Oh I find a sheet or two of news paper (damp with water spray) takes care of any residue from plastic and if you are doing 100's of tags it is a pre-cut separator for shipping.
Mark
In the Great Northwest!
Trotec Speedy C25, Newing-Hall 350 (AMC I & HPGL), NH-CG-30 (Carbide Cutter Sharpener)
Sawgrass 400 Gel Ink Printer, CS5, 5/9/x6 CorelDraw
I have some 1/8 inch thick lead sheet. I have cut them into various sizes that can be placed where they are not in engraved areas.
I know of the "danger" of the lead but I limit how much I touch them. Also, today yo can get a lead substitute that will work well.
Why not use some small pieces of steel correctly placed to hold down the ply?
EPILOG LEGEND 32 60 WATT, CORELDRAWX5, PhotoGraV2.11, strip heater, PUNTA GORDA, FLORIDA