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External lights and Focus optimization

Discussion in 'Laser Cutters' started by winch20010, Jun 4, 2018.

  1. winch20010

    Builder

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    Hello,

    I already read some topics on this forum, but was not able to find the answer to my following questions.
    I actually own a 5.5W laser installed on a Home made CNC open machine.

    Question 1 :
    Is there any difference if you use your Laser in a "let say" Sunny environment, or in the dark for cutting jobs ?

    Question 2 :
    - my laser has an adjustable focus, what's the best position when cutting ?
    - focus in order to position the laser at the highest position (in this case, I think strenght of the laser will be lower for cutting, but thickness is better and focus point is longer)
    - focus in order to position the laser at the lowest position (in this case, the strenght of the laser will be stronger, but focus must be really precise and focus point must be probably adjusted during the cutting job for each layer)

    the problem actually is I need approx 30 layers at 200mm/min to cut a 3mm plywood which is not very efficient
    :(


    thanks in advance for sharing your experiences/thoughts.

    seb
     
  2. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
    Staff Member Moderator Builder Resident Builder

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    That's faster than my 6w (;
    Plywood's secret is the glue: Between each layer is a resin layer - which 405-445nm Lasers doesnt cut well (that freq of light is absorbed well by organics, but not so well by plastics/resins/etc) , you might have more luck with solid wood, or MDF. Plywood is hard to laser with these!
     
  3. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
    Staff Member Moderator Builder Resident Builder

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    RE Question 2: Most of these have single element lenses, so a fixed focal length, Unless yours has some dual element setup that really allows the focal length to change (and thus the shape of the cone)? - havent seen that before on these modules....
     
  4. winch20010

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    Thanks Peter for your quick answer.
    The problem is to find the right plywood you're right. I know there's different versions (even some specific for laser), but I was trying to optimize my cuts (because 30 passes is a lot for 3mm plywood...)

    for information, the focus is a simiple lens which can be screwed or not to finetune the focus (see the picture below)

    [​IMG]
     

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