Affect of choice of laser tube power
Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2011 11:28 pm
I'm a member of a hackerspace that will be building a laser cutter over the next few months, and we've been doing research into various aspects of the build for a month or so. We don't specifically have a list of requirements for the laser cutter however, as we see it more as a "build it and they will come" project. The more we learn, the more convinced we are that a Buildlog 2 laser cutter is the right way to go, at least initially - but there are a few important things we haven't been able to find answers to, so I'm hoping to get some information here.
With regards to the Buildlog 2 design, we're primarily concerned about the constraint placed on the laser tube power due to physical size of the Buildlog 2. A secondary concern is the usable cutting area. These two are obviously closely related, so we initially looked at doing a Lasersaur build instead as it's larger, but the infancy of that project drove us to look into a hybrid Lasersaur-Buildlog 2 build, which the more we researched the more apprehensive we were of its chances of success - which is why we're now looking at a pure Buildlog 2 build.
So! We have a few questions around this area:
* What are the practical limitations of a 60W laser over a 100-150W laser? Will 60W be able to do anything better than 100+W (etch for instance)? Will 100+W just mean faster cut times and fewer passes, or will it open up materials that aren't even possible with 60W?
* We were on crack even considering an upsized Buildlog 2 'plausible' for newbies to the laser cutter world (we're competent in the required construction techniques and mechanics/electronics though), right?
* How limiting is the size of the Buildlog 2 in your experiences?
Thanks for any information or tips that you can provide!
With regards to the Buildlog 2 design, we're primarily concerned about the constraint placed on the laser tube power due to physical size of the Buildlog 2. A secondary concern is the usable cutting area. These two are obviously closely related, so we initially looked at doing a Lasersaur build instead as it's larger, but the infancy of that project drove us to look into a hybrid Lasersaur-Buildlog 2 build, which the more we researched the more apprehensive we were of its chances of success - which is why we're now looking at a pure Buildlog 2 build.
So! We have a few questions around this area:
* What are the practical limitations of a 60W laser over a 100-150W laser? Will 60W be able to do anything better than 100+W (etch for instance)? Will 100+W just mean faster cut times and fewer passes, or will it open up materials that aren't even possible with 60W?
* We were on crack even considering an upsized Buildlog 2 'plausible' for newbies to the laser cutter world (we're competent in the required construction techniques and mechanics/electronics though), right?
* How limiting is the size of the Buildlog 2 in your experiences?
Thanks for any information or tips that you can provide!