These are the steps that I took to complete the third ENGI 210 Project: Laser Cutting a Box
Step 1: Creating a 2D drawing
The first step to this project was to create a 2D drawing on en.makercase.com of the box. These were the variables inputted to create the drawing for the box:
- Length x width x height: 5″ x 5″ x 5″
- Outside dimensions
- Material thickness: 0.205″
- Closed box
- Finger joints
- Finger size: 0.97375″
Based on information provided by my peers, I decided on a 0.007″ kerf.
Box dimensions inputted into en.makercase.com
2D drawing of box on en.makercase.com
Step 2: Adding designs to etch
Once downloaded from en.makercase.com, the 2D drawing was imported into Adobe Illustrator. I added my name, class, and date to the front of the box and the Martel crest to the back of the box to be etched.
Creating designs to etch on box in Adobe Illustrator
Step 3: Laser cutting the box
0.205″ thick plywood was used to laser cut for the box. The surface of the plywood was covered with painters tape to protect the surface from soot. The laser cutter was operated according to given instructions at 5% speed, 100% power, and 10f frequency.
Laser cutter in action
Step 4: Assembling the box
The laser cutter was unable to cut through a few sides of the box, so a box cutter was used to manually remove 2 pieces of the box from the plywood sheet. The set kerf was slightly too small and the finger joints of the box did not initially fit correctly. To fix this, 120 grit sandpaper was used to sand down the width of the joints. By doing so, the box could be assembled with the use of a mallet for tight fits.
Laser cutter did not cut through wood at two corners
Pieces of the box removed from plywood sheet
Sandpaper and mallet used to aid assembling the box
My finished box!
Back of box
Front of box
Cost Analysis
- 1x 1/4″ thickness 4’x8′ plywood sheet = $5.97
- Labor: 3 hours x $7.25/hour = $14.50
Total = $20.47
*Cost of using laser cutter omitted because Harris County public libraries provide free use of laser cutters
