Guides for laser cutting and DXF files

Seven guides: how a laser cutting price is built, how to find and fix open contours, duplicate lines and splines in a DXF, a 10-point file checklist, the minimum hole size rules of several shops and kerf width. Every example is computed by the CutMeter engine.

• 01

  How laser cutting is priced

  Per metre, per pierce or per machine minute, plus setup, minimum order and material. Worked example: same cut length, 2 vs 21 pierces, very different price.

• 02

  DXF open contours: how to find and fix them

  An open contour is an outline whose ends do not meet, so the part cannot be cut out. How to find gaps in a DXF, why 0.05 mm matters and how to close them.

• 03

  Duplicate lines in a DXF: double cutting, double length

  Two lines on top of each other look like one, but they are cut twice and counted twice by a naive quote. How to find duplicate lines in a DXF and remove them.

• 04

  Splines in a DXF for laser cutting

  Why splines in a DXF cause trouble at the laser, how to replace them with short lines or arcs, what saving as R12 changes, and how much length the change costs.

• 05

  How to prepare a DXF for laser cutting

  A 10-point checklist for a DXF that cuts the first time: units, 1:1 scale, closed contours, no duplicates or splines, no text, layers, small holes, kerf.

• 06

  Minimum hole size vs sheet thickness

  Shops state different rules: hole at least 1 × thickness, 0.7 × or 0.5 ×. The rules side by side with sources, a table for 1 to 20 mm, and what to do.

• 07

  Kerf width in laser cutting

  Laser kerf is typically 0.1 to 1 mm, about 0.1 to 0.3 mm on fibre lasers. When to compensate, who does it, and why CutMeter's cut length has no kerf in it.