I have just started out in laser engraving and have just installedand uninstalled lightburn trial version.
I didn’t realise that I am required to know so much technical stuff just to configure it. For instance it states that I need toenter command starting with $ but it doesn’t state where to enter them…
I had an issue with homing and read a previous post with a solution about this. I’ve entered $ = 21 but there is no confirmation if homing has been activated or not.
I am not getting any movement on my laser and assume that homing isn’t enabled.
In addition to this there are many settings that require setting up and use the $ code or whatever it is called. I can’t find anywhere where I need to enter or change them. You manual doesn’t state it either.
I have been using lasergrbl for a few days. It was much easier to configure/setup. It’s just that lightburn seems to be the “industry” standard. I thought I would try it out. What a mistake!
Maybe come back some time after you got some experience with your laser.
You don’t have to configure anything, you can use LB right away, like LaserGRBL. But if you want to make use of all the features, you might need to do some configuration. The things you talk about ($-commands) have nothing to do with LightBurn, those are firmware configuration parameters inside the laser. I guess you configured your laser to auto home at startup, which was disabled in the firmware. Next time, just disable this. LaserGRBL just doesn’t offer this function; otherwise you would have gotten the same error.
But be aware, lasering is a difficult hobby that takes much of technical understanding. Physics (effects of energy into materials) up to mechanics (tuning your laser, which you need to do at some point).
If a paper printer is complexity level 1, a plotter is level 4, a 3D printer level 5 and a laser level 10.
Another hint: I see you are using a Sculpfun S9. I wrote some guides about that laser back in those days:
Those guides have evolved a lot, but you will still find your S9 referred to in many articles and guides. Take a look at those. It might be a few hours of reading, but it’s worth it.
I have been using my laser withanother app and have liked the results. I wanted to try lasering photographs and have done a lot of research on this. It’s supposed to be easier to set up in lightburn.
During lightburn’s setup stage, I only had the option to select GRBL. It didn’t list my device. Short version, I am sorting out a driver. It was a simple link ithe other app but I need to download one from sculpfun now. I can’t see that it has been installed and nothing is happening to my laser. I’m checking this out with sculpfun.
Thanks for your doc. I’ll have a read this afternoon.
I think it’s fair enough and ok that you’ve found an easier and better program for you and your laser. Good luck with that.
There are quite a few new laser users, especially after Christmas, who are disappointed that they have to spend time and resources to learn and operate their new machines.
There are laser machines on the market with their own proprietary software, intended for people who don’t have the time, desire or ability to properly familiarize themselves with laser machines and their control systems, including software like LB. The problem is that these machines are much more expensive than the “normal” ones and that you are either dependent on or very limited by this type, typically cloud-based software, everything has its price and limitations.
I have a friend who doesn’t want to and can’t familiarize himself with LightBurn and laser technology, but would like to burn something. I’ve given the man a file of a box, he changes the names on the front himself and doesn’t do anything else but this one box, over and over again. The man is happy…
Lightburn is the only laser operating software I’ve used, so I can’t comment on how superior the capabilities are (I never even used the free grbl app that came with my laser).
But I’ve chosen “the industry standard” for 2 reasons:
First, the majority of Youtube tutorial content uses Lightburn.
Second, you will not find a forum with this level of input and participation to support any other laser app.
Please do not give up on Lightburn yet! And the correct parameter is $22, not $21.You also must have limit switches for this ability.
As both @misken and @bernd.dk point out, it is a pretty broad hobby. However, you will find a goldmine of information and amazing support from other users here. Pretend you are learning to drive a stick-shift car. A little bit at a time.
Sculpfun makes a good machine. I now have 3 of them. If you have a question, ask it on the Forum. The only dumb question is the one not asked.
We get questions from kids, housewives, engineers, retired people (I am 78), and more. Some eventually begin answering questions as they gain experience.
One thing is for sure, this is one hobby that I did not burn out or plateau within a year or two. This includes Amateur Radio, Astronomy, and Sailing. My motto is, “What keeps you thinking keeps you alive.”
Only my S30 needed the $22 parameter changed. All 3 were basically plug and play with Lightburn after I manually created a GRBL device for each of them. How simple is that?
Do not be overwhelmed by all the information available. Learn what you need now and worry about the rest later.
I have watched your video. It has been a great help.
I have managed to make my first laser print with lightburn but I have some concerns about the last part of your video - the Move section for firing up and engraving section:
It looks like lightburn has been updated as the “move” section isn’t showing. There is a series of buttons (start, frame etc). I wondered if these replace the “move” options.
I found the place to set the laser strength to 1% in the tools section. I then pressed the frame button tool to check the position of the wood and then pressed start.
I may have an issue with the area around the characters getting burned/sooty. I do have air assist switched on (M8). I’m going to do a few checks first to make sure that it’s not the plywood that I am using. If the problem persists I’ll create another post.
Thanks for your help. Your video made understanding configuration much easier.
I have tried image engraving another app. I’m very impressed with the result of my photo of a black cat at the back of a cave at night with a few fireflies dotted around.
I thought that I would try lightburn as it appears that it has more flexibility with the settings. There are also more instructional videos that use lightburn.
With regards to the videos; There seems to be as many ways and methods as there are ants in a nest. At first I found them to be very confusing but they have given me a starting point and ideas to try out.
Thanks. I only created the guide page, the videos are done by others Probably LightBurn team itself.
The S9 does not have an air assist. You can ignore that switch. It does nothing. So you will always have some charring around your lines. The only way to reduce it is going faster.
Though, the S9 has a very basic mechanics that is not capable of high speeds. For cutting, use about 300-600 mm/min at 90% and check how many passes you need. For engraving, use a maximum of around 3000 mm/min, otherwise the mechanics get very unstable and you will see this in the results.
The S9 laser module is a really great module, the rest of the laser is rather outdated, the predecessor S30 is much more complete and cheaper if you compare all features. The S9 litereally has no feature at all (no limit switches, no linear rail, no air assist, …). So most of the more advanced features are not available anyway.
You said you want to do pictures, be aware that this is the high art of lasering, expect it to take hours of adjusting, literally tons / kilograms of wasted materials and a steep learning curve. I collected some famous guides here: Specific guides - Diode Laser Wiki Usually, doing pictures comes last after mastering cutting and engraving with vector graphics.
And, final remark: many materials are not safe to be used in a laser, like most leather types. Only genuine veg tan leather or laser-safe artificial leather can be used with a laser, most faux leather materials are highly toxic and destroy the laser!
Sorry,my fault. I bought the S30 Pro it has air assist. I looked on my receipt to confirm it. Just as well that I did. I’m happier now as I seriously thought that I had bought the S9. (I was researching both of them). There’s no label on the machine to say what the model is but there is on the air pump (I discovered it today!).
I used to sell my photographs whilst living in Helsinki (Finland). I thought that I could try converting a few simple ones into engraved images and start selling again.
I’m not sure what the problem was or is with the air pump but it may be a loose connection or it not being noticed by the engraver. I logged out of Lightburn and went back in after a cuppa. The air assist pump started to work as soon as I switched the engraver on.
I haven’t given up on practicing on the other stuff and on different materials. I have engraved some leather wallets and ceramic tiles with text and done some on cast acrylic (that took ages to master).
I’m trying photographs in lightburn just to get a feel of what they will or can look like. I don’t expect them to be perfect but at least i’ll get an idea of what I will be able to achieve.
I have an idea of engraving on leather,and wooden keyrings (my next project). I’ve done some text on plywood. That wasn’t easy! I conducted some research and it looks like the plywood that I was using was the wrong type. Amongst other things the layers were only about 0.5mm thick which meant the glue under the firt layer was melting and forming lumps oin the text (I think!).
I logged out several hours ago and can’t find the exact link in my browser history. This site looks like it the one that I used as it mentions setting up grbl and not selecting my device. It’s what I did!
Great minds think alike! I retired last week and thought that I would teach myself laser engraving in order to keep myself occupied.
I used to do sublimation printing as a market trader (selling my printed photos to cruise ship passengers in Helsinki). It’s now too expensive for me to make it worthwhile.
The S30 Pro air assist is either on or off. There is a serious advantage to having a small air flow in the nozzle at all times to keep the lens clean. I made this happen by putting a T coupling in the air line and fed that to a PVC ball valve. I leave air assist on all the time. When engraving, I open the valve and dump some of the air flow. Low tech, works like a charm.
