Hi,
Was wondering if anyone had tried to carve into laminate flooring of any type?
Was considering it for smaller signs and such.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks
There are different types of “laminate” but I’m not sure that would look very good. A lot of it looks essentially like cardboard on the inside, and the top “veneer” can be a bit apt to chip in the cheaper types.
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I frequently use engineered wood flooring and vinyl flooring to make small signs and coasters. Some laminates destroy/dull bits/blades faster than others so use caution. Vinyl and engineered flooring I think work best out of these products.
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My suggestion would be to stop by the big box store and pick up a few FREE samples (usually 4 x 4 squares) of the flooring you want to try. Design a simple pattern and give it a try. No expense but lots of experience. Good Luck.
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Some of the clear finishes on hardwood floors contain aluminum oxide (the stuff used to make sandpaper). It’s very tiny so it’s not visible so you can’t see it. It’s there so as the finish wears down the hard aluminum oxide comes to the surface to slow down the wear. It’s suspended in the clear when they spray it on at the factory. It’ll dull bits so be careful.
Here is one of the samples from Home Depot that I carved into. Just used a 90 degree V bit, I don’t remember the speeds and feeds. We use the samples as coasters often times so I thought I would personalize them a little bit.
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Carve/cut vinyl flooring ALL the time! Works great for coasters or misc. small signs. On the standard size 3.75" coasters, I’ve switched to 1/8" self-stick flooring and back it with self-stick cork backing (North Valley CNC coaster). Larger table size coasters, I still use 1/4" flooring (Flint Vehicle City coaster).
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Thanks all.
Ran a few tests in spare pieces we had laying around.
Came out pretty good. Will try to get my wife to post pictures as I cannot do it with me phone.
