Kerf test gauge generator

Generate a laser kerf test pattern: a slot gauge stepping around your material thickness plus a reference square, labelled, as a downloadable SVG.

Measure your laser's kerf on the material you are about to cut. The gauge has a row of slots stepping around your material thickness and a reference square; one cut tells you the exact kerf to enter for tight joints.

Why kerf matters

A laser does not cut on a line, it removes a strip of material about 0.1–0.3 mm wide. On a box joint that strip is taken from both the tab and the slot, so an uncompensated joint is loose by a full kerf. Measuring once per material and lens, and entering that number in your box generator or nesting software, is the difference between a press fit and a glue-filled gap.

Using the gauge

1. Cut the gauge at the power, speed and focus you will use for the real job.
2. Take an offcut of the same material and try it in each slot. Note the first slot it enters without force.
3. Kerf = that slot's label − measured material thickness. Measure the thickness too: nominal 3 mm is rarely 3.00.
4. Confirm with the square: (drawn − measured) ÷ 2 is the kerf per side.

Related tools

• Material test grid: Power × speed squares, one layer each, to dial in a new material in one burn.
• Spur gear generator: True involute gears from module and tooth count, a meshing pair with its centre distance.
• Box generator: Closed box, open tray, lift-off lid or divided tray with finger joints, as one SVG.