Acrylic Sheet For Laser Cutting

If you use a laser for your side hustle it won’t be long before you begin to dabble with Acrylic Sheet for laser cutting.  From signage to keychains and everything in between, acrylic sheets can produce projects suitable for sales.  One of the major issues with acrylic sheet for laser cutting is sourcing the material.

A quick trip to Lowe’s, Home Depot, or the Craft store won’t get you much, if any selection.  I have been buying clear cast sheets from Home Depot for some time only to see the source dry up.  Additionally, there are different types of acrylic sheets.  Some are best for engraving, and some are best for cutting.

I have also sourced material from several manufacturers but never found the “perfect” acrylic.  I found my sources from laser forum discussions.  Conversely,  I have been around the block a time or two as it relates to acrylic sheet material.  It is tough to find a good source.

Source

I received an email from COHn Acrylics  inviting me to test some of their materials.  They asked me to select 5 sheets for testing. I received a black, blue, pink, amber, and faux marble material.

Also, the sheets are 12″ x 19″ and are the perfect size for my OMTech 50 watt CO² laser.

All of the sheets  were pre-masked on both sides. This provides excellent protection to the surfaces.  The top sheet in my photo had clear masking material.

Testing

The first thing I attempted to do was to create a sign for my wood shop.  I began with the black acrylic and cut out the words “SHED HOUSE”.

Here’s a quick video showing the results of the cutting operation.  By my estimation this is the cleanest cutting acrylic I have used to date.

Also, in case you are wondering, the S that stuck popped right out.   Here are the edge cuts on an additional sheet that they sent me. This is the back plate for the sign.

Color me impressed.  Most acrylics kind of melt along the edges or sometimes develop lines similar to the edge of a coin.  Again, this is the cleanest cut I have ever seen with acrylic sheet in a CO² laser.

Additional Testing

I took the faux marble which I believe is a Pearl Acrylic and cut out an outline of a duck for a keychain.   It looks good with super clean edges.

Smell

Cutting acrylic in a CO² STINKS.  It just plain smells bad.  So bad in fact that I have to do my acrylic work as soon as my wife leaves for work.  Even then she complains when she comes home hours later.

I don’t know what COHn Acrylics did to their acrylic but the smell is MINIMAL compared to other acrylic manufacturers.  They state the following on their website:

Craft with confidence using our 100% new materials, expertly designed to prevent toxic odors during cutting, and experience the pinnacle of acrylic excellence.

I can 100% confirm that the smell produced from cutting operations is only a fraction of other acrylics.  This alone is worth the price of admission.

Extras

Who doesn’t love extras?  In my packaging was a coupon for 15% off of the next order.

Selection

Most other manufacturers I have experience with just have colors.  You really have to go to the COHn Acrylics “Shop All” webpage and look for yourself.   It is stunning the amount of colors, designs, and patterns that they offer for sale.  If you are a hobbyist or crafter you owe it to yourself to look around and order some of their offerings.

Wrap Up

Colors.  Selections. Excellent cutting and engraving results.  Minimal smell.  What is not to love?  I strongly recommend using COHn Acrylics as the source for your laser acrylic needs.

John’s Tech Blog Highly Recommends COHn Acrylics