Laser FAQs

A computer-controlled machine that uses a focused laser beam to cut or engrave materials with high precision — no blade, no contact, clean edges. CO2 machines handle wood, acrylic, leather, paper, and fabric; fiber lasers cut metal. They’re used everywhere from signage and manufacturing to crafts and personalization because they’re fast, repeatable, and need no tooling changes between jobs. Full answer →

The machine focuses a high-intensity beam to a tiny point that melts, burns, or vaporizes material along a path from your digital design, while assist gas blows debris out of the cut. Cutting drives the beam all the way through; engraving uses less power to mark only the surface. Different materials need different laser types and settings. Full answer →

Hobby diode engravers run roughly $300–$4,000. Desktop and professional CO2 lasers run about $2,000–$20,000+ depending on size and wattage, and industrial fiber metal-cutting systems start around $15,000–$25,000 and climb past $100,000. Running costs are modest — mostly electricity plus consumables. The right spend follows your material, work size, and volume, not the lowest sticker price. Full answer →

Electricity excites CO2 gas in a sealed tube, emitting an infrared beam that mirrors steer and a lens focuses to a point hot enough to melt, burn, or vaporize material. Cutting drives the beam through; engraving marks the surface. It works on non-metals because they absorb that wavelength. Full answer →

A machine that cuts and engraves with a beam from a CO2 gas tube — the workhorse for wood, acrylic, leather, paper, fabric, and glass. The same machine usually does both cutting and engraving. Boss’s LS and HP series are CO2 cutter-engravers. Full answer →

A machine that generates its beam inside a doped optical fiber and steers it with high-speed galvo mirrors, permanently marking and engraving metal with no contact and no consumables. Boss’s FM Series are fiber markers/engravers; the FC Series are high-power fiber cutters. Full answer →

Yes — acrylic is one of the best laser-cutting materials, as long as it’s a CO2 laser. The beam is absorbed cleanly, leaving a glossy, flame-polished edge with no finishing. Use cast acrylic when you also want bright frosted engraving; extruded for clean transparent cuts at lower cost. Never confuse acrylic with polycarbonate (burns) or PVC (toxic). Full answer →

No — a laser can’t cleanly cut glass; thermal stress cracks and chips it instead of leaving an edge. What a CO2 laser can do is engrave (frost) the surface for logos, text, and photos. To cut glass to shape, use mechanical methods — score-and-snap or a wet saw. Full answer →

Use a CO2 laser with high power and low speed so the beam burns cleanly through, with air assist on to reduce charring. Choose flat, laser-grade plywood or hardwood — cheap plywood hides glue voids that cut unevenly. Always test on scrap, run exhaust, and never leave the machine unattended: a small dancing flame at the cut is normal, a steady flame is not. Full answer →

Every job follows the same loop: prepare a vector design (LightBurn, Illustrator, Inkscape), set power and speed for the material, set focus, test on scrap, then run with air assist and exhaust on and the lid closed. Start conservative and stay with the machine while it runs. Full answer →

A marking process that uses a focused beam to remove or alter the surface of a material, leaving a permanent mark — the design becomes part of the material, so it won’t rub off or fade like print. Strictly, engraving removes material to form a recess; etching, marking, and annealing are shallower or color-change versions of the same idea. Full answer →

Use a CO2 laser: the beam micro-fractures a thin top layer into a bright frosted-white mark — ideal for bottles, glasses, awards, and panels. Fiber and most diode lasers are the wrong tool (fiber passes straight through clear glass). Run low power at higher speed, and cover the area with damp paper to reduce chipping and smooth the frost. Full answer →

Same loop every job: design in laser software, mark each part as engrave (raster) or cut (vector), set power and speed for the material, focus, test on scrap, then run with air assist and exhaust on. The machine is the easy part — dialed-in settings and a good test habit produce the clean results. Full answer →

Yes — many plastics engrave cleanly, but the type matters for results and safety. CO2 handles acrylic, ABS, and Delrin; fiber marks plastics with high contrast for part numbers and labels. Never laser PVC or vinyl, avoid polycarbonate, and always run exhaust — even safe plastics give off fumes. Full answer →

Fiber is the metal specialist: it engraves, etches, and anneals steel, stainless, aluminum, brass, copper, titanium, even gold and silver — and marks many plastics with high contrast. It can’t engrave clear glass or acrylic (the beam passes through) and it scorches wood. Metal and plastics: fiber. Everything organic: CO2. Full answer →

Technically it can mark some wood, but it’s the wrong tool — the wavelength is poorly absorbed, so it scorches unpredictably and the uncontrolled heat is a real fire risk. For wood, leather, and paper, use a CO2 laser. Reach for fiber when you’re working metal. Full answer →

Yes — but it takes a fiber laser. A kilowatt-class fiber cutter slices steel, stainless, aluminum, brass, and copper cleanly with assist gas. High-power CO2 can manage only thin sheet (up to about 18-gauge stainless on Boss’s HP series), and diode and fiber-marker lasers can’t cut metal at all. Full answer →

Yes — stainless is one of the best metals to laser cut on a fiber machine. Nitrogen assist gas gives a clean, bright, oxide-free edge that often needs no finishing. Thickness scales with power: roughly 10 mm at 1 kW up to ~20–25 mm at 6 kW. Full answer →

Cutting starts around 1–2 kW (1,000–2,000 watts) and goes up — not the 20–100 W people often ask about. Those low wattages belong to fiber markers, which etch but don’t cut. More power cuts thicker and faster: ~1 kW for thin sheet, 3–6 kW for plate. If your laser is rated in tens of watts, it marks metal. Full answer →

A fiber metal cutter is industrial equipment: Boss’s FC-series machines start around $45,000 for an entry 2 kW system and climb into six figures with power, format, and automation. Per-part cost is low once you own the machine, which is why fiber pays off at volume — if you only need occasional parts, a job shop may be cheaper than buying. Full answer →

Yes — but only a kilowatt-class fiber cutter, not a marker. Cutting steel, stainless, aluminum, brass, and copper takes roughly 1 kW and up; a 30 W or 50 W fiber marker won’t cut even thin sheet reliably. Thickness scales with power, up to ~20–25 mm stainless at 6 kW. Full answer →

Yes — anodized aluminum is one of the few metals a CO2 laser marks well with no spray. The laser ablates the dyed oxide layer to reveal bright aluminum underneath: crisp, high-contrast, no consumables. That’s why it’s a favorite for nameplates, tags, awards, and panels on CO2 machines. Full answer →

Not bare metal directly — the beam reflects off it. With a marking spray (CerMark and similar) a CO2 laser bonds a permanent dark mark onto steel or brass, and anodized aluminum marks directly. For spray-free marking and true engraving on bare metal, fiber is the right tool. Full answer →

Etching melts a very thin top layer of the metal, leaving a permanent, slightly raised, high-contrast mark you can feel with a fingernail. It sits between annealing — a heat-only color change that leaves the surface smooth, the go-to for stainless and titanium — and engraving, which removes material to cut an actual recess. Use a fiber laser, or a CO2 laser with marking spray, and test on scrap of the same alloy. Full answer →

Yes — stainless is one of the best metals for laser marking. A fiber laser can anneal it (a smooth, dark, corrosion-safe color mark), etch it for fast contrast, or engrave a real recess — deep engraving builds up over multiple passes rather than one high-power hit. A CO2 laser needs a marking spray to mark stainless. Full answer →

No — the mark is in the metal, not printed on it, so it won’t rub off or fade like ink. Annealed and etched marks survive normal handling; engraving cuts a recess that survives heavy use and even refinishing. Removing a laser mark means sanding, grinding, or machining the surface itself away — which is exactly why lasers are the standard for serial numbers and tamper-resistant identification.

A fiber laser marker — it’s the industry standard for serials, barcodes, 2D codes, and logos on tools and industrial parts: permanent, no contact, no consumables. A 20–50 watt fiber marker covers the vast majority of ID work; step toward 50–100 watts for deep marks or faster throughput. Boss’s FM Series runs that full range. Full answer →

On a CO2 laser: wood and plywood, acrylic, leather, paper and card, fabric, felt, cork, and laser-safe rubber. On a fiber laser: sheet metals. Glass and ceramic engrave rather than cut — and PVC, vinyl, and polycarbonate are off-limits on any laser. Full answer →

No — never. Lasering PVC releases chlorine gas and hydrochloric acid: toxic to breathe and corrosive to the machine’s frame, rails, and optics, and the damage is gradual and permanent even with ventilation. The same rule covers vinyl and PVC-based faux leather — verify any unknown plastic with the supplier before it goes in the machine. Full answer →

Yes, always. Every material gives off smoke and fumes when lasered — even the “safe” ones — so run exhaust vented outside, or a fume-extraction filtration unit where outside venting isn’t possible. Good ventilation also protects the optics and keeps cut quality consistent.

Run properly, no — enclosed machines with safety interlocks keep the beam contained. The two real day-to-day risks are fire and fumes: never leave a running job unattended (a small dancing flame at the cut is normal; a steady flame is not), keep exhaust running, and never cut PVC. Wear laser-safe eyewear whenever a beam path is exposed.

A directed stream of air at the point where the beam meets the material. It clears smoke and debris out of the beam path, reduces charring on cuts, and suppresses flare-ups — which is why it runs on virtually every cutting job.

Yes, on bare hardwood or bamboo — engraving chars the wood surface and leaves no toxic residue. Engrave before oiling if you can, then finish with food-grade mineral oil. Avoid engraving through varnishes or finishes that aren’t rated food-safe.

Yes — LightBurn is widely considered the best all-around laser software. It combines design, photo engraving, and machine control in one app and supports most machine types, from Ruida-driven CO2 lasers to EZCad galvo fiber markers. It’s paid (about $99–$199, perpetual license), and for most users it’s worth it over limited free alternatives. Full answer →

The foundation is the same for any machine: a stable, level surface; exhaust vented outside (or a filtration unit); the chiller connected if the machine is water-cooled; air assist plumbed in; then the control software connected. For the first jobs, set focus, run a small test grid on scrap, and start with conservative settings. Full answer →

Set the distance between the lens and the material with the machine’s focus gauge or autofocus — and do it on every job, not once. An out-of-focus beam spreads its energy over a wider spot, so cuts come out weak and edges char. Focus is the single setting that ruins more jobs than any other.

Inspect them regularly — between long jobs is a good habit — and clean them as soon as they look hazy. Smoke residue builds up on optics with every job and absorbs beam energy, so the first symptoms of dirty optics are weaker cuts at the same settings; left long enough, baked-on residue can damage a lens coating for good.

Water-cooled machines do — most CO2 lasers run a chiller to hold the tube at a stable temperature, which keeps output power consistent and protects tube life. Give the machine and chiller normal operating conditions, especially on long production runs.

Most Boss machines carry a 2-year limited warranty from the original purchase date, with 1 year on the laser tube and power supplies and 30 days on optics and consumables like honeycomb beds. EVO models carry 1 year on the machine and 6 months on the tube.

Yes — CO2 tubes are consumables that wear with use, and replacement is a normal service event, not the end of the machine. Tubes are covered for 1 year (6 months on EVO models); after the warranty window, Boss quotes the repair and replacement parts are available directly.

Tech support by phone and email is lifetime for original purchasers — it doesn’t end when the warranty does. For model-specific manuals, quick-start guides, and troubleshooting paths, start at the Support Hub and drill into your series and model.

Contact Boss tech support with your model and the part you need — after the 2-year coverage period, parts and shipping are the owner’s responsibility, and Boss provides a quote for the repair.