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Fiber metal marking (practical guide)

Fiber galvos earn their keep on metals: logos, serials, annealed blacks, deep marks, and (with the right source) color. This page is a shop map — not a settings spreadsheet. Build your own library with labeled grids.

Course: Metal marking is faster when LightBurn hatch tools feel natural — Master LightBurn.

Match the mark to the metal

Goal Typical approach Notes
High-contrast logo on stainless Anneal / black mark or light etch Alloy quality changes how “black” it goes
Coated / anodized aluminum Remove coating for contrast Often easier than bare bright aluminum
Bare aluminum deep mark Higher energy density, tighter hatch, multiple passes Heat management matters
Brass / copper Reflective — needs good focus and enough fluence Scrap-test; don’t copy video claims blindly
Color on stainless Controlled heating (MOPA preferred) Not durable like a paint fill; light-angle dependent

Hatch, frequency, and pulse width

On pulsed fibers, frequency and (MOPA) pulse width sit beside power and speed. Changing only power is why many first libraries look muddy. Run grids that vary one axis at a time, then save winners with lens name and metal grade in the note field.

Community pattern (not our numbers)

Deep aluminum discussions online often combine relatively high power, moderate speed, fine hatch spacing, and many passes. Exact figures vary wildly by wattage and lens — treat any shared recipe as a scrap-test seed, never as a guarantee.

Want this to click faster? Master LightBurn walks the tools and workflows step by step — lifetime access, one clear path.

Focus tricks people argue about

Some operators anneal “in focus”; others raise/lower a few millimeters for black stainless. Both camps exist in public threads. The shared truth: pick a method, fixture height, and re-grid when the lens changes. Do not chase color and deep engrave with the same assumption about focus.

Fixturing and heat

Thin tags and coins warp. Use jigs, intermittent passes, or thermal sinks when needed. Fingerprints and oils change color results — wipe parts before “final” color jobs.

Production tips

  • Batch by alloy and thickness so focus stays put
  • Photograph successful coupons next to a handwritten settings note
  • For client logos, proof on the actual blank lot — coated tumblers vary
  • Price color and deep work for the testing time, not only the burn time (pricing)

What not to expect

  • CO₂-style wood cutting performance
  • One settings file that works on every stainless grocery spoon
  • Instant wide-gamut color on a basic Q-switched unit without frustration

Sources and further reading

Go further

Primary next step

Master LightBurn

Structured LightBurn training from Bearded Builds — skip the scattered YouTube rabbit holes. Lifetime access with updates.

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