Want to learn how to cut black acrylic on your xTool M1? In this blog post, I’ll dig into what kind of acrylic to use, my recommended settings for cutting and engraving black acrylic, and tips on how to get a clean laser cut each time. You’ll feel confident knowing how to tackle black acrylic to create awesome projects like signs, keychains, and more.
Materials Needed
- 3mm Opaque Black Cast Acrylic
- Paper masking or transfer tape (Optional)
- Triangular prisms or other option for lifting your material
- xTool M1 Air Assist
- xTool M1
How to Cut Black Acrylic
Step 1: Choose the Right Black Acrylic
The first step to achieving a good laser cut with black acrylic is choosing the appropriate acrylic for your machine. The xTool M1 is a 10-watt machine that uses a diode laser, so you’ll want to be sure to pick a fully opaque black acrylic that has zero transparency and is 3mm or less. When laser cutting you always want to choose a cast acrylic as well. My go-to for black acrylic is MakerStock’s Opaque Black Acrylic. This material is not only consistently reliable, but affordable too. You can learn more about what types of acrylics the xTool M1 can work with in this blog post.
Step 2: Prep Your Sheets
Paper masking can help to reduce scorching and damage to the underside of your acrylic sheet. Often times when you purchase acrylic, it already comes with a masking in order to protect it during shipping. MakerStock’s acrylic materials do come masked, but should you choose a different brand of acrylic that isn’t masked, you’ll want to add a paper masking to it. Masking isn’t required, but I’ve found that it produces a better result than unmasked acrylic.
Step 3: Heighten Your Material
An important step in the process to getting a clean laser cut with black acrylic is raising it above your baseplate. Using a honeycomb baseplate can improve the quality of your cuts and lessen the chance of burn marks from occurring. In addition to the honeycomb, taking the extra step to use the triangular prisms that came with your machine can enhance the quality of your laser cuts as well.
You’ll want to update the Height Raised setting in xTool Create Space to triangular prism, so that your laser can accurately focus on your material. See below:
Step 4: Run a Laser Engrave & Cut Test
You may be inclined to skip this step, but it is crucial for perfecting your acrylic project. Not all acrylics are identical and there may also be slight variations between machines. Running both a laser engrave and cut test on a small piece of acrylic first can help to reduce time and material waste in the long run.
You can find a digital download of my Black Acrylic Cut & Engrave Test Template Files here.
Based on my own testing of the MakerStock’s Opaque Black Acrylic in my xTool M1, I’ve found that the clearest engraving settings are as follows:
- Power: 70%
- Speed: 175 mm/s
- Pass: 1
For laser cutting black acrylic, my recommended settings are below:
- Power: 90%
- Speed: 2 mm/s
- Pass: 1
You can use these settings as a starting point, but I highly recommend running your test using the templates above to ensure these work for your material and machine as well.
Step 5: Let Air Assist Work It’s Magic
Investing in an air assist set can further enhance your laser cut edges on black acrylic. It helps with potential bubbling that can occur without it. I typically run my air assist around 16-18L/m, or the lower end of the dial. Once set, you’re good to run your final project.
Congrats, You’ve Mastered Black Acrylic!
By following these steps, you’ll minimize any issues that can occur when working with black acrylic in the xTool M1. Taking your time to run the tests, raising your acrylic off of the baseplate, and incorporating air assist should help you get a clean laser cut on your black acrylic in a single pass.
Now that you’ve mastered black acrylic, what will you make next? Share your laser engraved or cut acrylic projects with me on social!
