Laser Cutter

The rumor is true, NYC Resistor has a laser! Want to get in on the laser cutting action? You can take a class to learn to operate the laser yourself, or pay one of us to cut it for you.  NOTE: if you’re looking for a service bureau, please check Google for “laser cutting nyc” to get a list of local commercial service providers.

Laser Class

Laser classes are taught usually once a month.  Check http://nycresistor.eventbrite.com/ for the class schedule.  In this two hour class, we’ll walk through all the steps from idea to pressing the “go” button on the laser. We’ll cover safety and basic design skills in Inkscape and you’ll learn how to do a burninate test to find out if something is laserable. After the two hours, you’ll have time to prototype something of your own!

Laser at Craft Night

The best times to come use the laser are Monday and Thursday Craft Nights 6:30pm-9pm. You may be able to arrange other times if members are available, send us an email with a time that works for you. If you’re flexible, including a few different times will make it easier for us to schedule!

Please, if you have not made an explicit appointment with a member, come by on Craft Night. Members are not staff and supervise laser cutting on a volunteer basis. We’re not set up to support walk-ins outside of these times!

Pricing

The basic rate for a laser operator to help you is $75.00 per hour + $2 per minute for running the laser. If you have taken the laser class and are operating the laser yourself, the cost is $1.00 per minute and there are no additional operator fees!

Materials

We have a limited supply of materials available for sale at NYC Resistor. You’re also welcome to bring your own. If you plan on buying materials from us, please email us ahead of time so we can make sure we have it in stock. Here are some examples of what we’ll cut on the laser:

• Acrylic up to 1/4 inch
• Wood (not pressure treated)
• Aluminum (etch only)
• Paper/Cardboard

Some materials can’t be cut or etched on the laser, for reasons of safety, physics, or both. Here’s a partial list of what we can’t do:

• Anything containing chlorine. This includes vinyl and many plastics, as well as Moleskine notebooks. If you’re not sure whether what you’ve got contains chlorine, you can do a burn test to check.
• Metal
• Glass cutting. It etches OK, but we can’t cut it.

If you have a material you’re not sure about, email us and we’ll let you know whether we can cut it.

The laser bed size is 32″ x 20″.