Author Topic: 40W 300x200mm Laser Cutter Engraver - Vollerun (Read 18963 times)

beanflying · « **on:** July 12, 2018, 06:59:12 am »

First off NO this is not a cheap K40/Blue evilbay laser. It is a mid priced Vollern WR3020 one from http://en.voiernlaser.com/ and ordered from here https://www.aliexpress.com/store/2857016?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.653c4c4d4yXqoi

Basic transaction was fairly simple dealing with Ronny whose English is good. For a freight option I used TNT air which was under a week for delivery. Sea Freight would have meant port fees handling and a delay so Air made sense in this case.

Basic specs are 40W, 300x200mm Bed, Air Assist nozzle, water cooled and adjustable height bed. It includes water and air pumps and also an extraction fan and ducting. Mine also came with an Aluminium Honeycomb platform and the standard fixture platform.

The costs of a cheap K40 brought to this spec with extras and time spent makes this one well worth considering.

It will take a few days to get to a first cut so patience including for me

The few shots in this post are just a quick look at. There is a few minor cosmetic issues (including a crack of the front window) to deal with but generally packaging and contents look good

BradC · « **Reply #1 on:** July 12, 2018, 07:03:23 am »

Watching with keen interest

beanflying · « **Reply #2 on:** July 12, 2018, 07:26:13 am »

Adjustable feet on. I forgot before the head also includes a low power laser diode for initial setup.

Linear Rail and belt drive seems really nice on the cross axis. The other axis runs a dual ended Nema Stepper driving belts at each side and a chunky rail and cable rack.

TERRA Operative · « **Reply #3 on:** July 12, 2018, 10:16:03 am »

First job is to peel that blue plastic film off the PSU enclosure!

Best part of a new thing is peeling the protective film off.

beanflying · « **Reply #4 on:** July 12, 2018, 10:24:32 am »

Agreed

Blue film removed from the stock bed, external handles, paper removed from the cracked window and I will get into the PSU tomorrow when I have a proper look at the electrics and in particular the Earthing on the Chinese made product

beanflying · « **Reply #5 on:** July 13, 2018, 02:23:18 am »

Earthing - CHECK

General cabling on the mains side looks up to the job, sensible lengths of cable and heat shrink on all of them. The universal 2 pin plugs on the rear aren't ideal but at 25W and 15W for the air and water pumps are not really a major issue. The main extraction fan doesn't have any spec but looks around 50W.

First mod of sorts will be fitting the air pump for the nozzle in the electronics bay. There is plenty of airflow available with a 50mm hole in the floor with this air then being drawn through the main chamber exhaust fan so any heat will get removed. The air pump has rubber feet already do vibration transferred to the case and laser will be minimal if any.

Note commencing the removal of the evil blue plastic too

beanflying · « **Reply #6 on:** July 13, 2018, 05:37:03 am »

Loom tidied up. 20 Cable ties instead of 3 helps a lot.

Exposed mains pins on the cutting bay LED light disconnected. Added two cable grommets where the single insulated cable went through the chassis.

Rest of the Blue plastic removed and a peek inside the laser power supply for good measure.

Air Pump installed, wired internally, vibration seems fine.

beanflying · « **Reply #7 on:** July 13, 2018, 06:56:40 am »

LAME

10% spot test. Proper setup and some test cuts later or tomorrow but so far so good

Punched through the cardboard at 10% btw looks nice and clean even way out of focus.

30% quick test on some scrap Ply. May not have been clear on the spec or the earlier photos but the front of the laser is removable which means you can feed it longer stock x 300mm wide and use the laser to cut that strip if needed. So get your 2.4x1.2m sheets stripped to 300 wide then play, locally our Bunnings with do this for $0

beanflying · « **Reply #8 on:** July 14, 2018, 02:37:18 am »

Some details of the adjustable bed and a few photos of the Cable chains.

Fairly straight forward upgrade at some stage if I think it is needed will be adding a simple stepper drive and motor to electrically raise and lower the bed. Currently there is a wheel under the unit that drives the 4 legs via the toothed belt. If as I suspect it will mainly get used for .5 - 3mm materials it won't be needed but for $20-30 worth of bits it could be done. This was one of the major reasons to get this over the K40 with a fixed bed, so many videos on youutube showing props platforms and such rubbish to get a correct focal length for a given material thickness.

The LED light at the back provides plenty of light and now the other ends pins are disconnected electrically it's 240V is safer.

Adding a laser lockout switch to the lid would be easy if anyone thought is needed. Certainly for a school or where multiple people had access to it highly recommended.

Time to install some software and check the Laser alignment and focus. Several Coffees and or Beers may be required

beanflying · « **Reply #9 on:** July 14, 2018, 03:46:36 am »

There is a set of Australian Standards relating to Lasers and Laser Safety for higher power (Class 3&4) Lasers. Regulations on Lasers are a mixed bag that vary somewhat from State to State due to our out of date Federal Constitution like our electrical and gas safety laws and regulations

We do have limits on the power of Laser pointers for example (due to idiots pointing them at planes and people) and some regulations on medical Lasers (due to unskilled idiot 'beauty therapists') and there use but for industrial Lasers the Standards seem to be the best guide. We also have workplace Safety laws that will refer back to those standards, breaching those isn't an option unless you want to be shutdown or fined.

In the case of this or any Laser Cutter minimizing or removing the risks of Laser Reflections or Emissions is critical as is always wearing protective glasses. So to bring this particular unit closer to a low risk enclosure (Class 1) fitting magnetic interlocks on all doors, lightproof seals, keyswitches and such could and maybe should be done. As I mentioned in the preceding post easy to do.

Each country I am sure will vary so a discussion on this topic isn't easy on a forum with a worldwide membership.

Dare I say it but 'commonsense' applies and be careful out there

beanflying · « **Reply #10 on:** July 15, 2018, 02:46:45 am »

Not very adventurous but I don't have the extraction fan hooked up yet. 8% (reduced from 15% during the engrave due to burning) power for the engraved letters and 12% for the cut (to high). Edges fairly clean but power/speed needs a lot of playing. Fan hookup and plastics soon.

beanflying · « **Reply #11 on:** July 16, 2018, 01:18:21 am »

Taking a detour for a few days. Assembly time for my CR10S 3D Printer as the extraction fan mount sucks beyond all sensible....

2 days is because Creality first sent me a CR-10 not the S version I ordered and paid for so I need to swap most of the electronics out and add the second lead screw

Also looking at software for ongoing use of the Laser the plan is to use Inkscape https://inkscape.org/en/ with plugins from Scorch Works http://www.scorchworks.com/ The software that came with the Laser works 'ok' but is clunky in a Chinese/English sort of 1/2 finished way.

Happy to hear from anyone with better ideas on software?

Zucca · « **Reply #12 on:** July 20, 2018, 08:00:21 am »

Thanks beanflying for reporting all this.

beanflying · « **Reply #13 on:** July 20, 2018, 10:34:16 am »

Enjoying playing with new toys and software and this one was different to the stock K40 to be worth it

Got the CR-10S fairly well dialed in to print a new fan adapter but the models already made didn't really suit so I have been taking a crash course in Fusion 3D and learning to driver Slicing software. Drawings nearly done so I should get to print them tomorrow and while not perfect cosmetically the prints are mechanically up to the job. So some heavier cutting over the weekend I hope.

I will add the print files here if anyone wants them. They should suit the K40 too.

tautech · « **Reply #14 on:** July 20, 2018, 10:39:14 am »

Watching both the laser cutter and 3D printer with interest.

Is the glass platen heated ?

beanflying · « **Reply #15 on:** July 21, 2018, 12:31:07 am »

Running PLA for these tests. It does have an insulated heated bed. Gets easily to 70C+ in my sub 10C shack (really getting over winter!) With the PLA I am getting better adhesion and less warping with low temperatures on the bed (circa 20C) and the printer is going into a cabinet for elevated ambient temperatures for ABS and such.

Close up cat shots and a torture test I ran last night. Rather than clog up this thread maybe we need a dedicated 3D printer thread and their industrial uses (I haven't found one) now the printers have matured as a product? Youtube is an excellent Resource too.

BradC · « **Reply #16 on:** August 07, 2018, 03:51:17 am »

I'm hanging to see how this laser goes cutting acrylic.

beanflying · « **Reply #17 on:** August 15, 2018, 05:08:53 am »

Using some newly gained Remedial Fusion 360 skills and my 3D printer I have sorted out a modified exhaust flange for the stock fan. It is fairly airtight thanks in part due to the silicone tube inlaid into the flange. Part of the issue with the stock one was it needed to be removable to access the Laser Tube area with a little geometry and offset it can now stay in place and allow the door swing if needed. Also the stock one was sh1T like on all the K40 clones.

4mm Brass knurl nuts are dead easy to insert into the print and the outer flange I made suitable for fitting a better quality industrial blower if needed at some stage.

Happy to make the Fusion or STL files available but it needs a little tidy up to make it really nice.

The Laser can no go into a more final location and get to doing some proper cutting.

beanflying · « **Reply #18 on:** August 19, 2018, 11:29:16 am »

So I went to the big smoke to buy an outlet flange to punch through the shed wall. #FAIL #NILSTOCK

So back to Fusion 360 which is growing on me. Two custom interlocking flanges 89mm ID on the way in for the Blue supplied flexible pipe and 90mm on the outside for a standard stormwater elbow and a ring to retain some flywire to keep the buggs from getting inside. Reason to use a commercial elbow is mainly as the supports needed to 3D print it would have added 10-12 hours and cost more in filament than buying one.

Providing the Springtime Gales/Hail and Pouring Rain have a break tomorrow breakout the holesaw for the wall and some plastic lasering tomorrow.

beanflying · « **Reply #19 on:** August 20, 2018, 03:12:00 am »

As the rain comes in again so the plan worked a treat

knotlogic · « **Reply #20 on:** August 21, 2018, 11:39:20 am »

Is a plastic exhaust manifold a good idea? Some of the build/setup guides I've seen on the net recommend metal because of fire risk. Just sayin' - I don't have a laser cutter myself but was interested in getting one, and would have to squeeze it into a tiny apartment.

beanflying · « **Reply #21 on:** August 23, 2018, 04:39:32 am »

Not sure about the fire risk on the outlet $:-\$ . The only thing that will be exiting is smoke and plastic vapors and at 40W shouldn't be to hot but I could always throw a thermocouple near the outlet if it seems a problem. Different story if you were higher power and throwing sparks off metal I guess.

Minor delay my spare PC has is having Windoze 'Upgrade' issues so I am rebuilding another.

beanflying · « **Reply #22 on:** May 12, 2019, 04:33:40 am »

So I am re visiting this thread of mine after some useage with mainly Balsa, Ply and Card and all going well (touch wood).

This is still not a recommendation to buy from the seller and the minor inbound shipping damage finished up unresolved

Surprisingly I have done very little with Acrylic or plastics mainly due to my now fleet of 3 x 3D Printers

All I have done is get a decent feed speed and power for 2 and 3mm cuts but haven't got any settings for engraving or pushed the limits in anyway.

So I have got a small stack of Acrylic sheets and plan to make some side and bottom panels for my HP 419A that came without any as part of this.

Since last checked in I have dismantled the main cutting bed and rehoused it with a combination of 3D Printed sections and Aluminium Angle which makes doing multiple runs easy as there is a fixed locatable zero point to use as a reference due to the raised corner and edges. The small jack screws at the front of the Laser allow some adjustment of the bed.

More to follow....

Also a couple of shots of yesterdays 2mm Acrylic plate fitted into a 3DP printed enclosure wrapped around a 76 year old working and in spec. Weston Standard Cell

beanflying · « **Reply #23 on:** May 19, 2019, 08:35:36 am »

Just because Old HP Rocks, so none of that Agilent or Keysight Rubbish

Time for some engraving testing with Acrylic.

In order of most speed at the left and the best result 20% Power @ 300mm/s engraved and the outer cut was on 2mm Acrylic 40% power @ 10mm/sec. Some of the deeper slower engraves will lend themselves to paint filled enclosure fascias.

I will run some tests at lower power settings but the last one seems close to where it needs to be and the laser seems happy at that speed.

beanflying · « **Reply #24 on:** May 20, 2019, 02:17:16 am »

Cleaning up a couple of random boxes of 'stuff' today turned up a remnant of 6mm Acrylic so off to the Laser with it to help the cleanup.

Continuing on with a higher speed lower power engraving the 10% @ 300mm/sec is looking really sharp and clean. Maybe some very minor improvements to be made but unless you want to back fill the engraving with paint then this is about the correct setting.

I haven't tried cutting over 3mm Acrylic in the past so this was a quick Google some guesstimates on power and speed and call me amazed it was so easy

Several things of note focal range is important on thicker materials so set it toward the middle of the cut (adjustable bed is great!). The 4mm/s @ 70% is a better result than the 5mm but both released clean and you can see the edges are fairly well flame polished by the laser it is possible a reduction to 3mm might help but below is a different option that seems to work better again.

There is a very slight angle to the cuts (the parts still self stand so it is slight) and some visible Striations on the bottom of the cut. From what I have read this is caused in part by to much air from the nozzle causing cooling so I will be fitting a needle valve to the air system to reduce it for Acrylic cutting. This apparently allows the beam for focus the energy and heat with less cooling vertically through the cut.

I am thinking based on this that if needed 8mm Clear would be about the maximum cut for the laser but at that you are really into CNC Router or bandsaw territory with some edge sanding.

EDIT: Tried 2 and 3mm cut speeds of the tiny bit I had left. Cleaner but increased angle across the cut so air reduction is next.

beanflying · « **Reply #25 on:** May 20, 2019, 05:15:22 am »

Quick job on some 4.5mm Acrylic and something practical to help set the Laser height instead of the single block it came with. Text is viewed through the Acrylic at 2mm high and engraved (might work better as a vector cut). 50% Power @ 6mm/sec seems about the sweet spot and the edges are square and nicely flamed.

As to accuracy I didn't make any allowances for kerf on the design and each of the steps is consistently 0.15 - 0.18 mm under the drawing. It looks like the Laser cuts at this sort of width which depending on the job may or may not need to be accounted for.

beanflying · « **Reply #26 on:** May 21, 2019, 07:38:12 am »

Needs Back lighting or leave it subtle

I have Clear, Red and Yellow Translucent in stock but no just no on classic and classy HP and there is only Aluminium inner panel under the sides so apart from the engrave no point in seeing through.

Visible in person and under a flash photo but otherwise fairly invisible. Front side engraving while not to bad cosmetically I would rather not.

3mm Smoke Gray Acrylic. 10% raster engrave @ 300mm/sec. Cut is a conservative 50% power and 8mm/sec a bit faster would be fine too.

https://youtu.be/6wgNL6HqI9Y

beanflying · « **Reply #27 on:** May 22, 2019, 11:07:52 am »

So I changed my mind after a daylight look. 8% very fine glass type front side engrave and almost no depression from the face.

Other little job tonight was a cheapy RF Generator I got a while ago that arrived with a broken front face.

Measure with Callipers, 30 minutes in Fusion 360 and export as a 2D Cad file, import into Inkscape and add some colours for K40 Whisper software to know what is cut and what is engrave. The file shuffling is a bit of a pain but so much better than attempting to use the junk software provided initially. Quick Cardboard test not really needed as there isn't much plastic in the job then hit the 2mm Acrylic with the Laser peel and screw in place.

beanflying · « **Reply #28 on:** May 25, 2019, 03:31:15 am »

And some edge lit engraved testing. I designed up a 3D printed lightbox that takes a 100mm strip of LED Tape up to 10mm wide. 3mm Acrylic very lightly engraved with about 0.5W in the attached pics. Zero refinishing of any surfaces off the laser other than a wash to remove the Acrylic engraved dust.

More than enough power available from the 6 5050's even in Daylight so I will do some more playing with a 5V/USB version. The Base is parametrically modelled so changing it up or down in length or width is easy and even a sliced Ply or Acrylic base could be easily made from the model without a lot of changes.

beanflying · « **Reply #29 on:** May 25, 2019, 06:10:21 am »

I needed a lightweight enclosure for an R/C project. A little playing with correcting for the kerf of the Laser and no screws even needed to keep it together. 1.5mm Acrylic 40x40x10mm internal size just over 10grams and either glue or screws if needed.

Couple of resource things

Russ has a great channel here with some really good Engineering analysis and tweaking of Lasers, not all the software stuff is applicable but the Hardware stuff certainly is. https://www.youtube.com/user/SarbarMultimedia/videos

K40 Whisperer software/inkscape plugin from Scorchworks and some other Laser Videos https://www.youtube.com/user/scorch1974/videos The software is an absolute must have if you are running a K40 in particular as the software Laserdrw blows and sucks all at once.

beanflying · « **Reply #30 on:** May 28, 2019, 07:30:48 am »

If anyone else gets to owning one of these or a similar one start adjusting the mirrors and lenses with either a bottle of Scotch or a bucket of Coffees at the ready. The main reason I have noticed a possible issue was on the deeper Acrylic cuts that were not even on all sides.

So a Rainy miserable day and after watching a heap of videos on the subject thought I would tackle seeing how far out of Tram and Trim the axis, mirrors and lens were.

How I tackle this sort of job on any of my Printers or my baby CNC router in the past is check for square mechanically adjust then tweak, tweaking first with a machine not squared is doomed to failure. Due to length considerations it isn't practicable to fit a low power laser pointer in the path so 5% power from the main laser with all the covers off but with the

fitted firmly on the face for the afternoon!

The Y axis mirror assembly was set nearly 3mm high on a mirror of about 16mm in diameter and the laser spot is getting close to the sides.

and the final mirror and lense holder was set about 2mm to far away from the X axis. While the Laser works fine as is getting everything more square mechanically makes setting the optics easier. with the trim screws on the mirrors. Both the intermediate Mirror and Lense holder and mirror were a few degrees skewed from the frame as well.

With everything mechanically now as close as possible time to breakout the masking tape to 'correct' the now incorrect mirrors that were covering up the misalignment to a degree. So it seemed like 1/2 a roll of masking tape later and everything is now fairly close and time for a final

The SVG Target file is in a zip for anyone it might help and suits 16mm apertures. These are what I am now using instead of the tape which tends to catch fire

beanflying · « **Reply #31 on:** May 28, 2019, 08:09:33 am »

All four corners and the centre with test spots. Time for dinner but it is now very close.

Fairly normal for the Laser to be slightly fuzzy here as it hasn't been through any collimating lenses yet just the mirrors.

beanflying · « **Reply #32 on:** June 04, 2019, 04:07:55 am »

Back to some mods to fix the airflow across the bed which will help with fume extraction and also help with debris when engraving.

The unit as stock has a bunch of seemingly random 'speed holes' in strange places meaning the air comes in and swirls with little airflow over the job being cut so first job is block them up. I chose some Acrylic panels with simple magnetic catches, not that important to make them air tight just heavily restrict any air being drawn from them.

Next job is open up the front removable section and fit a shroud as shown. This opening will see most airflow being drawn evenly over the bed to the fan at the rear with no restriction or twisting paths. First serious go at using the Laser to mark out a job for manual work, 10% power at 20mm/s made short work of the powdercoat and far more accurate than I could mark it out. The shroud is a multi piece 3D Printed one. Now for the Drilling and the Nibbling while the printer does it's thing.

beanflying · « **Reply #33 on:** June 05, 2019, 09:17:16 am »

Time to get back to some Electronics again this beasty has absorbed to much time over the last week or so

Tomorrows job metal nibbling and some wiring then it is about where it needs to be for on going easy use. Until the next upgrade that is

beanflying · « **Reply #34 on:** June 07, 2019, 07:33:02 am »

Buying a Laser has a down and an up side. People want jobs done

People also sometimes pay with a box of BEER. 8 dozen Labels in exchange for 2 dozen

While this is OT people will try and throw work at you that may not be what you want. Cutting timber in particular oily or glue bonded stuff is messy and smelly. Quick cleanup after with Acetone is highly recommended or you next jobs will also be messy.

Also while I had some ply on the go I have been playing with a Living hinge design on Fusion 360 mainly for gifts but also maybe to sell some items based on it. This 8 section hinge is designed to go around a 12mm Radius corner but would easily go tighter if needed. Amazing taking it out of the blank and seeing it go floppy with no additional work. It could easily be adapted for a dressy Electronics enclosure without much work.

beanflying · « **Reply #35 on:** June 16, 2019, 11:14:37 am »

Learned a new skill today in Fusion 360. The sheetmetal section. There is a few good youtube videos (Brad Tallis in particular) on it but I hadn't bothered before.

Limited run packaging with Laser cut boxes might be a good use but also if you need to get a folded metal enclosure made by someone else it works well and takes into account offsets with corner radius bends and material. I have local Water, Plasma and Big Boy Laser cutters available for $ if needed nearby but the setup costs were always the killer for low volumes.

These were only made with cereal packet card so the Raster etched fold lines were a bit deep so there is a little delamination. Better card would sort this out.

beanflying · « **Reply #36 on:** July 04, 2019, 09:59:03 am »

The stock Nano M2 board has been working really well when teamed with Inkscape and K40 Whisperer compared with the more or less abandoned and useless LaserDRW. But to get some extra control over it in particular for engraving time for a controller change.

The board I settled on is a 5 channel Chinese version of the open source one normally available here http://smoothieware.org/getting-smoothieboard in the case of Oz we don't have a local seller and some of the others had no stock. So off to Evilbay Link for a board to have a look at. For those of you without the up to $50 USD postage deal in my case buy from who you feel appropriate.

I had no definite plans for the board when I ordered it but I have three 3D printers and a small CNC router plus the Laser that are worthy candidates for an upgrade as a plaything. I decided to have a glance at Lightburn and see if it would speak to the board for a start so I downloaded the trial version and installed the Smoothieboard drivers and seems they like each other.

So over the next few weeks/month depending on life the plan is to swap the controller in my Laser over to the Smoothieboard. Nothing more for now but it's going to be a work in progress with details as it gets played with.

beanflying · « **Reply #37 on:** October 10, 2019, 06:33:49 am »

Long overdue job out of the way this afternoon. The Honeycomb table is a bit of a PITA to keep clean in particular when running Ply so a pin table is the solution.

Quick to make, the 2mm pin holes were Lasered to circa 1.9mm then reamed out in 10-15 minutes with a sharp 2mm in a cordless drill. The pin bed will be sacrificial over time but the Laser is well out of focus before it will get hit so it should last fairly well. The rest providing I don't run the Laser over it is a one off.

Other project that some of you will have seen is my Woody PC Case which is the reason to get the pin bed done.

Edit just added the final shot with the simple 3 point bed adjustment. Works a treat

tautech · « **Reply #38 on:** January 27, 2021, 08:28:24 pm »

Defpom assembles his new laser and has a play at engraving:

beanflying · « **Reply #39 on:** March 06, 2021, 04:54:02 am »

Moved this from 'Other Products' as it maybe suits Mechanical Eng and materials processing more

Todays and for a current project cut some samples to get a Power and Speed idea on EVA foam to make some case inserts. Hp Logo -Just because

The EVA is 10mm thick clip together floor mat.

30mm/sec @ 40% power left some slight snags below the ripples so the better option was 25mm/sec at the same power. Focal point is below the upper surface to reduce the cut slope a little.

Slight odor post cut but very minor and the resultant cut is clean when rubbed.

beanflying · « **Reply #40 on:** May 06, 2021, 04:51:06 am »

Not that is has been shown before but I have been using a 40+ year old Tupperware cereal container for water to cool the Laser. If I was using it for longer production type runs then its 3.5L is a bit small in particular for an Aussie Summer. The 3D printed lid shown fitted the old lid and was made in August 2018 and as it was fine I reused it.

Anyway the original main lid failed as there is a bit of prolonged load on it I guess from the pipes and 4 decades of general use. A Beer and some Fusion produced a stacked Acrylic design with 5 layers of 4.5mm glued with Scigrip thin Acrylic glue.

Fairly major upgrade of the control Panel and stepper drivers over the next little while to finally get rid of the Nano M2.

Brumby · « **Reply #41 on:** May 18, 2021, 01:24:53 pm »

Bean, the enabler has struck again.

Yes, I am now a member of this club.

beanflying · « **Reply #42 on:** May 18, 2021, 01:40:08 pm »

When you are a bit unpacked and ready to look at a few upgrades let me know. A pin bed is well worth it for most jobs. Currently working on the design for an Stepper based lifting table for mine but the pin bed part is done and well tested in mine if you want the plans for it.

Still very much a WIP for the auto lifting bit.

Brumby · « **Reply #43 on:** May 18, 2021, 02:59:25 pm »

The story of acquisition was a real rollercoaster.

1. Bean notifies me of this eBay listing. It was an Auction with Buy It Now.
2. I put it on my watch list and consider how I would approach.
3. Sent seller a number of questions - most answered.
4. Item ends - someone else nabbed it. Damn!
5. Seller responds answering outstanding questions and tells me he's been screwed around by the buyer and offers it to me for the BIN price - $300. Pick up is from a storage unit.
6. I say I'm interested, but need to organise the trip (two hours each way) so we discuss options.
7. I then ask about a possible demonstration of the unit and he's against the idea because potential damage to a laser that doesn't have cooling setup.
8. I ask further about a demonstration and he reiterates the cooling concern - and he adds that there's there's no power available at the storage unit.
9. He then suggests I might be better off doubling my money and buy new - with warranty. I now realise I've gone too far.
10. I then explain that buying used is a punt and that I was trying to increase my confidence
11. He responds by saying he wanted to avoid trashing something that had only been used to make two signs - but that with the time consumed in emails, he was even further in the red. He signs off with a clear indication that he's had enough.
12. I respond by saying I understand, but am still interested, offering to take the unit. As he's already done the hard yards, I'm offering him the cash - if he wants it. No more questions.
13. I wait and wonder if there's any hope - which is fading as time goes by.
14. No response until 21 hours before the earlier planned collection time where he sends me photos and an offer of "Yours if you want it". This happens half an hour after I started work and was flat out - but I wanted to respond quickly ... which took me all of 10 minutes - but it seemed like an eternity.
15. Arrive as scheduled and take delivery of everything. His concerns in dealing with me were allayed and he referred to me as a decent guy. This is always nice to hear - but he was a more than decent guy. We chatted for a bit and found out he was into electronics - with a test bench he was looking to dispose. One item mentioned was a 150V 60A electronic load. Sorry - I didn't get any further details of this or anything else, but his indication was that it wasn't cheap gear. I mentioned the EEVblog - so if he turns up here, we might have the opportunity to find out. Important note: he takes great care of his gear. For example, the K40 cabinet has a couple of very minor blemishes - and they could have been there from new.
16. Further in the conversation the subject turns to cooling and he did not recommend the demineralised water from Bunnings. He then offers me a filtration system to make my own for $50. I accept and he ducks off to bring it out. He shows me the bits included with extra cartridges and I can tell my $50 has been the best value expenditure I've made in a very long time. (I'll keep you curious and give details in a photo or two.)

Setting up is a job for another day.

mnementh · « **Reply #44 on:** May 18, 2021, 05:40:30 pm »

Found this while fumbling aboot the internet back when I was bugging bean aboot his 'inator. Seems actually relevant now.

Just a word of concern here... everything I just read has alarm bells ringing in my head that this guy fucked up building his cooling system and fried his LASER.

If so; was it still cheap enough that Brumby isn't going to be losing huge money if he has to rebuild...?

mnem

Brumby · « **Reply #45 on:** May 19, 2021, 12:20:16 am »

Not impossible, but I think it unlikely. The one mod made to the unit was the installation of a milliampmeter - the first thing any self-respecting owner would do to help protect the tube. After chatting with the guy, I did not get any negative vibes in that respect, just a sense of caution.

If the tube is fried, then I'll find out soon enough and I had already checked on the price of replacement tubes. So if it does come to that, it will be unfortunate, but not disastrous. My one concern is how long ago the tube was manufactured as they do age on their own. Here's the sticker on the tube which looks like it was made 2019.12.02, so that's not too bad.

The foam was put there (by the seller) for transport. (The tube was supported like this in 3 places along its length.)

beanflying · « **Reply #46 on:** May 19, 2021, 12:42:17 am »

The do age a bit while not being used. It is the main reason I haven't ordered the Tube for my large build yet. I will be well into it before I order so I start with one as fresh as possible.

With the Pin or any other bed it is nice to be able to put in stock or an item repeatably to a known datum which is why I have a rear right corner based fence on mine. If I am doing a small run of say round coasters I can just drop one after the other to the fence and know where it is relative to the homing position of the Laser.

Brumby · « **Reply #47 on:** May 19, 2021, 04:30:09 am »

Quote from: beanflying on May 19, 2021, 12:42:17 am

The do age a bit while not being used. It is the main reason I haven't ordered the Tube for my large build yet. I will be well into it before I order so I start with one as fresh as possible.

As will I when I get into my large build - which is very similar to what you are working on. I will be watching your efforts with great interest - but I am still a ways off that project. I am just now getting my feet wet - or at least I will be when I work out where I can put it. I didn't make adequate consideration for the rear access, but I think a wheeled cart can address the issues.

Quote

With the Pin or any other bed it is nice to be able to put in stock or an item repeatably to a known datum which is why I have a rear right corner based fence on mine. If I am doing a small run of say round coasters I can just drop one after the other to the fence and know where it is relative to the homing position of the Laser.

Such a simple thing - and yet the value in daily operations cannot be overstated!

Some ideas can be implemented so easily in the design stage but problematic if retro-fitted on a built machine. Keep these coming!

mnementh · « **Reply #48 on:** May 19, 2021, 03:04:43 pm »

There's a part of me that still doesn't believe it's possible to have an actual LASER that I can stick in my shirt pocket, much less one that can actually do something; and especially that I can buy it for the price of lunch at the drive-thru...

mnem

beanflying · « **Reply #49 on:** May 20, 2021, 06:46:37 am »

So I felt a little Laser maintenance Guilt today and grabbed out the bottle of Acetone for a Cleanup of the Pin Bed. This is several months worth of grot so it was overdue and entirely @Brumbies shiny new machine photos fault

Also while it was shiny and clean I drilled out some more of the holes instead of the minimum I did initially. Since I built this I am now back to being an owner of a drill press for 15 minutes work and a little deburring for plenty more pin holes instead of the cordless wobble. Back when I laid this out for drilling I taped the surface with some wide 3D printer tape I was never going to use and set a really low power and used the Laser to mark the holes for centre punching. No real need to drill all of them unless you are trying to support paper or are making a heap of tiny repeat parts.

So for anyone interested in making one it uses 2x25mm dowel pins eBay auction: #143344962872 I got a bag of 100 ages ago but pick your supplier. The bottom deck on mine is 4.5mm but 3mm would do you will just need to sand back the tabs for the fences or mod the SVG or DXF in the zip file below to suit. The 3mm Fence is to aid repeat cuts and provide a Physical refence for the XY Zero planes of the Laser. Make whatever adjustable mounts you need to tweak this to be the case but my 3 screw one is shown. Also on the fence it is not full of holes for looks it is there to aid cross bed airflow to help keep the cuts and engraves as clean as possible.

The main consideration before making one for a non adjustable bed Laser like a K40 is the height of the pins and base is 25+4.5 and you then need to allow for material thickness and whatever focal distance you need in front of the lens. You could use shorter pins but then you are likely to get increased more focused energy bouncing back at your material so don't and also you could use 4-5mm Cold Rolled Steel instead of the Aluminium I used to help absorb some more of that energy.

The DXF and SVG's in the zip file already allow for an 0.17 Kerf so should just go straight into K40 Whisperer as is and cut.

mnementh · « **Reply #50 on:** May 20, 2021, 04:52:37 pm »

Quote from: beanflying on May 20, 2021, 06:46:37 am

So I felt a little Laser maintenance Guilt today...

Sweep yer floors, ya slob! That's almost as bad as my garage during the winter!

Neato on the workbed fabbery. Does make me miss my drill-press very much.

mnem

beanflying · « **Reply #51 on:** May 22, 2021, 07:41:03 am »

Today's job I have been putting off for ages due to a lack of 6mm Acrylic but two bits of 300x220mm (I had a bit to spare on the Y over the factory 200) Manually nested as I can beat the Auto one I have. Really low waste and very clean cuts @ 3mm/s. And this is partly why I like the fence on the pin bed as I know where the corner and 90 degrees is.

In this case the lettering was Vector Engraved and added in Inkscape as when I designed it Fusion sucked 'more' for Lettering.

What are they? Router Templates for doing corners in Timber with a flush trim bit. 2mm dowel pin holes are to keep them in place if needed.

At this speed it is a case of grab a beer and keep an 1/2 an eye on it. Time for another beer for the peeling

beanflying · « **Reply #52 on:** May 23, 2021, 04:45:09 am »

The Importance of adjusting your model to the correct kerf by one means or another

I designed this ages ago to use up some Hardwood faced MDF core samples I got. Some dummy forgot to correct to my current 'nice' tolerance fit first before Laser Cutting. So some mechanical Kerf adjustment was needed during assembly.

https://plyco.com.au/pages/micropanel-products Tasmanian Blackwood veneer used below and definately no glue needed. Still have another 8-10 samples so model tweakage happening first.

beanflying · « **Reply #53 on:** May 29, 2021, 05:37:29 am »

Needed to put the Honeycomb top in for several jobs including cutting some 100% Woolen Felt (WARNING some felts contain PVC which releases Chlorine Gas and a Hydrochloric acid

).

Also took the opportunity to undo the 4 thumb screws that hold the adjustable bed in place for a clean (dwagon shamed). For me and for Brumby and others it sits on top of 4 bits of 3/8 All thread and is driven from one corner by the larger thumbwheel. While it doesn't give a lot of Z travel it easily handles from paper to 25mm+ or if I took the pins out on my bed closer to 40mm of total travel.

Removal vacuum and a wipe over and reinstall under 15 minutes. The Slotted holes make putting the 0-0 datum close to correct nice and easy. The larger washers shown are for tramming the bed close to correct as the frame is not square to the axis. Not really critical for a Laser unlike a CNC mill. it could also be done by dropping the belt tension and adjusting the screws but this works.

For the motorized option the belts, pulleys and motor will likely live under the Laser which sits well off the bench on adjustable legs. This will allow for easier mechanics and greater travel.

beanflying · « **Reply #54 on:** June 02, 2021, 07:57:18 am »

So sometimes a project spirals out of control........

Several upgrades for this beasty coming up made me decide the V3 model of lest week and bolting bits to the current shell was going to run out of room or be compromised a LOT.....

So time to up the Fusion model to include the full shell and start fleshing out a 2020 sub frame for some of the following mods.

New Controller, stepper drivers and almost complete rewiring https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32985506173.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.27424c4dzp0fm4 already arrived and waiting......

Adjustable bed (Z axis) was going to run out of space under the Laser or greatly reduce the travel available so the main reason for the new frame

Benefits of the new frame the current external cooling water tank can be swapped out for a lower profile larger one that can fit under and likely also look at installing a 2-3 fan PC cooler to boost performance.

Extra Storage for the non used Bed be it Honeycomb or Pin or Vacuum ( project extension

)

Right now I am opening a second beer

and wondering

have I done to myself

mnementh · « **Reply #55 on:** June 02, 2021, 03:59:48 pm »

So this is what... mods & upgrades to your smaller pre-built LASER cutter, right? The big one is still a WIP...? Making a frame and finishing the self-lifting bed...?

Oh, and I clearly misunderstood on the mess; I though that was the floor under your cutter, not the floor inside it.

I fully understand why that wouldn't happen as often; if you're going to be elbows-deep in its guts, you need to be doing something profitable, or at least fun...

mnem

Brumby · « **Reply #56 on:** June 03, 2021, 03:45:46 am »

By the time I'm ready to dive into my big machine, I'm going to owe Bean a few cases of brew for all his R&D I'll be ~~snaffling~~ learning from.

(I've had a cost figure in mind, based on nothing more than "using the Force" and I'll be interested to see how far off I was with that ... and, no, I'm not going to embarrass myself by sharing that - not just yet, anyway.)

beanflying · « **Reply #57 on:** June 03, 2021, 04:14:18 am »

Quote from: mnementh on June 02, 2021, 03:59:48 pm

So this is what... mods & upgrades to your smaller pre-built LASER cutter, right? The big one is still a WIP...? Making a frame and finishing the self-lifting bed...?

Oh, and I clearly misunderstood on the mess; I though that was the floor under your cutter, not the floor inside it. I fully understand why that wouldn't happen as often; if you're going to be elbows-deep in its guts, you need to be doing something profitable, or at least fun...

mnem

These are mods to this topics Laser. The big one is mainly without a space to build at present. Apart from holding off on buying the tube until I start I have 95% of everything else needed to build it

Part of the reason for this series of mods is toward the larger one, same base controllers on both running the same much better quality software than current. Shared Lens Tubes and lenses. This one will be a very upspecced small Laser when finished. Even with the bigger 100W online one this one will keep a place for finer detailed engravings (100W is kind of like getting the Hulk to make fine China) and primarily clean work (paper, card etc).

Model under development is over here. Main benefit of a Cad model is not to create a new Laser but to model the bits that matter and cut once and know it will fit

https://a360.co/3eHMIWt

mnementh · « **Reply #58 on:** June 04, 2021, 03:53:43 am »

Quote from: Brumby on June 03, 2021, 03:45:46 am

By the time I'm ready to dive into my big machine, I'm going to owe Bean a few cases of brew for all his R&D I'll be ~~snaffling~~ learning from.

(I've had a cost figure in mind, based on nothing more than "using the Force" and I'll be interested to see how far off I was with that ... and, no, I'm not going to embarrass myself by sharing that - not just yet, anyway.)

I guarantee you the cost will be much closer to "Death Star" than that of Luke learning to use The Force.

mnem
Unless you count Uncle Ben & Aunt Beru...

beanflying · « **Reply #59 on:** June 04, 2021, 04:37:29 am »

Think of the immense profits you can generate doing 'favours' for friends with your likely $3-5k USD ~~Laser~~ Death Star

Todays test squares some Veg Tanned Leather off a larger bit of hide I brought. Strange material takes very little to engrave the surface so 15% power and lots of speed but then to cut max power and slow it right down due to the open fibre nature of the material.

Might be that for a compromise a fast Vector engrave of the smooth side for the shape then knife or punch the holes mechanically might be the better option and a better result to work with.

But the first project I will be cutting with the Laser. A simple scanned outline of the Axe would have done but it inrerested me as a challenge to fully model it as it curves in several different directions.

EDIT: About 20 minutes later with a couple of leather bootlaces from the kit

Time to break out the Dubbin.

Brumby · « **Reply #60 on:** June 04, 2021, 09:44:19 am »

Quote from: beanflying on June 04, 2021, 04:37:29 am

Think of the immense profits you can generate doing 'favours' for friends with your likely $3-5k USD ~~Laser~~ Death Star

Well, that covers the number I had in mind - but my hope is that it would be in AUD.

mnementh · « **Reply #61 on:** June 04, 2021, 07:32:47 pm »

https://www.amazon.ca/YaeTek-Cobbler-Repair-Machine-Mending/dp/B07K46CJLW

Speaking of leather-working... I could have this here in 3 days for ~USD$107.00

I tripped over the listing while looking for Feiyue RC car parts... no idea why it came up, other than it is also cheap Chinese metal-mongery.

mnem

beanflying · « **Reply #62 on:** June 05, 2021, 12:31:33 am »

You are being ripped off at $100 USD

only $70USD in Oz eBay auction: #265024374226 I came across them looking at some Leather working tools. Interesting they seem like a good thing based on several Youtube videos. I still own two good Pfaff's with walking feet but they won't take really heavy threads.

So Mmm Fairly small and cheap and works well

EDIT - consulted and broke open my piggybank - ORDERED

mnementh · « **Reply #63 on:** June 05, 2021, 04:08:17 am »

Wait... WHAAAAAAT??? Are you saying... I ENABLED the bean?!? And I wasn't even TRYING...??

Holy fucking ASSCRACKERS!!! Wait'll I tell Brumby!!!

mnem

beanflying · « **Reply #64 on:** June 05, 2021, 04:56:12 am »

Self Justification is easier when you have no SWMBO peeking over your shoulder

That and its fun to tinker with mechanical toys, already considering how I fit a spare Nema 17 and reduction drive to it

Playing with the Sheetmetal environment in Fusion 360 is

and

all at once....

Brumby · « **Reply #65 on:** June 05, 2021, 06:27:29 am »

Big

to Mnem!

Location is a half hour drive in traffic each way for me ... but, no, I don't want one.

beanflying · « **Reply #66 on:** June 19, 2021, 06:17:00 am »

So something slightly random under the Laser today.

1/2" Tasmanian Grown Oak. In the past I have tried and more or less given up on thicker hardwood Ply but a recent video from Russ on youtube made me do it on my Toy Laser. The Lens on mine is not generally great at thicker materials due to beam divergence and a narrow focal working range but this worked out surprisingly well.

Raised the material above the normal 5.5mm focal point to just under 3mm and gave it a bash. Cleanest cuts as shown on a faster multi pass cut and I would still want to play before a serious job far easier than thick ply

4 pass 10mm/s, 2 pass 7mm/s & 4mm/sec (just hung on a corner). The 4 pass cut is very clean when rubbed and would need minimal cleanup.

PartialDischarge · « **Reply #67 on:** August 05, 2021, 07:10:22 am »

One question about laser cutters. I need to cut plastic sheets (200mmx200mm x 0.2mm thick) to get 100 small plastic cut shapes from it.

Since the sheet is so thin I'm just wondering if it needs to be put in between 2 glass panels to keep it straight. Any experience with this?

beanflying · « **Reply #68 on:** August 05, 2021, 07:28:19 am »

No as glass will play havoc with the beam.

What plastic and is it a one off or an ongoing job?

On the assumption that the plastic is suitable you might actually find a benefit from adding a layer of paper transfer tape on both sides to reduce marking on the surface. This is the tape used by vinyl sign makers for aligning layers. I use it on some ply jobs to keep the smoke and particulates of the surface during cutting. The tape will also help give the material a little more bulk against being blown into oblivion during the cut.

Also even consider vinyl type cutters instead of Laser if it is an ongoing job or even a drag knife on a CNC would work.

PartialDischarge · « **Reply #69 on:** August 05, 2021, 07:37:06 am »

Quote from: beanflying on August 05, 2021, 07:28:19 am

No as glass will play havoc with the beam.

What plastic and is it a one off or an ongoing job?

On the assumption that the plastic is suitable you might actually find a benefit from adding a layer of paper transfer tape on both sides to reduce marking on the surface. This is the tape used by vinyl sign makers for aligning layers. I use it on some ply jobs to keep the smoke and particulates of the surface during cutting. The tape will also help give the material a little more bulk against being blown into oblivion during the cut.

Also even consider vinyl type cutters instead of Laser if it is an ongoing job or even a drag knife on a CNC would work.

It is polyethylene, and it is something that I expect to repeat. Also at first I need to try different shapes, thats why I'd like to have the versatility of a laser cutter, which I haven't chosen yet, but will do probably based on software usability, tired of bad chinese software.

I don't mind marking of the plastic, just that the cuts are all the same size.

I guess 10W..20W is more than enough for this?

beanflying · « **Reply #70 on:** August 05, 2021, 07:49:19 am »

With power you will be running bottom end of whatever Laser you have and fairly quick so likely 20% of 40W would do you and plenty of speed.

Depending on the polyethylene being used it tends toward melty. PETG might be a better option depending on your final use and its available in thin sheet?

As far as the software goes the M2 and Scorchworks/Whisperer works fairly well when teamed with Fusion/Inkscape for the initial SVG's. Lightburn and a Ruida controller (preferred to the other Chinese offerings like Trocen etc) is a really good step up and that is where I am heading with mine. Even if you go cheap initially dropping a new controller into a Laser is fairly simple down the track.

PartialDischarge · « **Reply #71 on:** August 05, 2021, 07:53:18 am »

Quote from: beanflying on August 05, 2021, 07:49:19 am

Depending on the polyethylene being used it tends toward melty. PETG might be a better option depending on your final use and its available in thin sheet?

That is true PE melts quick but I can't change it, I guess a high speed will be needed then.

beanflying · « **Reply #72 on:** August 05, 2021, 10:11:36 am »

I will give a milk container a wash and strip some flat panels out of it and have a play tomorrow if I get a chance. 0.5-0.6mm and I can take a look at the cuts under the scope and do some kerf measurements on some test squares to get a better idea at least for HDPE. Not sure if I have anything in the way of LDPE sheet to try low pressure irrigation pipe would be a bit of a pain and plastic bags/sheet these days are a bit of a guess


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Author Topic: 40W 300x200mm Laser Cutter Engraver - Vollerun (Read 18963 times)

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