Old 100W Laser Cutter Settings for Known Good Materials

Good Materials
Material	Engraving		Cutting			Scoring		Notes
	Speed (mm/s)	Power	Speed (mm/s)	Power	Kerf Width	Speed	Power
Acrylic (1mm)	400	5	30	20	0.15mm			The plastic has a tendency to stick back onto itself a little after cutting because it's so thin, so you may have to pop your pieces out
Acrylic (2mm)	400	5	30	20	0.15mm
Acrylic (3mm)	400	5	20	55	0.15mm			Engraving: Power setting 4 and 5 have little visible difference except some minor lightening at the beginnings of cuts at power 4. Power 3.5 produces very light engraving, almost non-existent, with no engraving at the beginnings of cuts. Above power 5, little difference is visible, but powdery soot becomes more prevalent. Power 5 seems to be the best setting to produce frosted effects. If you are engraving with the paper still on, you may want to go higher (do a test)
Acrylic (4.76mm \ 3/16 inch)	400	5	16	55
Acrylic (6.35mm) (1/4")	400	5	8	55	0.15mm
Acrylic (12.5mm)	400	5	3	55	0.15mm			Focal length is 4mm
Acrylic (18mm)	400	5	2	98	0.15mm			Focal length is 4mm
Acrylic (19mm / 3/4 inch)	400	5	2	98	0.5mm at surface of cut, 0.15mm at bottom of cut			Focal length is 4mm, one pass only. Peel off the top film of the acrylic. **The current settings does not guarantee a clean cut -- you may have to knock your pieces out because the bottom didn't quite go all the way through all the time. If you want to guarantee a clean cut and don't mind it being really slow you can use 1 speed 30 power, just keep an eye on it (slightly flamey)
Balsawood (3.2mm)	400	5	50	10				Engraving balsa produces little differences in power above 5, and below 3.5 or so, there's no engraving at all.
Balsawood (1.6mm)	400	5	50	7				Engraving balsa produces little differences in power above 5, and below 3.5 or so, there's no engraving at all.
Bamboo (3/32" nominal, 2.5mm actual)	400	3-20	55	45				Engraving power 3% produces visible, but very light, marking w/ no depth, 20% produces darker marking but w/ significant depth
Basswood (1.5mm)	400	5-20	50	15				Engraving above power 20 seems to produce no difference in color, only depth, see reference piece in toolbox.
Basswood (6.5mm)	400	5-20	20	55				Engraving above power 20 seems to produce no difference in color, only depth, see reference piece in toolbox.
Birch (0.9mm)	400	5-15	40	20				Engraving is very finicky; 4 is the absolute lowest the machine will engrave at, 15 is high enough to cause serious charring on birch. The 5-15 range is best. See the test engraving for what the 5, 10, and 15 settings produce.
Birch (4.8mm)	400	5-15	35	55				Engraving is very finicky; 4 is the absolute lowest the machine will engrave at, 15 is high enough to cause serious charring on birch. The 5-15 range is best. See the test engraving for what the 5, 10, and 15 settings produce.
Birch (1/4 inch plywood from Discount Builders Supply)			15	55				The actual thickness of this stuff varies a lot throughout the sheet, plus there are knots in the wood that are harder to cut through. These settings should work though.
Birch (1/2 in)			5	55	0.2mm

Good Materials (continued)
Material	Engraving		Cutting			Scoring		Notes
	Speed (mm/s)	Power	Speed (mm/s)	Power	Kerf Width	Speed	Power
Cardboard (4mm)			50	15		50	5	Minimum line separation at 50/15 ~ 1/2mm
Cardboard (6.5mm, double corrugated)			50	40				Cardboard (6.5mm, double corrugated)
Cardstock (white, 80lb)			140	6		140	4	The higher speed reduces the amount of browning on the edges.
Cardstock (white, 138lb / 224GSM, Canson brand drawing paper)			55	5		140	3	speed 140 power 3 for a lighter score, speed 200 power 4 for a heavier score.
Cardstock (Fabriano brand, 160 GSM, 40% cotton)			100	5		140	3	The color tested for safety was Tiziano 02 Crema
Chipboard (~2mm)			30	20
Chipboard (~6mm)			30	25
Cork (nominal 1/4")	400	2-3	30	40
Corrugated Plastic (white, 3.7mm)			10	15		50	5
Corrugated Plastic (yellow, 4.1mm)			10	15		50	7
Delrin (nominal 3/8", actual 9.6mm)			5	50
Denim	200	4	50	7				engraving numbers might produce very thin fabric, might fall apart in the wash }
Douglas Fir (15mm)	400	3-25	3	80				power differences are mostly differences in depth not color; engraving produces different depths over the growth rings due to wood density changes = rippled surface

Good Materials (continued)
Material	Engraving		Cutting			Scoring		Notes
	Speed (mm/s)	Power	Speed (mm/s)	Power	Kerf Width	Speed	Power
FR-2 resin PCB blank			10	50
Fabric - 1000D Cordura Nylon			100	20				crisp heat sealed edges
Fabric - Alpha Broder Style 88127 (7.4oz, 96% polyester, 4% spandex)			100	15				https://www.alphabroder.com/cgi-bin/online/webshr/prod-labeldtl.w?sr=88127
Fabric - ~0.2mm polyester/cotton blend			100	10				crisp heat sealed edges
Fabric - ~0.6mm cotton?/spandex blend			200	20				better edges
Fabric - 100% poly burlap from Amazon			100	7				([1])
Fabric - 100% poly gabardine from Fabric Outlet			100	7				You do have to pull the cut fabric apart (it's not a clean cut), but it rips at the cut cleanly.
Fabric - 100% poly polar fleece from Fabric Outlet			100	7				lovely clean cut
Fabric - 100% rayon crepe from Fabric Outlet			100	7				You do have to pull the cut fabric apart (it's not a clean cut), but it rips at the cut cleanly. I think this is just a property of the fabric melting back together after being cut. I tried increasing the power and it didn't result in a cleaner cut.
Glassine (cellulose paper)			55	5		100	2
Grip Tape			50	20
HDPE (0.8mm, 1/32 inch sheet from TAP Plastics)			20	30				creates a beveled edge and a slight under-hanging lip
Laser rubber (2-3mm, low odor)	100	10	20	55				Low-odor laser rubber is typically grey, the normal kind is pink. Have not tested the latter yet
Leather (1.5 mil)			30	50				Can be smelly. Open all windows, turn on fume hood, apologize to other h4ckers
Leather (2.5 mil)			10	50				Can be smelly. Open all windows, turn on fume hood, apologize to other h4ckers
MDF (5/8")	100	4-7	5	55-75		400	5-15	Cutting doesn't go all the way through necessarily, it gets spotty at this thickness. The power range was tested and produced similar results throughout, but YMMV. Etch speeds given for *scan* etching (i.e. when you do a filled area). You can tweak the speed and power to get different effects. Simple line engraving may have different settings.
Notebook from Muji: Recycled paper notebook beige A5 plain, orange spine						50	5-35	5 will just score through the cover 10-15 will cut through, and 35 will cut through a few pages. Any higher and there's a fire hazard. Be sure to tape or weigh the book down flat or else it's more flamey.
Paper (printer paper)			55	5
Plywood w/ reddish tinge (2.6mm)			35	30
Plywood (3mm)	400	5-55	35	50				see reference in toolbox for engraving
Plywood (1/8 inch, square foot for $2.99 from Discount Builders Supply)			50	55
Plywood (5.6mm)	400	5-55	15	55				see reference in toolbox for engraving
Plywood (9.5mm)	400	5-55	7	55				see reference in toolbox for engraving
Plywood (12mm)	400	5-55	5	55				requires overcutting beginning/end; see reference in toolbox for engraving
Plywood (18mm, nominal 3/4")	400	5-55	3	85				speed and power is imprecise (3/85 cuts through fine sometimes, while 2/85 doesn't always cut through fine)

Good Materials (continued)
Material	Engraving		Cutting			Scoring		Notes
	Speed (mm/s)	Power	Speed (mm/s)	Power	Kerf Width	Speed	Power
Polyethylene Foam (1/2")			55	35				Requires two passes, doesn't perfectly cut through but is easily separable
Polypropylene (0.5mm)			50	10				Ruth has found that 50 speed 20 power gives a cleaner cut for the 24x45 inch sheets from TAP plastics.
Polypropylene (0.5mm)			75	55				55% max power, 40% min power, pieces don't stick to the sheet like they do at the settings above
Polypropylene (1/4in)			4	55
Redwood (20mm)	100-400	55	3	55				5mm/s gets you almost there, so you could probably go over it a second time and it would work instead. Or if you sand it down a bit, that would probably work. I've only tried engraving on max power. You won't get a consistent depth, and it will vary depending on the grain of the wood. Looks col, but just be aware.
Red Oak (0.25 inch)	400	23	12	55				Engraving power 23 gives a dark engrave on a .5-1 mm line thickness. 12-18 gave a lighter engrave. When cutting a knot in the wood, you'll have to use a lower speed, 9-10 will probably work. This wood was high quality scroll wood with almost no knots.
Scotchlite 8930			55	10				Scotchlite, Reflective Material, 8930 Silver Flame Resistant Fabric
Silicone Sheet, 0.024" thick, black			80	50				50% max power, 30% min power. Not all cuts fall free, but increasing power/decreasing speed doesn't help, just makes more white powder. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N5MB2JK/
Silicone Sheet, 0.040" thick, black			50	55				55% max power, 30% min power. Remove clear protective sheet before cutting. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06WCZD1LZ/
Silicone (HT 6135 elastomer, Marian Chicago)			22	12
Sticker sheet (Avery 5975 Neon Assorted https://www.amazon.com/Avery-Labels-Rectangle-Assorted-Fluorescent/dp/B000093L5R)			200	7
Transparency Sheets			400	6				Only chlorine and speed/power tested a mystery brand from Switzerland that Henner bought; other brands may require tests again
Kapton Sheet 0.005"	200	20						For solder paste stencils I scan at 200mm/s, 20% power, 0.05mm interval. 30% power and 0.1mm interval is faster, but slightly less clean results
Clear Polystyrene (1mm) (Mr Plastics)			30	30