Sounds good in theory. They will expire without being used at all. You are paying lots of money for that extra power. I have a little, think it’s 30 or 40 watt input LED laser I ran on my grbl cnc, but didn’t enjoy it nearly as much as the 50 watt big one. When it comes down to it and I think about the pros and cons, I think the controller was the limiting factor. Of course I have a box to mount things on, also…
Since you have your engraving pretty well in hand, I figure you’re going to cut thick material?
When I talk to people about what they do, it seems they run a ‘comfortable’ power for them. The few I’ve known seem to move up and run the same power ranges, usually not getting as good results. I’ve seen this a few times or it’s just the illusion I have. The only reason I think I would move up is to have a larger surface. Of course I’d really like to have a fiber laser for cutting metal, cha ching It’s a complicated issue. Since I got my laser a few months back, It’s been 118 degrees numerous times, not great for keeping a laser tube around.
Well, I hope you are right. We’ll have to keep in touch about what we do so we can compare notes
According to most manufacturers, most 50 watt tubes will last around 1,000 hours at 70%. 60 watt goes up a bit but comes with a bit more features. I’m making a spread sheet that will help me decide! I really appreciate everyone’s input as spending this kind of money for an item is a big step for me.
I am going to drive myself and this forum crazy before I actually purchase the thing.
Has anyone owned the 50 watt and then a more powerful version? I need someone to talk me off the ledge of buying something more expensive, powerful and larger. I can squeeze the 50 watt into the living room, but the larger bed will stick out like a sore thumb.
Pros of buying bigger laser:
More power for the future
Longer CO2 tube life (supposedly)
Will have larger bed and exhaust on correct side
It all depends on what you need. The tube life is almost a wash because the cost of a 50 to a 90watt tube so significantly different.
The 50w will shine when doing things like image engraving or etching and cutting thin wood and plastic. The higher power lasers will do less good at making sharp images but will cut much faster.
Can you fit your projects in the 50? are you mostly etching or mostly cutting? These are the real questions.
Thank you for talking me down! I am going to go with a 50 - 60 watt model. Really just going to wait and see for another month or two if Omtech puts up another refurb. If I save that extra $1k that will allow me the upgrades and almost enough for a new tube as it appears that most have a crappy tube installed to start. Digging further it’s best to have an entry level for small and fine work, the mid size for all around production and then upgrade to larger when I’ve got the room.
My problem is that I spend all my free time lasering as the Diode is slow and although I’ve only sold a few things I have a backlog of lots of things. Small production and one offs for my businesses, stuff for Etsy pics to populate the storefront, and now that people know I’ve got a laser and can use it, lots of requests by “friends” (weird how they come out of the woodwork eh?).
I’m shooting for a Red and Black 60 watt mostly for the rear exhaust port. Might bite the bullet and just cut it out myself but not too thrilled about cutting anything new.
Thank you all for the advice. I’ll leave this open to update once I have it and it’s setup and working. Might be good for other beginners.
I have the 50w “China Blue”, got it close to a year ago and if I could do it over again I would get a larger bed size machine, or go with a CNC…
Initial tube had a defect, seller (OMTECH) refused to do anything at all. I filed for a chargeback of $100 to help replace the tube and they lied and said I modified the machine so I lost.
Bought a 60w tube and power supply from eBay, tube arrived cracked on the water jacket. I milked that for a few months until it completely cracked…
Now on my 3rd tube…
Would I buy the machine again or from that supplier? Heck no…
No support, ( warranty non existent)
Bad tube
Power supply failed
Controller acts up at random ruining jobs
Mirror alignment difficult as the screws weren’t tapped correctly
Water pump failed
I think the red and black might be your better bet…
It sounds very sad, it is a shame that some sellers can evade their responsibility. I understand very well that you are disappointed.
Would a purchase through Amazon, paid with PayPal, have put you in a better position? I ask not to get further salt in the wound but for my own interest, to avoid getting into the same situation.
… it’s unbelievable that with those conditions you do not get better buyer protection. With this experience, it is difficult to feel secure as a customer. We do not have Walmart here in Europe, but I always assumed it was a reputable retailer … because they are so big.
Actually these are all a basic Chinese design, that the government approves for export. The basic design can be followed with cheap or good (relatively) parts. The power supplies can be of good or poor quality, same for the tubes.
The ‘color’ of this makes no difference, Blue or Red and Black makes no difference. Red and Black are only scaled up versions of the Blue. The manufacturer used poor quality, then that’s what you get.
Most people have lots of fun with these and some use them commercially for production. If you would like total support, then buy a Red White and Blue laser at 10 times the price. I would guess you still came out at a lower cost then an American built machine.
I’m really sorry to hear your bad experiences, hopefully you’re a minority.
Anything I purchase from China like this I consider a ‘crap shoot’. Bought a little CNC for $80, got a 2 bit coin purse for it People bought dog food, it killed their dog. A Congressional Representative a few years back complained to Congress that he could not by his blood pressure medicine, as it was adulterated with rocket fuel. Chinese…
You can always hope Biden repeals Trumps 25% tax on Chinese imports… That’ll knock the price down a bit.
Hi Willie, that was my thoughts too, get a co2 but keep my lm2 for certain jobs, now it just hangs on the wall with a cloth to keep some of the dust off. (enjoyed it for a while).(happy memories)
I do everything with the co2, great bit of kit (but maybe i’ve just been lucky with mine)
These responses are fantastic! I know a lot of what I might get will be a crap shoot. I know I can poke a hole in the side for a 4" duct but that’s why I’m shooting for the model I am shooting for. I need power, speed, and ability to fit in my living room (hidden under some stuff if company comes over) and why I am choosing a refurb model.
I’m looking at a 16" x 20" 60 watt, but they also make them in 50 and 55 watt. So I’m waiting until I hit it or I get too far behind. I know it’ll take me a few weeks plus tests to get up to speed, but in the end I think it’s worth it.
Thanks for this @jkwilborn… is the laser head in your photo the head that came with the machine, or something you’ve added? I’d love to get some detailed photos of that.
Wish me luck. My wife is not only on board, but she’s seen the light and knows what a better laser can do for us and our businesses. I just hit send on an OMTECH 60 watt (We decided the larger size would not be a hindrance, and the automated bed and auto adjust were key features for ease of use as well as future proofing). Also ordered a CW 5202 water chiller from Cloudray, am assembling an activated charcoal carbon filtering system before it vents outside with a 4" inline fan. Have upgraded the air pump as well to a 1350 PGH “quiet” aquarium pump as we will be using this in our “office”.
I haven’t made a single purchase this large in years. I know I’ll need to upgrade the tube soon (most likely) as well as the power supply, but have my fingers crossed that I make enough to cover the cost of the purchases in that amount of time.
Thank you all for contributing. I will update the thread when I have it together. I need to build a stand and some other things.
As you can see the mirror is offset about 1.5mm, that’s not helpful. Especially if you are fooled into thinking the center of the beam hole is the center of the mirror.
This is a head from Russ Sadler, he can be found on Youtube quite easily. He started RDWorks learning lab and examines many of the problems with Chinese lasers. Well worth the look, he’s got a couple hundred videos.
This head allows the use of ‘C’ type lens tubes that can be configured for many different lens. Currently I have three, a compound, 1.5" and 2". Weighs less than 1/3 of the original.
Glad to answer what I can, however I am quite new to CO2 lasers. I’d had my machine less than a month before that original head went into the ‘retired’ box.
AF2028-60 model. Buying it through amazon business gives me $50 off most things, and the ability to return through them if OMTech throws me under the bus. I hate Jeff Bezos, but I can’t afford to have a $3k paperweight in my living the size of my dinner table.
It’s a complicated issue. Since I got my laser a few months back, It’s been 118 degrees numerous times, not great for keeping a laser tube around.
People bought dog food, it killed their dog. A Congressional Representative a few years back complained to Congress that he could not by his blood pressure medicine, as it was adulterated with rocket fuel. Chinese…
(enjoyed it for a while).(happy memories)
(but maybe i’ve just been lucky with mine)
