Building a Box Using a Laser Cutter
I found this project to be very enjoyable and satisfying. Finally learning how to use the laser cutter is exciting because I have always thought that the laser cut projects in the OEDK were super cool and now I know how they were made. Also being able to put the box together using no nails or adhesives was very satisfying.
Before Starting
The first thing I did when starting this project was conduct a kerf test. I did this by creating a rectangular in Adobe Illustrator with 8 slats in it, which required 10 laser passes to do. After cutting out the pieces, I pushed them together to one side and got a measurement of the gap that was left. I divided this value of 0.063 inches by 10 to get the amount of width that was subtracted when making a cut with the laser cutter. I then used this new value as my kerf value. I also took a measurement of the width of the piece of wood using a caliper (0.2 inches) which would be useful in determining the size of the box.
Creating the Box
I used the website makeabox.io to create my box design. After putting in my desired box dimensions, the width of the wood, and the kerf, I was able to create an Adobe Illustrator file for my box. To make sure my measurements and laser settings (15% speed, 100% power, 10% frequency) were correct, I cut out two practice pieces to make sure they fit together snugly. In addition, I put tape over the wood to prevent burn marks on the cut areas. After seeing that these pieces were cut out and fit correctly I decided I was good to start with the engraving portion of the assignment.
I typed out the portion with my name and date on AI directly, and I downloaded the Brown College Crest from the canvas files and imported the AI file. After putting them within my desired pieces, I decided to add a few more images (seen below). I was now ready to begin engraving and cutting. I put my desired starting point and laser settings in the computer and sent them to the computer. I then began my cut. Once the engravings were done (seen below), I paused the print manually and taped where I knew the laser would soon cut. I then resumed my cut.
Post-Processing and Finishing
After successfully cutting out all of my pieces, I decided I wanted to stain and put a clear coat on my box. I used the Dark Walnut finish (below) and let it dry overnight.The next day, I put a gloss clear coat on the pieces.
After staining and applying a clear coat, I was ready to assemble my box. The pieces fit together nicely and I think the finished product looked really good!
What I Could Have Done Differently
There were a few things I could have done differently. One of them was the speed of the laser that I used. I think that a couple of burn marks on the corner of the cuts on the box were due to the laser moving too slow. I did apply tape to try to prevent this, but it was not successful on every cut. However, I think that if I increased the speed of the laser the pieces would not have been cut out all the way. Another thing I could have done was increase the power during the engraving part of the process. I say that because the words and images are hard to see on the box, especially after applying the dark stain. Lastly, I could have chosen a lighter stain to use which would have covered the words and images less.
Cost Estimate
Epilog Laser Cutter = ~$26,000 (or could use the one in the OEDK for $0)
1x Sheet of Birch Plywood= $15
Adobe Illustrator Subscription = $21
Minwax Wood Stain = $10
Rust-Oleum Clear Gloss Finish = $5
Time= $30 x 2 hours = $60
It would cost approximately $111 dollars to make this box assuming you had a laser cutter to use and had to buy all the other materials. It would cost ~$26,000 if you had to buy your own laser cutter!
