Using our extensive expertise in the manufacturing of optical breadboards and optical tables, Base Lab Tools offers a unique abilities that cannot be found anywhere else.

Our honeycomb optical tables and optical breadboards are designed using a composite core that eliminates the need compensate for a bad core design with messy oil bladders or extra weights needed in all metal core optical tables and breadboards. Starting with the key component of the honeycomb table and breadboard design optimized, we are then able to offer our ultra lightweight 3/16" (5mm) aluminum skins. Likewise we can coat the breadboard and table skins with either a black laser safe coating, white clean-room coating, or black anodized finish.

For our solid aluminum breadboards, we can do thicknesses up to 1" (25 mm) and plates as large as 48" x 96" (1.2 m x 2.4 m) making Base Lab Tools the only manufacturer of solid aluminum breadboards in the world offering such large solid aluminum breadboards from stock as well as custom. Beyond this, Base Lab Tools has the ability to manufacture almost any custom solid aluminum optical breadboard within 2 weeks. In fact more than 98% of our custom solid aluminum breadboard orders go out in less than 2 weeks, made in our US manufacturing facility and at a lower cost than other custom breadboard manufacturers. We can make this happen because optical breadboards and optical tables are our main business, not a side business as with so many large photonics catalog companies.

How do I choose whether I need a solid aluminum or honeycomb core optical breadboard? It all has to do with rigidity.  The rule of thumb is that the thicker the breadboard, the more ridged (less deflection for a given weight). As an example, here is a sided by side test of a 1/2" (13mm) aluminum breadboard compared to a 2" (50mm) core steel skins breadboard.