There have been a couple posts about using masking tape for laser engraving. I had a project where I needed to engrave a name in quartersawn Sycamore and then paint the name. I tried this with the blue masking paint with spray paint but did not get the color I wanted.
I tried again but used acrylic red paint and painted several times. There was no seepage under the tape. I engraved this pretty deep to get the effect that I wanted.
I haven't experimented enough with normal tape, however, I believe there are a lot of new tapes with various properties that may serve better than the blue masking tape.
I use special laser tape, though it's primarily used to protect the surface from charring. It costs a small fortune, but as it usually comes in bulk, meter by meter usually works out cheaper than traditional masking tape.
The thing I hate about tape is that if you engrave small, it's hard to remove the left overs inside the letters (as in say "A") and sanding it off is a PITA and jeopardises blowing through the engraving if not deep enough.
If your first cut is too short... Take the second cut from the longer end... LBD
Wow, just saw this topic, better late than never as someone, somewhere might have said.
Looks crisp and clean BE! as the Duck points out, you need to protect from burn "splatter" and keep the paint away. #1 is really easy as I have not had trouble with either the blue tape or regular masking tape to keep splatter under control.
#2 really depends more on the wood type and what you are filling with. Open grain woods (oak, ash, etc.) like to bleed anything, everywhere, Really impossible to get a good surface seal with tape, probably better to seal with shellac and try the tape over that.
I've had colored epoxy fills follow the pores and seep out the back with some open gain wood. Closed grain stuff (cherry, maple) is a real joy. Even and sharp edges with no leakage.
I have used the blue masking tape on several projects. Did not use spray paint but brushed in Acrylic Paint. Worked fine. As to the small pieces of tape in the letters like small e or an a a simple pick lifts them off fine. I have a couple of dental picks that the dentist no longer uses. Lately though just woodfiller with eye candy brand tints. Even very small script filled nicely. Did use tape first to control any charing or burning.
Yeah, for the troublesome bits in small letter interiors, if I can't pick off, I'll just sand them off since I sand the whole surface anyway after I'm finished (gets rid of any bleeding too!)
You do need to take care if the fill is not 100% to the top since the little spires can be fragile.
