Official Luthiers Forum!

Hallo. I just bought a laser CO2 60Watt for inlays on musical instruments.

In Greece it is common on mpouzouki to use celluloid inlays but i must learn how to cut it. It is of 1mm thickness, usually 0.6 to 0.8mm.

I know it is very flammable. I have seen it catching fire. Has anyone cut celluloid?

Any guidelines? Is there any celluloid which is suitable for laser cutting?

Is there any other material which is not flammable and is flexible ?
Also to be suitable , not dangerous for cutting (no gases).

Thank you !!!

I've cut celluloid on my laser.

I tape the surface to prevent any weird optic issues on the surface and you have to have the air turned on which blows out the flame. If the air isn't turned on, it will catch on fire. The fumes aren't that bad.

Kevin Looker

_________________
I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

Thank you very much
Very useful informations !!!

This is celluloid that I got on Amazon from China.

Kevin Looker

Please, no comments about the crappy pore filling.

_________________
I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

If it's really celluloid, I'd really be hesitant to cut it with a laser. A few years ago, there was a banjo maker in Kentucky who was cutting ivoroid binding stock out of sheets on his table saw, and just the heat from the table saw blade ignited the whole sheet and he was severely burned. I've taken shavings of real celluloid (from scraping bindings) and subjected the shavings to various heat sources to see if they'd ignite--and they do, and they do with a vengeance. It's why you have to pay the hefty surcharge for shipping any celluloid material these days. But I think there's a lot of stuff being sold as celluloid that isn't really--maybe some kind of acrylic. I got some pearloid binding material from Constantines years ago that was definitely not celluloid (but it looked good).

Dave

The stuff I cut is celluloid. Celluloid has a very distinct smell, unless there is another plastic that smells like camphor.

The sheets I have are small, 3-3/4" X 7-5/8" so if they do catch fire, it will be inside the laser cutter that's all metal. I also keep a fire extinguisher at hand just in case but I haven't had one catch fire yet.

I'm not trying to downplay how dangerous it is, just sharing my experience. It can be done but it is dangerous.

Kevin Looker

_________________
I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

There's not one that I know of. Definitely a distinct smell.

Question--did you cut the recess for the inlay on your peghead using the laser too? It came out looking very good.

Dave

Thanks, it's Honduras rosewood.

I cut the negative in the veneer before I glued it to the peghead.

_________________
I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

Ah--that makes sense. Thanks.

Dave