First, let me say, if anyone has a great comprehensive resource on understanding CO2 laser speed vs. power, please share and you can skip reading, I see so much this and that here and there that I’m kind of questioning it all.
So I started with an Ortur diode laser. I commonly used the test grid below to get an idea how to optimize my settings. Didn’t cut much due to the lack of ability of the machine so I just needed the grid to tell me what was optimal for darkness/penetration. Once I started with the new laser, I figured I’d have to change things up, I didn’t realize just how much. During the experimentation process I found too many unknowns that I wanted to understand to just test things out so I thought I’d ask here first rather than screwing up a bunch of tests (which I know isn’t always a bad thing.
The grid I used for Ortur seems the standard for diode, but not CO2 for some reason (CO2 below). Is this just my perception or is there a reason? Seems to me the One most commonly associated with CO2 is only for cutting out shapes.
If someone uses this grid for CO2, could you share your scale with me so I can just have a starting point? I understand that it is common for diode to use larger speed numbers (probably mm/min) and CO2 uses smaller (probably mm/sec). Guess I’m just wondering a good starting point/increments you use for speed. Power % is just what it is.
I understand about the optimal levels of the tube for saving the tube, this question though pertains to 100% power use. I’ve seen a few schools of thought here. One group says don’t use higher % of power if possible, the other says run it at 100% when you need to and just accept that it is a consumable item and this will help you guage when your tube is crapping out. Obviously most would want to prolong the life, however it seems like many people do use 100% in their projects. This might just have been my perception from the videos I’ve watched.
As I mentioned, the material test card that Omtech provides (below) or ones like it seem to be standard, but this only shows what can cleanly cut through and what power % for images (at the bottom). It doesn’t seem to help with final results for filled in engraved entities in the program like the power grid does. Should both be done for each type of material you are using? Seems like the only way to extract all the relevant info for each material. Just seems odd, nobody has combined all of these situations in one card, unless I missed it. I know it would be a bit larger but seems like something everyone would want.
For the bottom of that card, the image engraving test, those percentages are just a measure of opacity? Nothing related to the power? so you still have to specify the speed and power, which seems like a crap shoot. Like hope you get it right on the first try, if not, well, try the whole card again… or am I missing something here? Seems to me that there should be at least 5-8 lines so you can dial this in a little is something in the programming of LB/the machine take over because it is an image?
Make sure for the co2 laser you change the speed in settings to mm/sec.
Then open up the laser tools at the top of lightburn. Select material test. You can then select either fill or line under the material setting button. I’d just use the default setting’s for the first few tests.
Just like the kerf changes with materials so does the damage to the material inflicted by the laser. So in effect, everything changes …
It’s normally dry in the SW deserts here and I cut some items… thunderstorm came through. Next day it wouldn’t cut through they had picked up so much moisture… Easier to wait a couple days for them to dry out. Natural products vary… then add the manufacturing step with materials like mdf…
If you’d like to do some type of grayscale (really a dither) Russ Sadler and Alex at Laser Everything have a few videos that are worth watching.
There is a search option in youtube just below the join button to search only within their videos…
In particular is a video by Alex of how to setup a laser for the best resolution of a photograph. It’s not an easy process, but he details it very well and clear to even non laser users, I would think. I used his basic process, even before I watched the video… so I can support it as worth watching.
Alex also addresses, or should I say hands over the video to Johnathan of Lightburn to explain how the dot size option actually operates within the software. I’m thinking that Jonathan might know something about how this works internally.
This looks amazing thank you. I don’t know how to fit all this stuff in to my daily routine. I know I need to, but so much to learn. It’s exciting at least when I can…
