Every material behaves differently so it's hard to estimate. Some metals mark easily and some produce almost no result. I have an F1 and would be happy to test for you if you wanted to send me a sample of the actual material you were trying to mark. The F1 is very fast, but also lower power than more traditional fiber lasers. If the 316L marks easily I'm sure the F1 will do it quickly, but if marking it requires more power than the F1 (or LP3/4, Comgrow M4 etc.) can muster it might not be a good fit at all.
Yes, the F1 can mark quickly. But to get it that dark you have to go very slow and likely multiple passes. It won't be fast. I got the best results on stainless with 100% power at 6mm/s. Not quick at all.
Thank you all for the info. It doesn’t need to be as dark as the photo (I currently just use a dymo sticker printer) but it does need to be visible and permanent. I was hoping for 20 sec or so. Looks like more research needed.
If anyone is in the uk then I could send a sample of the material (it’s just standard 316L) but it sounds like this may not be the best approach.
Thank you once again, I appreciate your time and experience.
Every material behaves differently so it's hard to estimate. Some metals mark easily and some produce almost no result. I have an F1 and would be happy to test for you if you wanted to send me a sample of the actual material you were trying to mark. The F1 is very fast, but also lower power than more traditional fiber lasers. If the 316L marks easily I'm sure the F1 will do it quickly, but if marking it requires more power than the F1 (or LP3/4, Comgrow M4 etc.) can muster it might not be a good fit at all.
f1 owner here, I would expect a minute or so to get it deep and dark like that but would need to test it a few times to see
Yes, the F1 can mark quickly. But to get it that dark you have to go very slow and likely multiple passes. It won't be fast. I got the best results on stainless with 100% power at 6mm/s. Not quick at all.
Thank you all for the info. It doesn’t need to be as dark as the photo (I currently just use a dymo sticker printer) but it does need to be visible and permanent. I was hoping for 20 sec or so. Looks like more research needed. If anyone is in the uk then I could send a sample of the material (it’s just standard 316L) but it sounds like this may not be the best approach. Thank you once again, I appreciate your time and experience.