If you use the right ink, the right plastic keycaps made for mechanical keyboards, and the right settings on your laser, you can effectively dye-sublimate any design you want.
this post was submitted on 25 May 2024
68 points (91.5% liked)
I Made This
2503 readers
1 users here now
Did you make something? Do you want the fleeting rush of endorphins that come with affirmation from strangers? Do you think what you made is neat? Share it here!
Paintings, movies, music, drawings, models, gardens, houses, snowmen, sandcastles - if you made it, you can post it.
RULES:
Some things you make are not to be shared. These include:
- Messes
- Children
- Biological... byproducts
- Bigotry
Do not be a jerk.
- No racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, classism, or bigotry of any kind.
- Don't try to sell stuff unless people ask. You can post your Etsy (or similar) if someone prompts you. No spamming self-promotion.
<3
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
That is really neat! I never even thought of that. Are you using an intermediate layer like sublimation paper to transfer the ink, and then you heat the specific shape with the laser? I saw you said you used the pens, but I have never tried anything with those. I mostly just press shirts for my kids and do a lot of nothing with my laser. I’d love to try something like this.
For my specific laser and use case, I don't need sublimation paper. I just make sure that I use light color keycaps made of primarily of PBT (not ABS!), I cover the entire keycap with a Cricut infusible ink marker, and then I find that a very low power setting and moving very slow gives me almost no "overspray". On these two keys, which look a bit better in person than in that zoomed in photo, I made a point of cleaning with isopropyl alcohol first, and that seemed to help.
That is really cool. Thanks for replying. I'm gonna try this out on something.
I recommend running some trials with your own laser, but for my 5w Comgrow Z1, 2% power and 45mm/minute ended up working well for PBT plastic. There are probably “sweet spots” at higher power and speeds, but low and slow came out best for me. Good luck!