TLHarrell wrote:Yes, the very large, super expensive commercial lasers usually have the laser tube inside the gantry (X-axis).
Enraged wrote:The only change I want to make to my 2.x build is increasing cutting area so I can cut off the shelf 12" x 24" sheets of plywood or acrylic.
I absolutely, unequivocally, 100% agree. I chose my mill with this in mind and realized after the fact that it was likely the best decision I could have made. It makes everything SO much more convenient. My desktop router will use these dimensions as the baseline as well for this reason.It would severely crimp my style to have a laser that has a table slightly less than 12" in one direction and slightly less than 24" in the other direction.
lumberjack_jeff wrote:I've considered buying 2x4 from china, but $1200 in import fees ticks me off.
Can I use EMC and g-code, or should I buy a laser controller box?
iGull wrote:lumberjack_jeff wrote:I've considered buying 2x4 from china, but $1200 in import fees ticks me off.
Can I use EMC and g-code, or should I buy a laser controller box?
Hi Jeff
just picked up on your post.
Checkout my blackhole 60W buildlog - it's 1200x600 (48x24") - I've had no great problems with alignment, contrary to popular opinion. It's been in use for about a year now. I regularly cut 1200x300x3 mm liteply over the full bed.
I would REALLY recommend buying a laser controller - either the lightobject or shenhui (shenhui software is better) - they work really well and are designed for the job. Both accept dxf, so will probably fit in with your mechmate workflow.
To be honest, I seldom use any CAD apps now - just adobe illustrator. It's ultra simple to create toolpath offsets for the beam width compensation.
Using a mechmate, you probably haven't noticed different qualities of liteply/aircraft ply - you WILL if you get a laser - a lot of it is just garbage - you need to spend some time finding quality stuff.
Best regards
Neil
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