Due to its thick shell and high water content, cutting entirely through a pumpkin may not be the best application for a laser; however, engraving it is definitely doable (and super popular!)
Here we’ll walk you through the steps of creating your own custom jack-o-lantern, complete with ghoulish laser-engraved designs!
We used a 120-watt M2 40 Fusion with the following settings:
Raster: Speed 55% // Power 100% // DPI 600 // Standard Engraving // 4" Lens // 3 Passes
Download the engraving files and adjust the artwork accordingly.
Once you have modified the artwork to your liking, it's time to engrave. Start by locating the flattest area available on your pumpkin. Manually focus your laser between the highest and lowest points on your designated engraving area. You’ll want the laser to stay as focused as possible, so you may need to scale down your design to fit within a smaller area. We utilized the 4-inch lens to cover a larger area on our pumpkins. Use whatever materials you have on hand (modeling clay, wood blocks, etc.) to prop you pumpkin up in the laser so that it does not roll around during the engraving. We used a few pen jigs.
Manually focus the laser to the center point of your engraving. Next, run the vector outline (remember to have the red dot pointer on and leave the lid open) to ensure your placement is where you want. Once you're satisfied, send the job to the laser and press go!
Where can you sell custom pumpkins?
We'll send you a brochure, as well as engraved and cut samples created with the laser.
Visit our full Sample Club for more ideas of what you can create with a laser system from Epilog.
View our full line of Co2 and Fiber laser engraving and cutting systems to see which is right for you.
