu with the details.