From Crate to Cut | Installing a Laser Cutter.

Recently, I designed and built a DIY Laser cutting Raspberry Pi powered PC.
A major factor in cost is laser parts
Cut by a third party, so I started looking for my own laser cutter. . . .
It took me some time to look at the options before I jumped in to buy a machine.
The frame size of the small box is about 35 cm x ~ 26 cm.
Any laser cutting machine I bought must be able to manage these dimensions as well as some working space.
There are quite a few laser cutting machines from several different manufacturers.
I contacted almost every one of them, but unfortunately they were out of my budget.
So I had to look elsewhere.
EBay is a good source of things and I\'m sure most of you will use it one way or another.
When I was looking for something, it was usually my first port of call and where I found myself looking at the laser cutter.
Enter the \"laser cutter\" on eBay and have a machine that fits my meager budget.
The title is \"new CO2 laser engraving machine carving knife assist Rotary unit 50 W\", a bit of a mouthful, but this machine looks perfect for what I want.
I did some digging and found a video on YouTube showing similar machines.
Use the following affiliate links when purchasing. Thanks :)eBay. com | eBay. co. uk | eBay. fr | Amazon. co.
The laser cutting machine is installed in the crate.
The net weight is a little over 116 kg, which is very heavy.
Step 1 | open the package.
There are several large bolts that hold the wooden cases together and they need to come out.
Step 2 | after closing the panel, the panel can now be obtained internally.
All the knives are attached;
Gas pumps, pumps, pipes, cables, manuals and sealing materials.
To help reduce the weight they were removed.
I had no one to help lift at the time, and I started moving the laser cutting machine impatiently.
I have a heavy duty trolley that is recycled from the tape library, so I use it to turn the cutter.
I highly recommend someone to help you.
At the end of the day, I had to get another pair of hands because the cutter had to climb the stairs.
Step 3 | move it to the final break in the work area.
In order for the laser cutting machine to operate safely, the cutting machine requires pressurized air, circulating coolant and adequate ventilation.
Fortunately, all three laser cutters are available, but they need to be installed before using the cutter.
Cooling and pressurized air laser is cooled through circulating water through a glass laser tube.
The laser cutter has a flow detector and the laser will not work without water flow.
The supplied water pump is designed for immersion in the reservoir.
In this case, I chose a 25 liter trash can as my reservoir.
I will use the heavy duty trolley I use to move the laser cutting machine as an auxiliary tool
Components for cooling system and air supply.
Step 1 | need to support the bin well on the trolley.
To reduce vibration and noise, I will put the trash can on a part of the foam board.
Foam sheets are used to package the laser cutting machine for transportation.
I use some waste wood to support the foam liner.
Step 2 | the air pump is mounted on two rubber brackets.
Measuring from the stand and the pump, I have built the stand to install the pump.
The pump is fixed with some bolts used to hold the crates together.
Step 3 | the feed pipe of the laser cutting machine is connected to the water pump.
There is an adapter that can do this, but it needs to be sealed to make sure there are no complications with the flow of water.
They provide a tube of rubber sealant with a laser cutting machine.
You have to provide your own tie. wraps though.
Step 4 | the return feed of the laser cutting machine needs support.
The last thing you want is the pipe to fall freely and then pump water on the floor.
I modified an old wire coat. hanger.
Fortunately, I have a metal rod similar to the diameter of the tube.
Winding the wires around the bar several times is the perfect grip for the tube.
I tilt the coil handle slightly down so that the water can safely enter the bin through the pipe, not on the floor.
Step 5 | it\'s always a good idea to make sure the air and water lines are working properly before connecting to the laser cutter.
I have filled the reservoir about 3/4 away.
The ventilation of connecting the laser cutting machine to the external vent is essential.
A lot of smoke is generated when cutting, making sure that the smoke is properly extracted is a must.
The length of the laser cutting machine is 150mm (4\")pipe.
It wasn\'t long enough in my case, so I had to go to the local hardware store to buy a 1 m extension cord.
This left me with the issue of extending the supply pipeline.
The solution is to modify a tin and use it as two connecting tubes.
Step 6 | it took me a few minutes to find the right tin in diameter around the house.
I found a tea container of the right size.
First I cut the bottom with a tinopener.
Then I cut it in half with a sharp Stanley knife.
Please note that the edges will be sharp.
To protect myself and the ventilation duct, I covered the edges with thick masking tape.
Step 7 | I chose to cut the supplied tube in half and install the extension in the middle.
Cut the tube in half with a sharp knife.
Insert one of the two tube connectors in the first pipe segment and it should enter half of the tube. .
I wrapped some PVC tape around the tube to help form a seal and hold the tube in place.
Repeat this with another part of the pipe.
Step 8 | extension with two tiesWraps.
Slide the extended end on the Tube connector.
Fix the extension cord in place with a tiewraps.
Repeat with other pipe sections.
Ventilation pipes are now available.
Ventilation pipes need to be connected to external vents.
In the room where I was holding the cutter, there was no vents, only windows.
Step 9 | open the window and use some packaging foam from the laser cutter, I have filled the space in the window frame.
10 steps | take a flower pot.
Cut the top
Make sure that the ventilation pipe is installed on the jar exactly.
Step 11 | mark a hole in the foam using the top of the flowerpot and cut out the hole.
Step 12 | deliver ventilation pipes through holes.
Step 13 | place the top of the flowerpot inside the ventilation pipe and fix it in place using a stapler.
Step 14 | push the top of the pot with a connecting tube into the foam. Step 15 | Re-
Put the foam in the window frame.
Step 16 | connect the other end of the ventilation pipe to the laser cutter using the provided Jubilee clip.
I\'m wearing another wire coat.
Help to support the hook of the pipe.
Step 17 | check all connections, cables, pipes, and settings.
Thoroughly check the entire laser cutting machine for obstacles, packaging materials and general debris.
18 steps | boot!
The first time I powered the laser cutter, the access panel made some clicks.
To fix this, I pasted some foam strips on the edge of the Channel panel Hatch opposite the hinge.
There is no need to keep the straps around the hatch all the time, and if you do, you may find that the hatch is not closed.
Of course, the first thing I do after opening is to try to cut something.
It\'s not surprising. Step 1 | RTFM.
Step 2 | cut things
The question is simple.
The cutting head needs to be about 10mm away from the cutting surface, not 10 cm as I tried.
The laser cutting machine is equipped with an acrylic cutting strip of the right height, which helps to adjust the cutting table to the right position.
Of course, I missed it completely for the first time.
But this is not a complete story.
There is something called light path alignment that makes a big difference to cutting.
The laser cutting machine uses a series of three mirrors and one lens.
The laser beam needs to be aligned in the center of each mirror and in the middle of the lens.
If aligned, it can lead to some strange effects like two lasers.
One of the photos shows the effect.
To solve this problem, the laser tube must be aligned correctly.
The starting point of alignment is the laser tube itself.
The laser tube produces a beam of light and then the beam reaches the first mirror.
Kill the beam-
The laser tube needs to move the center of the first mirror.
According to the instructions, in order to find the position of the laser beam relative to the mirror, we must place some masking tape on the mirror aperture.
There is a button called pulse on the control panel of the laser cutting machine.
The laser will be fired by pressing this button.
If the button is pressed when a masking tape is on the mirror aperture, we can see the position of the laser beam burned to the tape.
Using this process, we can adjust the beam to the center of all mirrors.
Step 1 | open the inspection hatch covering the laser tube at the back of the laser cutting machine.
Place a masking tape on the mirror aperture and close the hatch.
Laser Pulse
Step 2 | pay attention to the position of the beam relative to the Mirror.
In my case it was 5mm too high and a little bit to the right.
Adjust the laser tube on the level (left & right)
Very straight, loosen the bolt, side laser tube until it is centered, but move the tube on the vertical plane (up & down)
Things are much more complicated.
The laser tube is placed on several 8mm boards.
To reduce the tube to the required 5mm, I need to replace one of the places with a replacement of 3mm.
Fortunately, I have about 3mm plywood sheets.
Step 3 | measure the plates to the best of your ability to transfer these measurements to a digital medium.
To save you some energy and time, I have attached a copy of the document I made for the plate.
Step 4 | cut out two boards, one for each installation point.
I had to make some minor adjustments to make the plate fit.
The file has been adjusted for you.
Power off the laser cutting machine!
Step 5 | remove the laser tube bracket with great care.
Step 6 | remove a board from each stack and replace it with one of the 3mm boards.
Step 7 | reassemble the laser tube bracket.
Power supply on laser cutting machine.
Step 8 | check the beam position on the first mirror with a new masking band and make any adjustments to the laser tube and then finally fix the tube.
There are three adjustment screws in the mirror.
Each screw has a lock nut that needs to be released before any adjustment and re-adjustment is made
It\'s locked once you\'re done.
Step 9 | place a masking tape on the second mirror and pulse the laser.
Step 10 | adjust the first mirror to focus the beam on the second mirror.
Make sure to replace the masking tape after each pulse.
Step 11 | repeat the process of the third mirror.
Step 12 | when the beam enters the lens, the beam is adjusted by the third mirror.
Make sure there is no masking tape for any mirror.
Position the cutting head at the correct height above the cutting surface and pulse the laser.
There should be a small black spot if the mirror is aligned correctly.
If it\'s not positioned properly, you might see a broader point that looks like an arc.
This arc is the result of the lens flash.
The problem can be solved by adjusting the mirror.
The particles of the burnt concealer tape inevitably enter the mirror.
Any dirt on the mirror will greatly reduce the power of the laser.
You need to clean the mirror before putting the laser cutting machine into work.
When everything is set up correctly, the performance of the laser cutting machine is very good.
The cutting is consistent and the precision is also very good.
It took most of the day to adjust the laser beam, but every minute was worth it.
I have been using a laser cutter for a few weeks and I have learned something.
Tip 1 | lift the cutting surface from the cutting table.
If the material you cut, in my case, is mostly plywood, placed on the cutting table, the beam pops down from the table and marks the plywood.
There is also a large amount of smoke and residue, leaving a gap below to ventilate the air and remove the smoke and residue.
There will be a building-
Over time, there are more and more residues on the table, but if you are lifted from the table, this should not be a problem.
Tip 2 | the cutting surface must be as flat and smooth as possible.
Any deviation in the height of the working face can lead to unstable cutting.
Press down the cutting surface with heavy objects.
Tip 3 | run the simulation on the software before committing the cut to make sure the cut order is correct.
I use the color to help with the crop.
Tip 4 | try the power settings and cutting speed to find the best configuration for the material you are using.
Tip 5 | monitor the temperature of the water coolant.
To check the temperature, I put two temperature bars on the reservoir.
Tip 6 | keep the guide rail lubricated.
Apply some grease on the rails with cotton buds.
Tip 7 | vacuum the bottom often.
A lot of small pieces will be gathered below, and sometimes they will be sucked into the ventilation fan.
I have found that long use can bring the coolant temperature close to an unsafe level.
In the manual it is recommended to add ice to reduce the temperature.
This does work, but only in a very short time.
I will install the radiator design for the cooling CPU and match it to the 120mm fan.
I will update \"visible\" when the fan arrives \"!