Cutting 3mm ply

[berainlb (PY)]

I assume this is the A40630 or N40630 which neje claims as 5.5W output.

You should be able to cut 3mm ply but to be clear, it won’t necessarily be easy and will depend on a lot of factors.

I talk about some of the challenges and factors involved in this lengthy post here:

Best parameter for cut 3mm birch plywood

Additionally I’d advise that you’ve chosen a fairly challenging material and operation (cutting) as a beginner with a relatively low power diode laser. You’ll need to have a number of factors fairly dialed in to get a quality cut including: material holding - you’ll need to ensure that you can hold the material down flat and secure across the entire plane of your planned cut. Any material vibration or movement across a fairly long burn time will result in misalignment or incomplete burn. Flat…

Even in the best case this won’t be “fast”. Neje claims being able to cut 3mm ply at 120 mm/min @100% power in one pass. I would consider that a best case type of number. If you have any inconsistencies or voids in the wood you might never get through.

Take a look through the post but the 3 biggest factors for a good cut are going to be focus, air assist, and material type given your laser. If you don’t have air assist I would say don’t even bother with plywood. You should be able to cut solid woods like balsa or birch without air assist.