Custom Laser-Cut Parts, Cut and Finished as One Order

What does one order cover?

Take a laser-cut bracket that also needs four tapped holes, two bends, a pair of PEM nuts and black powder coat. That is one part on one print, and it is quoted as one order: the cut profile, each operation drawn on that print and the powder coat.

If a feature on the print cannot be cut or held as drawn, the quote says so and asks how you want it handled; nothing is substituted quietly. When a bracket or a box could go either way, custom CNC brackets compares a bracket machined from solid with one laser cut and bent, and machined enclosures and housings covers the box milled from a block. If you have been buying flat blanks from an instant-quote platform and doing the tapping, bending and coating yourself, the SendCutSend alternative page sets out where each route fits.

What should the print carry?

A DXF or STEP gives the shape. Everything else goes on the PDF print: the material and temper (5052-H32 or 6061-T6, not just “aluminum”), the thickness as a decimal (0.125 in), the quantity and the revision. For a tapped hole, give the thread and depth (1/4-20 through, M6 x 1.0); for a countersink, the angle and diameter; for a bend, the angle, the inside radius and the flange dimensions that matter. Hardware goes on as a part number at each location (PEM CLS-632-2, for example), and the finish by name and color.

Radius the inside corners where the design allows: at a sharp 90-degree corner the cutting head has to slow down, which can overburn the corner and leave dross (source 1). Mark which faces are cosmetic and which edges may carry a light burr. The file guide for laser cutting goes through a clean DXF layer by layer. A dimensioned sketch, a new sample part or photos can start the quote too; CAD from a sketch, sample or photos is quoted as its own line, and the quote lists whatever is missing. The quote form takes the whole package in one upload.

Which material fits the part?

For laser-cut metal parts, the print names the alloy and temper; for aluminum the choice turns on the bends. 5052-H32 bends about the way mild steel does, while 6061-T6 needs an inside bend radius of at least six times its thickness (source 2), so a part with tight bends is usually drawn in 5052. Both are on laser-cut aluminum parts. Cold-rolled sheet and hot-rolled plate are on laser-cut steel parts, and 304 and 316 on laser-cut stainless steel parts, with the grade question on laser cut stainless 304 vs 316.

C260 brass and C110 copper have their own brass and copper page, and Grade 2 and Grade 5 sheet are on laser-cut titanium parts. The plastics page says which plastics a laser cuts cleanly and which it does not. Other alloys and plastics quoted on request. Name the grade on the print.

What can be added after the cut?

Threads and countersinks go into holes cut in the profile, and tapped and countersunk holes covers the callouts. Self-clinching hardware gives thin sheet a load-bearing thread, and the type follows the sheet: PEM lists Types S, SS, CLS and CLSS for steel or aluminum sheet and Type SP for stainless, each with a maximum sheet hardness, and specifies the mounting hole at +0.003/-0.000 in (source 3). Name the part number at each hardware location on the print; PEM nuts and studs installed covers hole size, edge distance, which sheet takes which hardware, and where the hardware falls in the finishing sequence.

Bends are covered on laser-cut and bent brackets. An inside radius of about one material thickness works for steel and stainless (source 2). The inside radius is quoted as drawn, with a note if it won’t form. Keep the dimensions that matter on one flat where you can: Steve Benson, as quoted in The Fabricator, notes that a ±0.006 in swing in sheet thickness can mean as much as 4 degrees of variation in an air-bent angle, and the same article notes that each added bend compounds the error (source 4).

A hole that has to be a fit is cut undersize and reamed, since a reamer opens an existing hole by a small amount with high accuracy (source 5). A counterbore, a milled pocket or a faced boss is added after the cut in the same way. Laser-cut plus secondary machining covers those features, and tapped and machined as one order shows how to draw them. Welded assemblies built from cut blanks are on laser-cut and welded assemblies.

A finish called out on the print is quoted with the part. The finishing page covers finishes on cut parts, the finish hub compares the options, and powder coating and anodizing each have their own page.

How are laser tolerances quoted?

The cut profile and the bends are quoted from your print; where the print gives no tolerance, the quote states the tolerance used. The laser cut tolerances page covers kerf, taper, the ISO 9013 measures and how to write the print. Every cut edge has a heat-affected zone, a non-issue for almost all parts, though some aerospace work avoids laser cutting for that reason, and from about 0.50 in thick the edge starts to show a taper (source 1).

Put the general tolerance in the title block, give the two or three features that matter their own tolerance, and leave cosmetic edges open so the quote carries no work you do not need.

How does the order run?

The quote lists the price and anything on the print that needs a decision. If a part doesn’t match the print, it’s remade or credited. No C of C or material certifications ship with parts by default. If your PO needs them, say so before the quote. Inspection reports on critical dimensions aren’t included by default. If you need one, ask when you place the order.

To place an order, approve the quote. Vendor setup takes a day: W-9, NDA and net terms are available. Card by secure link (a processing fee applies), ACH, wire or check.

Sources

All accessed 27 September 2026. Where a figure here differs from your print, the print governs.

1. Kevin Fradette, “Considerations for designing parts for laser cutting”, The Fabricator, 1 February 2016: thefabricator.com (sharp corners and dross, the heat-affected zone, taper from 0.50 in, oxide on oxygen-cut edges and powder coat, maximum thickness falling with laser power).

2. Gerald Davis, “What to know about sheet metal bend radius and minimum flange”, The Fabricator, 5 August 2017, updated 1 February 2023: thefabricator.com (inside bend radius by alloy).

3. PennEngineering, “Self-Clinching Nuts - Types S, SS, CLS, CLSS, SP - Unified”, PEM catalog: catalog.pemnet.com/viewitems/nuts-types-s-ss-cls-clss-cla-sp/self-clinching-nuts-types-s-ss-cls-clss-sp-unified (threads in thin sheet, fastener type by sheet material, sheet hardness limits, mounting hole tolerance).

4. Tim Heston, “Reasonable tolerancing for press brake bending”, The Fabricator, 11 September 2018: thefabricator.com (sheet thickness variation and bend angle; variation growing with each bend).

5. Wikipedia, “Reamer”: en.wikipedia.org (a reamer enlarges an existing hole slightly with high accuracy).