Templates for absolute coordinates

[novis (Eilert Bergdahl)]

How do I make such a tool? How do I make a board to put on the honey comb so I can see all the measurements and draw in different sizes?

[thelmuth (Tim Helmuth)]

The simplest way is to attach a piece of plywood to your laser frame, sitting on top of your honeycomb. It needs to be large enough that it extends into the cutting area. Then using the laser cut the plywood along the perimeter. This gives you the edge of your work area. You then position things into the L shaped corner.

Here is a video I made showing an advanced L fence that is removeable / interchangeable with other plates. It will help you see the concept of the L fence in action.

Simplify Your Laser Projects With This Interchangeable Jig System

[novis (Eilert Bergdahl)]

Ok, thanks but that is too advanced for me as a total novice.

[MikeyH (Mike Hembrey)]

@novis

too advanced for me as a total novice.

You will not be one of those for very long!

@thelmuth showed you a “permanent” fixturing setup. Here is my version…

1. Absolute Coords.
2. Laser frame fastened fixed so it cannot move.
3. Honeycomb fastened down so it cannot move. It should be raised and something to locate the feet in a given spot in case you want to remove it. (see image below) You want to home the laser, use the Fire button and [1] move the honeycomb until the lattice corner is under the beam, and [2] run the laser front to back to ensure the honeycomb is aligned with the laser.
4. Now you make your fixture. Put your material (wood, cardboard, etc.) in the Home corner of the honeycomb. Cut out the holes where your parts to engrave will be placed. You can have one hole or 50.
5. Mark the Home corner so you will know how to orientate the fixture next time, and which side is up.
6. You now have a repeatable fixture. The program you used to cut out the holes should be saved as Master_[your item].lbrn2. Later, load the Master, do a Save As with a relevant name and use that for your work. Just to be safe, save a copy of your Master in a different folder, like ..\Lightburn\Master Templates.

If you have not figured it out by now, using Absolute Coords means wherever you design in the Lightburn workarea is where it will burn in the laser work space.

1. Home the machine. Jog out of the way if you want.
2. Put an item in the Home corner of the honeycomb.
3. Make a Tool Layer box or outline similar in shape to the work material.
4. Keep your design inside that Tool Layer.
5. It will burn inside the material area.
6. Not that complicated.

This should be enough to keep you busy for a while.