Hi all,
because I have an oportunity to make more with cutting metal and my 300W chinnesse CO2 laser is not capable to cut 3mm steel with straight edge, I’d like to rebuild my laser table to fiber one. So I have a few questions:
1/ What are needed parts? I suspect it’s the power source and a laser head, but I’m not sure if it’s final cost, if there’s not anything other needed. I have Trocen TF-6225 controller, which should be usable for fiber cutting. So if it’s possible, I’d like to use this one (I found it finally quite usable, after two years of problems caused by wrong wiring of the machine)
2/ What’s the power equivalent of 300W in CO2 in fiber? I have some expectations that this should be some 100W, but don’t know how to count the heat per mm2. My idea is to cut iron without an oxygene (better to cut using Nitrogene), so I’d rather obtail some 500W and more. Is it enough for cca 5mm steel plates?
3/ Maybe there’s an alternative way - to obtain just a RF tube for CO2, but it’s maybe the worse cost and the power increment is not so dramatical, but it’s still the same wavelength, so I can engrave and cut the wood (but no brass, aluminium, copper etc) - again, I can’t count the heat increment, so I’d like to know the equivalent to 300W glass tube CO2.
4/ Do you have some recomendations per fiber laser? What to check, if I’d have chance to buy some used one? And the same for RF tubes?
5/ Is it generally a good idea to rebuild the machine, or is it better to sell it and buy a new one? (got no money, so I have to rebuild it anyway, so just for know the “risk factor”)
Thank you all who read all these questions and more thanks for your answers, O.P.
1KW Fiber Laser in a shop cutting 3mm material:
