I am running a 100w Co2 laser. I have an order for 10 knives for a motorcycle club, I removed the panels and placed them in a template I cut out of thin plywood. My issue is I don’t know for sure how to get the starting point to the exact spot it was at when I ran the cut (had to move my lens to pick up the plywood and remove the pieces. I marked the plywoods’ corners on my work surface, before I ran the cut. I am confident that the template is where it needs to be I just cant figure out how to make sure my laser will be starting from the same place. I don’t want to run all 10 of these blanks and have them be shifted… thoughts? Pictures attached.
My one thought was (as i have extra holes in my template) I can put one of the cut outs in the bottom left hole of my template and then start my file? If that worked then I could un-pause and be good?
I don’t have a camera on my laser or know how to use that. ANY help would be greatly appreciated.
Select the rectangular outline shape, then run frame repeatedly while physically positioning the jig such that the frame goes around the outside of the jig perfectly.
Once properly positioned, secure the jig down to the bed with whatever works for you.
To make this work and be repeatable you need to secure the jig to something that won’t change locations. Place your parts cutout, where convenient in the work area and use absolute coordinates to cut the jig out. Don’t forget finger holes so you can remove pieces easily.
When designing the jig, I set the corner of object the jig at a specific location, so I can move the head there and press origin… Once I set Lightburn to user origin, I can run the job(s). There is no reason you can’t also run in absolute coordinates.
I have replaced the honeycomb in mine with a steel plate… with pre-lased holes for screws. This will allow a repeatable location…
Cut dummy knives from cardboard for practice positioning.
Align the template as described, secure it to the platform, drop the cardboard knives into the template, set the power low enough to just mark the cardboard, Fire The Laser, and any mistakes will be both obvious and non-fatal.
When you are certain you can hit the target every time, then start with one knife …
I also realized my red dot was WAY too big (and out of alignment) So adjusting that now then will frame the jig, drop in the dummy cutouts and test! Thanks all!
