Can the xTool S1 Cut Acrylic? A Laser Cutter Buy Checklist From Someone Who Ruined a Sheet

If you've typed "lazer cutter machine" with a z, I get it. I did the same thing in 2021. The z didn't help the search results, but it taught me something: I knew what I wanted in a general way, and I had no idea what to check before buying.

I run a small personalization shop. I've been operating an xTool S1 for three-plus years and I've documented my mistakes: roughly $2,400 in wasted materials and rework. Some of that was acrylic. Some of it was plain impatience. This checklist is the one I wish someone had handed me before I made my first laser cutter buy.

Can the xTool S1 cut acrylic? Short answer: yes. Long answer: it depends on the acrylic, the module, the speed, and how you define "cut." That's not a dodge—it's the first thing you need to understand.

Who this checklist is for

Use this before you search for an xtool s1 engraver, before you place an order, and before you tell yourself "I'll figure out settings later." If you already own one, use it when you switch materials or want to try making products for holiday sales.

Six checks. No fluff. You can do all of them in one sitting.

1. Start with the material, not the machine

A lot of buyers start with wattage. I started with wattage too. Wrong first question. The right question is: What exact materials and thicknesses do I need to make this month?

Acrylic exposes this better than any other material. "Can the xTool S1 cut acrylic?" is the wrong version of the question because all acrylic is not the same. Extruded, cast, clear, colored, masked, coated—every variant behaves differently on a diode laser. Clear acrylic, in particular, can be a problem: the beam may pass through instead of being absorbed. Colored acrylic usually works better, but the formula and dye matter.

Here's where I have to be honest. I don't have hard data on every acrylic sheet on the market. I can tell you anecdotally that my S1 with the 40W module has cut 3mm black acrylic cleanly, and the same machine has made an absolute mess of a "clear" sheet from a different vendor. Same setting? No. Same plan? No. That's the point.

2. Calculate the total cost, not the sticker price

The machine price is the tip of the iceberg. If you're comparing a "laser cutter buy," you need to include: the enclosure, exhaust/fan, air assist, rotary attachment, modules, materials, safety gear, and time. Especially time.

I didn't count my first three weeks of trial and error as a cost. They were. Every test cut, every failed attempt, every burned sheet—that all has a dollar value. The cheap machine gets expensive when it eats up your evenings.

Now I calculate total cost of ownership before comparing anything. I'd rather pay more for a package that includes the accessories I actually need and works out of the box than save $300 and spend 20 hours trying to make the "cheaper" option behave.

3. Plan ventilation before the package arrives

I almost skipped this one. The S1 is a well-built desktop unit, but it still produces smoke and odor. Some materials produce fumes you don't want in your lungs. You need airflow, and you need to avoid materials like PVC that can create toxic gas.

Most buyers focus on speed and miss the extraction part entirely. Then the first engraving smells like a burnt appliance and they're Googling "lazer cutter machine ventilation" at midnight. I was that person.

Set up the workspace before you unbox the laser, not after.

4. Run a settings test on the same material batch

This is the step I absolutely have not skipped since November 2023, because I learned the hard way. I had a 24-piece order of wooden ornaments. I tested the design on a scrap from an old sheet. The scrap looked fine. The new batch was a different wood species and thickness, and every single ornament came out with charred edges.

Twenty-four pieces. Straight to the reject pile. It cost me roughly $120 in materials and a weekend redo.

The fix is boring and reliable: use the same material, same thickness, same finish, same batch if possible. Run a test grid at different speeds and powers. Then inspect it in daylight, not under a weird LED. Then, and only then, start your production run.

One thing most people ignore: refocus after changing the module or material thickness. According to xTool's official specs (xtool.com), the S1 accepts interchangeable laser modules in 10W, 20W, and 40W. That flexibility is great, but it means you have to re-test every time you switch heads. The settings for a 20W module are not the settings for a 40W module.

5. Keep a settings log, including failures

I did not keep a settings log in year one. I kept a shoebox of half-used materials and a memory full of false confidence. Then I tried to recreate a cut I'd done a month earlier and failed for an hour. It was infuriating.

Now our shop records every test in a simple spreadsheet: date, material name/vendor, thickness, color, module, power, speed, passes, focus distance, air assist on/off, DPI, and a photo of the result. We write down the failures too—especially the failures.

This sounds small. It's not. A good settings log turns one successful test into a repeatable product. Without it, you're paying for the same education twice.

6. Start with one product before you make Christmas inventory

If you search "laser engraving christmas ideas," you'll find ornaments, tags, coasters, place cards, snowflake shapes, leather keychains, you name it. It's exciting. It's also a trap.

I made 80 wooden ornaments one December without validating the final design on the actual material. The design looked great on a flat sheet. On the ornament, the text overlapped the branch texture. I had to redo half of them.

Pick one simple product with a proven material, make five, test them in your hand, show them to one picky customer, then scale. If you're selling them, keep the marketing claims honest. Per FTC guidelines (ftc.gov), claims about products must be truthful and backed up. Don't call a laser-cut birch ornament "unbreakable" just because it's not glass.

Last check: do the test twice

The final check is the one before you press Start. Do it twice. Check the material, check the focus, check the file, check the exhaust, and check the same spot on the bed. Walking away for thirty seconds has saved me more times than I can count.

That's the whole checklist. It's not glamorous. But it's how you avoid spending $2,400 to learn what should have been a $40 test-sheet lesson.