Abstract: A chamber is pressurized with a natural gas and air mixture. The pressure moves a piston and die to compress material to be formed into a part. The pressurized gas and air mixture is ignited with a laser beam focused with a lens or collimator into a point or fine line in a center of the chamber. Rapid combustion of the gas and air mixture drives the piston and die, compacting the part into a net shape. The focused laser beam centrally ignites pressurized gas and air mixture providing controlled combustion in the chamber and preventing damaging detonation. The focused point beam is used in chambers having length to diameter L/D aspect ratio of 2 or less than 2. The collimated thin beam is used in chambers having L/D greater than 2.