Just starting out with the 2 Pro and need advice. Does burning wood at an angle with respect to the wood grain make a difference? In other words, if I burn at 45 or 90 degrees to the grain, is that more effective than burning the same direction as the grain? I have an expensive piece of teak from a customer that I can’t really run tests on.
There is a lot of difference with the different angles but they are also different from material to material.
In combination with different line spacing and crosshatch, you can get nice effects on your material, especially for relatively large surfaces / objects.
I can only recommend you to use some different material types and run some tests. Surface treatment before and after engraving is also a little science in itself.
In picture no. 1, 45 ° Cross-Hatch with 0.5 line spacing on ABS has been used. (approx. 175% enlarged image)
In picture no. 2 it is very interesting to see the difference in color. All I did was brush the wood with a baking soda / water solution, let it dry and break the surface with fine sandpaper. Finally a little beeswax, just to see the effect. Material: BB plywood
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It will be well worth your while to test on a piece of scrap. I know Teak is expensive…like 4-5x the cost of Maple or Walnut where I am, but that’s also the reason to test. It’s oily wood and reacts to a laser differently. It’s also soft and seems to absorb more energy. I think you will need to test your speed and power settings to get it the way you want it.
Use a test grid with a wide variance of power and speeds - doesn’t have to be much more than a couple of inches square…and do it on both sides of the test piece, orienting the grain 90 degrees differently. It will be WELL worth the cost of that small scrap - and likely save you the whole piece.
- Gary
If you want satisfactory results, test your materials. There is no other option.
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You have to gain more knowledge about burning wood, then you should try it. I would like to suggest this guide for you.
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