Why Use a CO2 Laser Engraver to Create Wood Signs?
If you want to create some wood signs to use in your offices, then laser engraving can give you a high-quality and professional finish. However, if you're working with wood, you need to choose your engraving technique carefully.
While regular-fibre lasers work well on some materials, they might not be the best solution for a wood engraving project. CO2 lasers are likely to be a better bet. Why?
CO2 Lasers Won't Damage the Surface
Fibre laser-engraving tools can't always work on wood safely. If you allow the laser to build up too much heat on any spot, the heat will transfer into the wood itself. If things get too hot, the wood will burn.
A CO2 laser uses larger wavelengths to make its cuts. Wood won't absorb these wavelengths. So, even if you make deep cuts, the laser won't put enough heat into the wood to make it combust. It engraves more effectively and safely.
CO2 Lasers Give You a Professional Finish
Fibre lasers typically can't consistently create high-quality engravings on wood. This can be a hit-or-miss process, especially if you are engraving a complex design or are cutting a lot of letters and numbers in a small space.
If the wood absorbs heat from the laser, then its surface changes. These changes affect the marks that the laser can make.
So, your engraving might look fuzzy and uneven. You might even have some charring in or around the cuts. This can be a real problem if you want to make deeper cuts or work on thicker depths. The laser will naturally heat things up if it has to work for extended periods.
A CO2 laser process doesn't cause these kinds of problems. The wood doesn't absorb anything from the laser, so it stays in a stable state. The laser makes precise, clean and high-quality cuts.
CO2 Lasers Produce Signs More Quickly
While an experienced engraver might be able to use a fibre laser-engraving tool on wood in some circumstances, this won't be a quick process. They will have to take extra care and time not to damage the wood and to produce polished results.
You'll get delivery of your signs a lot more quickly if you choose CO2 laser engraving. This process is less hassle for the sign company. CO2 lasers can work at higher power on woods; they run quickly and efficiently.
To find out more, contact local laser-engraving signage contractors.