Hi,
I’ve bought some time ago a Vevor 3018 pro CNC/Laser machine.
Just recently I had some time to tinker/play around with it - just to realise that supplied laser is a crap. Maybe good for engraving however not so good for cutting stuff.
I’ve added a 5v blower fan to help with it with the aim towards the cut, however it seems that it doesn’t help a lot. To cut 3mm birch ply I had to use about 15-20 loops with 200mm/min and z-step per pass in 0.1 to finally cut it.
It seems that it leads just to getting a new laser. My aim is to cut different plywood about 3mm tall and probably engrave some random stuff. Obviously the more I can get - the better
I live in UK and started to look at Aliexpress Neje lasers and I’m struggling slightly with a choice.
My mount for the current laser radiator size is 33x33mm so ideally I’d love to just get something that I can fit easily, however probably I could grab some of the designs that are around and 3d print some adapters for it.
From what I could see I can go with few options(needed a 12V):
A40630 50W Module - Not plug & play 40 x 50 x 60 mm, reasonably priced
E30130 50W Module - Pretty much plug & play 30x30x130 mm, reasonably priced
A30130 50W Module - Pretty much plug & play 30x30x130 mm, reasonably priced
F30130 40W Module - Pretty much plug & play 30x30x130 mm, reasonably priced
N40630 40W - Not plug & play, 40 x 50 x 60 mm. reasonably priced
A30130 50W - Pretty much plug & play 30x30x100 mm, reasonably priced
A40640 - Seems like an extreme option for me that I won’t need and for my needs just overpriced.
Question for you guys, with so many options I am struggling to make a decision.
What should I go for?
I know the laser that came with my 3018 is 32mm on a side, so it will fit where the spindle came out…
On my 3018 that came with a 500mW laser … no other higher power laser would mount up. These are pretty common (I have 2) and how it exactly mounts should be ascertained before purchase.
It’s kind of up to what you want… The more power the better for cutting. Ensure you know what you’re getting, power wise…
Don’t confuse yourself with input wattage, all that matters is output, and not all lasers actually output the specified W.
If you’re into a lot of cutting and want a diode laser IMO you should looking at a 20W or at least 10W. Big difference in price, but can be worth it. I have a 10W Ortur LM3 and have been very happy with it.
The more you know about something the better decision you will make.
If a device says 12W, you need to know if it’s input or output. Is the assumption all of these are output…
Then you read an advertisement for a 40W out, but you see the input power is 30W… that should be a red flag …
The concept is extremely simple and should not be confusing. There is always an inherent loss within the device, some value that is never revealed to you. Most of the I
How ‘big’ a power supply does it require without knowing the input power ?
This is why most equipment is rated by input power …?
