Hi.
I am trying to create electrical panel tags using a 3018 and the 455nm 5500mW laser on white on black ABS plastic tags.I would like the letters to be filled rather than outlines.
But I am having trouble getting the fill and line function to work in a predictable manner. I am running a bunch of test cuts and I just cannot seem to get these parameters to be good. either burns or doesnt penetrate. I just cannot seem to get this parameter dialed in.
Playing with the parameters, I’ve noticed that if I increase the speed and hold the laser power, The output is diminished - this tells me I do not have a clear understanding of how this function works. Can you point me to a thorough tutorial or something that explains this feature please? I havent been able to find one.
It’s not the function, but your controller, that is reducing the power. Read the 2nd half of this post where it talks about going too fast: Configuring a 3018 CNC for use with LightBurn
But I just cant seem to get a good burn. if you can see the photo Ive uploaded, most of the good burns appear to be ‘grainy’. If you see the ‘T’, somehow i was messing with parameters and got a good run, once but that was early and I cannot repeat it. it was before I recorded the parameters as I was changing them
$25 is homing speed - are you sure that’s the one you meant?
The images you posted here look like the laser might not be properly focused, but you’re also trying to engrave plastic with a diode, which is hard. They tend to just melt the material, where a CO2 laser actually vaporizes it quickly. If your focus is good and you use high power you’ll just need to adjust the speed until you get a good burn. Lines per inch should be in the range of 250 to 350 to start with.
