Laser cutter capabilities question

Hi all,

Im new to laser cutters and I had a few questions. I'm thinking of using a laser to cut through the side of a plastic box. The box will have walls on the order of 1/16" to 1/8" thick. The box wont be very big (1" to 2" wide) and I dont want to cut through the other side of the box as I'm cutting the top. Will the laser be unfocused enough to not cut through the other side by the time it gets there? Also, if it isn't, can I add a piece of metal (or some other material...) inside the box such that the laser does not make it to the other side but instead gets dissipated through the material (deally it would be reusable...). Also, will this method create splatter that makes this inside of my box look awful?

any thoughts? thanks all,

- Will

you can use a piece of thin foil as a barrier in a co2 laser cutter. It wont go through any thickness of metal.

Even with an unfocussed beam the laser is strong enough to make a mark and ruin the other side of your box so a barrier of some sort is the best way to go.

I have never had any kind of splatter from the laser hitting metal but the metal could heat up and melt plastic if it is touching it.

whatever you put in as a barrier , make sure it is not reflective - a pieces of sacrificial wood will work - I have had the unfocused beam reflect back off the bottom of my table and off the mesh on the table when it was new. The beam still has a surprising amount of power after it passes through the work item.

I was hoping to avoid any sacrificial pieces as I plan on cutting out a lot of the same stuff and I dont want to constantly be making new sacrificial pieces. I was hoping to take the time to make a nice jig that would last for many cuts.

Just out of curiosity i am assuming that you get these boxes already put together. If this is not the case then do the cutting before the boxes are assembled. If they do come assembled then maybe the company that makes the boxes for you can send you the material blanks, you cut out whatever it is your cutting then send them back to have the boxes assembled. Ive looked at this post several times and am just curious about these small boxes. Maybe these boxes are one piece molded and then none of this will matter. Just Curious.

Unfortunately, the boxes I plan on cutting are pre-molded into one piece with a removable top.

Since the boxes have a removable top, and you are putting your hole in one of the sides, this means they will be sitting on the honecomb with one side open, is that right?

Ok, how about a small tray, perhaps fold up some tin plate or something, that slides into the open side and is filled with...something... that will absorb/dissipate the heat. Perhaps kitty-litter, fullers earth, carbon granules, what-have-you...

Whatever you use will get hot, so you could have 2 or more of these trays in use and swap them out as needed.