Finishing laser engraved wood..

[Jay Selway]

I was curious if you guys have any tips or opinions on finishing wood for engraving.

I've seen people do it a couple ways.

1. Not at all. Finishing slows down production and usually isn't needed.
2. Finish wood, mask, then engrave: I like this idea, but am not too keen on vaporizing urethane or whatever finish I'm going to use. Plus this leaves the engraved area non-finished.
3. Finish wood after engraving: This is what I've been doing, but there are a few trade offs as I see it. First off, getting finish into the engraved area can make for a mucky mess. You can't sand it, since it's a 'groove'. No risk of creosote trashing your finish. It's quite time consuming though.

I primarily am doing engraving for artistic pieces, so the detail and finish is extremely important. In an idea world, I could finish it before engraving, then have a quick way to put a final coat on the wood. Maybe a spray on urethane for protection or shine.

Thoughts?

[Bert Kemp]

Seems like you answered your own questions. Do what ever seems best for you.

[Jay Selway]

Any other approaches work for you?

[Bert Kemp]

I use water base poly, finish first then engrave, then poly the engraved piece again. I have no issues engraving or cutting finished wood.

[Mike Null]

Jay

From time to time I do some rather large wood jobs. In every instance I insist that the wood be finished or i finish it myself. Most often I use a clear acrylic lacquer or sometimes a fast drying polyurethane spray.

If I'm going to colorfill after engraving I will usually mask the pieces but I prefer to use a clearcoat that's not alcohol soluble in those instances as I always use acrylic paint for colorfills.

I never do unfinished wood on my own though sometimes a customer will insist. If that happens they know what kind of clean up they're going to have. I usually turn down plywood jobs as I don't believe it produces acceptable results. (just my opinion)

[pete hagan]

Jay,
I finish with a lite clear acrylic spray, mask with release tape, cut the outline of the engrave area, then weed out the masking where it will be engraved, then engrave. If I need to color fill I leave the mask on after engrave, color fill, then strip off the remaining masking. I'm only doing large pieces 20" or greater so the multi-step process works fine for me.
The masking helps reduce any further cleanup of atomized sap that inevitably gets on an unmasked area.
Good luck!

Pete

[Eric j Allen]

stain,seal,scuff,engrave,color fill,clean,lacquer(finish top coat)