[[File:Laser cutter authorized materials.jpg|500px]]
=== NEVER CUT THESE MATERIALS ===
'''WARNING''': Because many plastics are dangerous to cut, it is important to know what kind you are planning to use. Make has a How-To for identifying unknown plastics with [http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2011/09/identifying-unknown-plastics.html a simple process].
{| cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center"
|-
! Material
! DANGER!
! Cause/Consequence
|-
| PVC (Poly Vinyl Chloride)/vinyl/pleather/artificial leather
| Emits pure chlorine gas when cut!
| Don't ever cut this material as it will ruin the optics, cause the metal of the machine to corrode, and ruin the motion control system.
|-
| Thick ( >1mm ) Polycarbonate/Lexan
| Cut very poorly, discolor, catch fire
| Polycarbonate is often found as flat, sheet material. The window of the laser cutter is made of Polycarbonate because ''polycarbonate strongly absorbs infrared radiation!'' This is the frequency of light the laser cutter uses to cut materials, so it is very ineffective at cutting polycarbonate. Polycarbonate is a poor choice for laser cutting.
|-
| ABS
| Emits cyanide gas and tends to melt
| ABS does not cut well in a laser cutter. It tends to melt rather than vaporize, and has a higher chance of catching on fire and leaving behind melted gooey deposits on the vector cutting grid. It also does not engrave well (again, tends to melt).
|-
| HDPE/milk bottle plastic
| Catches fire and melts
| It melts. It gets gooey. Don't use it.
|-
| PolyStyrene Foam
| Catches fire
| It catches fire, it melts, and only thin pieces cut. This is the #1 material that causes laser fires!!!
|-
| PolyPropylene Foam
| Catches fire
| Like PolyStyrene, it melts, catches fire, and the melted drops continue to burn and turn into rock-hard drips and pebbles.
|-
| Fiberglass
| Emits fumes
| It's a mix of two materials that cant' be cut. Glass (etch, no cut) and epoxy resin (fumes)
|-
| Coated Carbon Fiber
| Emits noxious fumes
| A mix of two materials. Thin carbon fiber mat can be cut, with some fraying - but not when coated.
|}
List from [http://atxhackerspace.org/wiki/Laser_Cutter_Materials ATX hackerspace]'s wiki
== Hardware ==