Laser Marking FAQ's

Question- am getting a brown rust color instead of a black mark. Are the CerMark laser marking materials bad?

Answer- No, the marking materials are fine. The browning or rusting occurs when you have applied too much thermal energy either due to slow speed or excess power. In this case, you have actually burnt the CerMark material. To fix this you should increase the marking speed or lower the laser power.

Question- I am marking glass with LMC products and get micro-fracturing. How can I prevent this from happening?

Answer-  Micro-fracturing occurs when the glass substrate is heated beyond its melting temperature and then rapidly cooled to room temperatures. These strong variations in temperature lead to local expansion and contraction and subsequently to micro-fracturing. There are two mechanisms of heating glass substrates: through conduction (ink heating the glass through thermal conduction), and through direct absorption. The latter is present mostly in CO2 lasers due to the absorption at CO2 lasers’ wavelength of operation. Consequently, solid-state lasers generate smoother marks. In both cases the micro-fracturing can often be minimized by lowering the power and the speed, thus creating gentle conditions for bonding – heating the ink just enough to bond to the surface and scanning slowly enough to deposit enough heat to bond.

Question- I Had An Issue With The Spray Marking Where After Only One Or 2 Uses It Clogged Up On Me And I Wasted Nearly A Full Can Which Was Very Frustrating As To The Cost Of The Material. I Was Told You Came Out With A Different Product That Prevented That From Happening, Is This True?

Answer- Hi , thank's for reaching out!  Ferro has released a new product called Cermark Ultra. This compound is a multi-use marking spray and is highly recommended for just about all marking applications. However, I haven't personally heard of anything regarding a storage difference. The can has instructions on it for safe storage and cleaning of the nozzle. These need to be followed with every use to prevent clogging of the nozzle. This includes spraying a few times with the can flipped upside down. I would also recommend not letting the can sit for over a few weeks without a quick spray to keep the nozzle clean.

Question- After I laser mark my substrate there is no CerMark material left.

Answer- This happens when you have your laser speed set too low. You are actually blowing the TherMark materials off the substrate surface. At too slow a marking speed, the amount of thermal energy is enough to disperse the materials around on the surface but not let them create a bond. In this instance you will need to increase the marking speed in increments of 5% until you find the exact setting needed.

Question- After I laser mark my substrate there is no CerMark material left.

Answer- This happens when you have your laser speed set too low. You are actually blowing the TherMark materials off the substrate surface. At too slow a marking speed, the amount of thermal energy is enough to disperse the materials around on the surface but not let them create a bond. In this instance you will need to increase the marking speed in increments of 5% until you find the exact setting needed

Question- Do you ship Cermark products worldwide?

Answer- We ship to the United States and over 220 Countries and Territories. 

Question- When using the ULTRA spray on stainless steel tags we are getting spotty results. Not solid black.  I have a 25 watt universal M300 laser. Experiencing faintness in some areas of the tag.   Our settings are power 100 and speed of 20. PPI of 600.

Answer-  https://jorlink.com/laser-supplies/cermarkthermark/thermark-how-to-use/laser-settings-chart      .

These are suggested starting settings.   All of the laser spray products will require some experimenting to perfect. Even two lasers that are the same brand, model and power will be different. Over time the laser tube will change in power and that will effect the results. More power does NOT mean better results. There is a sweet spot you'll want to find.

Question- What is the main difference between LMC 6000 and LCM 6044P?

Answer- LMC6044P product can mark a range of glass and ceramic substrates. It has previously been used to mark many different types of glass in industrial applications such as vehicle windshields, laboratory instruments, plate glass, and glass ampules. It can also be used for decorative work on bottles, wine glasses, and awards. Additionally, it has found uses on ceramic products such as porcelain sanitary ware, electronic substrates, and for decorating walls and floor tiles. In another way, the Lmm6000 is designed for metals is recommended for creating black marks on a variety of metals such as Stainless Steel, Bright Annealed Chrome, Plating Titanium Galvanized, Steel Nickel Plating, Brass Aluminum Gold, Plating, Copper, Pewter, and Silver Plating.

Question- I'm needing to engrave on some award medals for a school. I've got some of your Cermark 6000 and Cermark Black Laser Marking spray - I'm trying to figure out if I can use it to laser engrave on an award medallion that is made of zinc alloy?

Answer- About your question: Fiber lasers are the most efficient at generating permanent & high-contrast identifiers on these materials. You can etch barcodes, data matrix codes, QR codes, serial numbers, logos and even more on all types of zinc parts. Cermark is not the answer to engrave zinc alloys with CO2 Laser. Even if you get it to work the next item from the same product line may well have a totally different composition and not work. Cermark is to engrave all kind of metals but not zinc alloy.

Question-  What other colors for metal are currently available?

Answer- Currently we offer a black LMM-6000 & LMM-14 on metal substrates. CerMark also offers LMM-6150 Pearl (off white) and LMM-6151 Copper which will mark on stainless steel, Black Oxide and Black Parkerized metals widely used for firearms and knives and a variety of tools. Contact us for more information.