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Dwight

Need Laser Info

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On ebay there seems to be a couple of interesting laser machines for about 225 bucks.  The supposedly engrave stone, metal, wood, leather, etc.

Some have adjustable heads . . . some don't.  Some seem to advertse 40 watts while another in the same price range is only 0.5 watts.

I want to get one . . . but don't want if possible to wind up with a white elephant . . . been down that road too many times.

Any upfront advice would be greatly appreciated.

May God bless,

Dwight

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Like all tools, which one you choose 'depends'... it depends on what you want to do. I jumped into the laser pool back in November but did considerable YouTube research for a while before. 

There are several different types of laser which accomplish different tasks based on their make-up. I'm no expert and did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night but I'll try to give you a basic overview.

The 'starter' laser is usually a diode laser and they are differentiated by the wattage OUTPUT of the laser head. They will start around 5 watts and currently go up to 40 watts (which is relatively new and $$). Be sure to look for output as some listings will confuse the issue by giving other wattages and volts. It really depends on what you want to do with it- cut or engrave. I have a 10w Comgrow Z1 and it will cut 4-5oz veg tan (don't use chrome tan on a laser- nasty fumes that are really bad for you!) in one pass. It's a game-changer as far as accurate and clean cuts at least for me. You can set it up to do production-type runs and cut out multiples all on one job. You can't cut metal but can engrave on aluminum although I have no experience with that. Have made some slate coasters that came out really nice. 

Next are CO2 lasers that are faster and more powerful but you do pay for that. You've probably heard of Glowforge. These are CO2s but you're getting into mid 4 figures and the cutting bed/capacity is pretty limited IMHO. These do have more capability with what material they can work with especially acrylics (think making templates) that diodes don't have the oomphf to do. They are more of a production machine. They are considerably larger as far as footprint so require more floor space.

Then you get into fiber which I know pretty much know nothing about except they are what you want to work with metal.

This is VERY basic and doesn't cover the ins and outs as this is an expanding craft. I haven't even touched on the software which is a whole other discussion- however, I would recommend learning about LightBurn as it's pretty much the industry standard for hobbyists. 

I would highly recommend doing a search on YouTube as this is where I got a TON of info- some channels I recommend:

~The Louisiana Hobby Guy (LightBurn guru)

~The Clack Shack 

~Vintauri

~Samcraft

After watching some of these, you'll have suggestions for other channels pop up.

I have the Comgrow Z1 which I've been really pleased with and it's does what I expect. It's really cool what you can do with it and you'll start to come up with new ideas- I originally got it for woodworking (cut a zero clearance insert for my tablesaw) but it is really versatile with leather, too.

I'll try to answer any questions you've got...

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Dwight if you want to do any serious cutting and engraving of leather, wood, acrylic and many other materials your going to want a CO2 laser between 60 and 80 watts and please don't even consider a glowforge . Rabbit Laser USA is in central Ohio. I would suggest you take a trip to them and have them give you a demo. You can see what they do .Bring some leather with you they'll demo if for you. You don't have to buy one just go see them in action. That way you'll know exactly how they work and what they can do in person.

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