Laserable Plastic for Production Line Injection Molding

[Bill George]

I am advising a future client on what to do for a jewelry item now made from injection molded metal. She wants to have them personalized by laser and since the mfg already has the molds made they could be used for say injection molded black plastic and then silver or gold finished for a product that could be lasered.

Is there a particular plastic and I know its not PVC, that the mfg should be using? Suggestions please.

[Scott Shepherd]

So you need something that contrasts when engraved? What color(s) are you talking about?

[Bill George]

Base would be black, over lay colors silver, gold, or copper. She has an absolutely beautiful product and its in production... sort of but she sees the need to have them personalized. I have done some prototyping for her but what she really needs is what I described above.

[Dan Hintz]

What about some form of acrylic or polycarbonate?

[Richard Rumancik]

Bill, you mean that she made molds for making the jewelry from metal and now wants to change to plastic? I don't know the process she is using now, but molds are usually not interchangeable from metal to plastic. And usually a mold for plastic resin is designed for a specific resin i.e. you should select the resin before the mold is made. However for a low-tolerance item you might have some leeway in the choice of resin.

Theoretically you could use a plating grade of ABS, or the items could be metalized with vapor deposition. But a CO2 laser would not likely be able to etch through the metal even if thin. Maybe there is an organic coating that could be lasered though but I don't think this product would look or feel very high-end. What market segment is she pursuing with this product?

You haven't given us enough info to know where she should go with this but if she has molds alread made for metal I think she needs to plate the parts and find a suitable process (laser or other?) to mark them. Unfortunately that would probably leave you out of the loop . . .

[Bill George]

She has a upscale product and the company who does the casting for her has the molds. Since they already ( I assume) have a CAD drawing of the molds they are using perhaps a quick run through a CNC mill and she would have a new plastic injection mold.
The resin base would need to be both injectable and laserable. I guess I was thinking a high grade paint or epoxy paint that could be lasered off to get the engraved effect. I can not post pictures of the product as she does not want China jumping in and making them and selling on eBay.