I
just did a test where I modified the raster sweep to also sweep the table slowly so I could see the the effect of focus placement. I'm trying to find the best settings for LaserMAX, which is an acrylic product with a very thin foil color layer on top. I wanted to see how focus depth would change the quality of the edges and of the engraved area. I think you'd need to do a similar test on each material you wanted to experiment with. If you can't ramp the bed, just place one edge of the workpiece on a shim so the piece is slanted.
educa wrote:So on my quite large bed (1200x600) I would get the best engraving results by laying my material in FRONT RIGHT on my table (the place where the laser beam is longest before hitting the lens and therefore also widest beam diameter?)
I think your assumption about beam diameter is wrong: My understanding is that the rear mirror of the CO2 lasers we're using is very slightly concave, such that the beam converges over a distance of about 15m. That information is probably on some other thread right here in this forum.