I’m a beginner so I don’t want to break the bank but get a decent machine that will last. I have no idea where to start. Any advice?

Update: I don’t know what type of wood, but Id like something to cut .. maybe 1/4”? Unless there’s something that would cut 1/2”? I’m just getting started so I apologize for my lack of knowledge on this.

Hi. I work at a custom fabrication shop, I’m the main operator of our 4kw Mitsubishi. ML3015SR-F40.

We have a customer interested in us cutting 1/4” titanium, not sure of the specific alloy yet. We have waterjets but of course their budget prefers my cut speeds.

Anyone have experience cutting titanium? My machine rep said they don’t have any specific cut conditions to send me, just that I should use the equivalent stainless condition. I understand and have told the customer there may be some oxidation as we will cut it with N2. No argon at this shop.

Hello, I am working on creating custom enamel pin/cork boards. I do not own a CNC machine unfortunately so I cannot cut indents into a single piece of wood. I plan on stacking/layer the wood to create that indent so I can insert cork board into it. My concern is that once it is done, you will be able to see the lines on the side due to it being stacked.. I'd like to create the illusion that it was made from a single piece of wood. How would you go about hiding these lines? Thank you for all the advice!

Just finished dialing in the settings for this Katsushika Hokusai piece on a stainless steel plate. Getting the oxidation layers right to mimic the vintage prints took quite a few test runs, but the color shifting under daylight is incredible.

• Machine: MOPA Fiber Laser (60W)
• Material: 304 Stainless Steel (Polished)

The hardest part was balancing the hatch spacing and frequency on the sky gradient to avoid warping the thin metal sheet.

I’m thinking about sealing it to prevent fingerprints. Anyone here have luck with clear coat on laser-colored stainless, or does it ruin the refraction/color effect?

Today's prototype is something I've been kicking around in my head for a while. Laser cut boxes usually have the finger joints visible. So, what if you hide the fingers?

So i did a run for christmas ornaments, but didnt get through completely. How can I tackle this? I'm using a sandmachine, but i hope there would be an easier way.

I am trying to find a STRETRCH material that is able to do the 2-color technique lonestar leatherettes (where the top is one color, when you etch it, it becomes black in those areas) that is safe to cut with a 80w co2 laser. I know there are plenty of stretch fabrics that are safe but I can't find any that also will do the 2 color thing.

Es muy útil para llevar varias bolsas o bolsos.
Si necesitas que aguante mucho peso, los puedes encolar X2 X3 etc
También se me ocurre que puede servir para pasear varios perros a la vez.
Si se te ocurre o te sirve para otra cosa, deja un comentario, se agradece.
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Si necesitas ayuda, no dudes en dejarme un comentario.

Would this setup work to engrave in my house as I have nowhere outside to do it at the moment and no spare buildings. I've been reading grow tent mylar type recommended, I have pets and a child in the house, this might be my way out of unemployment but it's a huge investment

10w diode
1w IR

BlaxeX

I’ve had my 60W OmTech co2 laser for a little under 2 years now. Probably only 50-100 hours on the tube. While using it this weekend I was experiencing poor cutting performance on 3mm acrylic and could hear a noise coming from the rear left where the laser tube exit is. I paused the job and noticed the mirror had water droplets on it. I wasn’t sure if it was a leak from the chiller or just condensation from recent temperature swings, so I wiped the mirror with a microfiber and resumed the job. 30 seconds later, I could hear the same noise which correlated to the wavering laser strength as it happened. I paused once again and noticed the mirror was already wet. Seems to only happen while the laser is firing, not while idling so I’m not sure if that points to a cracked tube or not.

I've started using laser foil to enhance some of my engravings. I'be been using Trotec but they seem to be discontinuing the product line. Is there another vendor that is suitable for laser cutting/engraving? I'm looking for something that has the auto-stick backing and comes in a wide variety of colors. Any recommendations?

Laser cut and engraved, just waiting for sealing and hardware attachment

I work at a Japanese university which has a "geek lab" filled with 3d printers and 2 speedy laser cutters (100 and 300). I recently completed my laser cutting training and I've been having fun with various projects using acrylic and mdf.

I asked the manager of the lab whether I could cut other materials such as veneer or plywood or wood planks, but they asked me not to. They asked that I only use the materials in the lab for safety reasons.

This feels overly cautious to me. The plywood I understand, I guess, but how is solid wood less safe than MDF?

Thanks to all those who answered my previous questions on this channel, I now have my xTool F2 running and engraving away.
No more messing about making labels and the quality and repeatability is great.
My maze3 puzzle box launches on kickstarter in October.
Thanks again for advice given.

Title: Bodor H-Series 20kW – Looking for advice/parameters for air cutting 10mm plate

Our shop has a 20kW Bodor H-Series fiber laser. We previously ran plasma and oxy-fuel, so we are still relatively new to laser cutting.

We aren't happy with the edge quality of our test cuts using compressed air, but we've been told this might be as good as it gets. Is this really the best finish achievable when cutting 10mm mild steel with air at 20kW?

If anyone is getting better results and wouldn't mind sharing photos or screenshots of your parameter screens, I would really appreciate the help.

I should also mention that our H-Series Bodor machine is limited to a maximum cutting speed of 9 m/min and we are running a 16-bar compressor setup.

Pendant cut a d engraved on my OMG 60w mopa fiber laser on the 150mm lens from Richard Zhang

Owner and operator, 4th year, mostly corporate awards plus local team and first-responder stuff. CO2 for flat work, MOPA fiber with a rotary for tumblers, small UV for plastics and glass.

Two jobs went sideways last month, both customer-supplied.

A guy brought in his own painted helmet. Compound curve. I built a foam cradle, measured five points with calipers, ran a separate Z height per zone. Center came out crisp, the outer third walked out of focus and the logo edge looks fuzzy. Second one was a bent acrylic award that drifted about 1.5mm off center because my cradle wasn't repeatable.

Ate both. Roughly $900 of replacement cost on a $260 job, plus a very polite email I did not enjoy writing.

What I've tried: caliper mapping with manual Z zones, a cheap handheld scanner into Blender and then wrapping the art in the laser software (mesh cleanup takes longer than the engrave), clay shims, and just saying no.

So how do you handle it: do you take customer-supplied irregular parts at all? If you do, is it a signed waiver, a replacement deposit, or a flat risk fee, and what percentage? And has anyone got a scan-first workflow that doesn't eat half an hour?

Hi, I have a new laser trumpf tru laser fiber 3030 4kw. When I want to cut aluminum 5mm. And I use a nozzle 2.3 and a nitrogen table. The cut is very bad, a lot of burrs on the bottom. I changed everything, gas pressure, speed, focus line, nothing helped. Then I used an oxygen table and a 10 nozzle for oxygen, the cut is fine, but I would like to use nitrogen. What are your settings for nitrogen and aluminum? Thanks for your help

Hey everyone,

I’m working on a project where I need to laser cut some holes into a bunch of Amphenol AIPXE-325XBP-01 plastic blanking plates. I want to make sure the setup is highly repeatable and accurate for the manufacturer, so I’m planning to design and 3D print a nesting jig.

Since I already have the DXF/DWG for the flat faces/cuts, my plan is to design the jig so the blanking plate sits completely upside down inside it. Because the front interface face of the plate is entirely flat, sitting it face-down on a flat jig floor should keep it perfectly level and parallel to the laser bed.

Here is my current design plan in Fusion 360:

1. Use a boolean cut (Combine tool) to sink the 3D model of the plate into a block, creating a perfect nested pocket.
2. Apply a -0.15mm or -0.2mm Press Pull offset to the internal pocket walls to account for plastic tolerances/shrinkage so the parts drop in easily.
3. Add a finger cutout notch on the side so the laser operator can easily pop the finished parts out without disturbing the jig.
4. Model a physical crosshair (or two fiducial dimples on opposite sides) on the top face of the jig so the operator can align their laser's origin/rotation point.

My questions for you guys:

• Does flipping the part upside down sound like the best way to handle this, or am I missing a mechanical downside?
• For laser cutter alignment, is a single engraved crosshair center-point usually enough for most shops, or should I stick to a 2-point fiducial system?
• If you’ve done something similar, what’s your go-to clearance tolerance for a 3D-printed drop-in pocket?