Etching with masking on

Community Laser Talk
1

Hey all, I did some searching and did not see anything specifically what I am looking for.

I am trying to etch with masking on clear acrylic to then paint after the fact. I have watched some videos on people doing this but I have not been able to do it succesfully myself. I have attmepted to do it with both the original paper masking as well as vinyl transfer tape brand R-Tape.

Every time I do it I end up with kind of a goey mess where the etching is. It does technically etch, but it leaves a residue so I won’t be able to get a clean paint coating on top.

Anyone have any tips? Do I just need to up my power a lot to blast away the adhesive? Use a different masking?

Any help would be much appreciated!

2

I leave the paper masking that comes on the acrylic. I don’t have a gooey mess left behind. I think you probably need to increase your power to burn a little deeper. I run about 400 mm/sec at somewhere between 30% & 50%. depending in how deep I want to go. 100 watt machine. If the acrylic has plastic masking I remove it and add paper masking and don’t buy from that supplier again.

3

Good to know! 30-50% in a 100 watt machine means I need to crank mine way up. I have a 40 and only went up to 10% power lol