15W Engraving Laser on an Avid Pro CNC - First 15W Laser delivered by Opt Lasers
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- Опубліковано 6 вер 2024
- In this video, I review a prototype of the 15W blue laser with a precision-grade focus lens from Opt Lasers:
optlasersgrav....
I have it mounted to an AVID CNC 48x48 Pro system. I test the laser on many different materials to see how it performs, and what the limits of a 15W blue laser with a high-quality lens are.
Thank you for a great video. Just setting up a new 5' x 12' AVID CNC with the 8.7 hp head and looking to add a laser to system. Very helpful!
Wow, that is a big one 🙂
Thanks for the quick feed back!!!!
Hi Jim, great demo. Thanks.
I have a JTech Phonic 3.8 Watt laser that I've been user for since 2015 for mostly etching and some carving in 1/8 inch balsa. I'm ready to upgrade to a more powerful diode laser (Need to cut 1/8 to 3/8 balsa and up to 1/4 bass or plywood) . Was considering the 7 watt JTech, the 10 watt Endurance and now have I have to consider this 15 watt Opt laser and Endurance 15 watt "Duos" laser diodes. The 15 Watt opt laser becomes available in January 2021. Endurance looks available now. Price on Opt laser is giving me pause, $2,499 for the PLH3D-15W Engraving Laser Head Universal Kit (prototype you demoed) vs. the Endurance 15 watt (15000 mW) "Duos" laser for $1,395. Not sure I can justify the $1000 difference. Your thoughts? Endurance looks like it will work fine, just not as polished as the Opt laser.
Hi Reginald,
I cannot speak to JTech directly because I have never seen one or evaluated one personally. I do know people who have them and they like them.
However, in reviewing their specs, and the cutting performance in their videos on their site, I don't think these are as good as the Opt lasers. I'll give you the reasons why, and you can decide if that is important enough to you for the price difference. First, the JTech says its a 2 diode laser. That means each one is running at 7.5W and that is very high for a laser diode, compared to the 3 diode head on the Opt. So they are driving them much harder when you are at the full 15W and that will significantly reduce the overall lifetime. If you overdrive LED's, their lifetime drops exponentially. Next, the cutting effectiveness is a combination of raw laser power, the quality of the focused spot, and the type of air assist you have. The Opt has an excellent built in air assist that surrounds the beam and will give you better smoke removal and keep your lenses clean. The first two are what determines the laser power density. Based on the specs, the JTech should be as good as or better than the Opt. However, based on all their videos, I think either their power, or their spot size specs must be a bit optimistic because the cut kerf looks fatter than what I got in my tests of my Opt, and their number of passes to cut through the same material is more. I can easily cut 1/8" plywood very cleanly in one pass with my Opt. The final thing, as you mentioned, is that the build quality and fit and finish of the Opt is second to none. I have worked on a lot of hardware designs in 30 years as an engineer and their cases are just fantastic. I don't want to sound like I'm trying to sell the Opt since as you said, there is a significant price difference, but for me, it would be the Opt just because its clearly better and I'm retired so i can spent my money freely (until my wife finds out :-)) since my kids are off the payroll.
Hi Reginalda,
The strongest laser diode that is currently available on the market is a 5 W NUBM44 laser diode. This diode can only be used sustainably as a 6 W laser diode. Pushing them further can dramatically cut down its lifetime and kill the diode.
Endurance's 10 W (and 15 W) laser heads are not really 10 W (or 15 W) laser heads, because Endurance simply overloads their laser diodes, which dramatically reduces their lifetime. As far as I'm aware, Endurance only provides a 48 hours guarantee on their products. ("The guaranteed duration of the continuous operation ~48-72 hours." - as written on their 10 W Invincible module's webpage )
At the same time, the manufacturer of the laser diodes they use (5 W NUBM44 Nichia laser diodes) defines the death of this diode as a moment when the optical power of the diode is halved. You can thus assume that what starts as a 10 W Endurance laser rapidly deteriorates in terms of optical power, which can downgrade to 5 W (or 7 W for a 15 W unit) after just 48 hours (and even less as the time goes on). Furthermore, the Endurance's Duos is a mediocre system, which simply points two beams at the same point. If the temperature of the device is increased by just 10 degrees, the two beams stop pointing in the same direction.
JTech, on the other hand, provides laser heads that, due to their design, are prone to undesirable inductance effects. It is also more prone to electrostatic discharge. JTech is a bit of a bet, which means it can work just fine, or it can die pretty suddenly.
Finally, let's move on to Opt Lasers PLH3D-15W cutting and engraving laser. Opt Lasers provides sustainable industrial-grade lasers and has been favoured by manufacturers and academic institutions around the world. Opt Lasers doesn't overload their diodes, which means PLH3D-15W cutting laser contains THREE NUBM44 laser diodes and can work at full power for 10 000 up to 30 000 hours ( optlasersgrav.com/blue-laser ). The kits might be expensive but they use high-quality components and they literally contain everything you need, so you don't need to purchase anything extra. The PLH3D-15W is in fact the world's first compact 3 laser diodes system for CNC machines, 3D printers and industrial machines that offers real 15 W of optical power.
So, to sum up, I would say Endurance is only a suitable option if you are certain you can complete your work within 48-72 hours. JTech is a provider you should choose if you are comfortable with the higher risk of the electronics dying suddenly. But if you want to be able to use your cutting laser sustainably, then you should choose Opt Lasers Grav's 15 W cutting laser.
January is coming in 14 days... is it so important argument that other are available now? ^^ Strongest didoes available on the market are 6W, that is all. You can turn them up, they will die much sooner and randomly. You can also make some measurement on the profiler to check the beam pointing accuracy parameter. It is a simple question, do you need proffesional solution or cheap hobby solution?
@@JNWoodworks hahaha When your wife winds out she will give you a medal!
@@ihisrl I made her a lot of Christmas tree ornaments with my 15W laser last week, so now she is happy I bought it :-)
I'm considering getting a 15W Opt Laser for my Avid CNC Pro. How difficult is the install and how do you control the power? Is that via software? Someone told me the Avid boards don't have a PWM?
Hi Josh,
Its pretty easy. There is a PWM on the AVID ESS board, and it works very well. I have a full set of instructions on how to set it up here (look for the power point documents) drive.google.com/drive/folders/1xB6J0RZIU1j8g951NkP-8HXC1swC2C-B?usp=share_link
I also have more laser videos on my site. FYI, opt now has a 30W laser on their website for order as well. If you want to do a lot of cutting, I would consider that one. I hope to do a video review on that in the next couple months.
The laser power is controlled right from the toolpath, just like a router/spindle. You generate the design in CAD just like anything else, and then use a different post processor to generate the Gcode for the laser.
Great job..
Very interesting video. I wish you had tried Extruded Acrylic. I think you might have gotten better results.
I had a laser machine once (60w Co2) and it cut beautifully. The problem was the software was terrible. required constant cleaning of the lenses and it would catch fire. I do remember extruded acrylic cut the best though.
I don't think it matters how it is made. If you can see through it, a blue laser is not going to cut/mark because it is visible light. A CO2 laser is deep infrared and acrylic and glass are not at all transparent at that wavelength. This is one of the advantages of a CO2 laser vs. a blue laser. There are tricks like painting the surface with a dark color that work for some things (like glass), but clear acrylic is a tough one to get nice results with.
i dont mean to be off topic but does anybody know of a tool to get back into an Instagram account..?
I somehow lost my password. I love any help you can offer me!
@Travis Michael instablaster =)
@Caleb Danny thanks so much for your reply. I found the site on google and im in the hacking process atm.
I see it takes quite some time so I will get back to you later with my results.
@Caleb Danny it did the trick and I now got access to my account again. I am so happy!
Thank you so much, you really help me out :D
Great video man! I just ordered the 15w from OPT. I wanted to ask if the mount comes with the kit and I just bought vetric laser module for Aspire and maybe I'm wrong but I did not see this one listed as supported. So yes I use aspire and looks like I will need a post processor, I have an Avid 4896 would the post processor you are using work on my machine as well?
The kit does not have the mount. I made mine out of 3/8" aluminum plate. The DXF for it is on OPT's website. You can make a lot of different mounts depending on where you want it on your machine. I'm working on a new magnetic quick mount for my machine and I'm moving the laser to the side of the spindle so I don't have to remove the plate at all.
The post processors for VCarve and Aspire are the same, so yes, the one I sent you will work.
Hi Jim, I have a larger 5' x 10' Avid and I'm interested in setting this up.. did you just mount to the spindle and more or less run the spindle off with setting your X, Y, and Z based on an offset with the Laser Beam away from the center of the spindle?
Hi Ranjiv,
I have a little document with the connections, SW and electrical setup, and how i mounted it. If you want a copy, send me an email at jnwdwks@gmail.com and I'll send it to you.
As far as setting the axis 0 locations, I just use the beam itself. I use a laser screen in Mach4 to turn on the beam at very low power, and then just visually set the location for X and Y, and I have a thickness gauge for the height to get in the right focus. I do plan to make a touchplate setup soon (and will put up a video on that) but just haven't had time to get it done yet.
Can a get it too??
@@girthbrooks4219 sure, send me an email.
What software could you use to engrave an outline of a photo into slate or metal? What did you use for software for the dog photo?
Hi Jim, great video! I have the same setup as you and my post processor is working pretty good, but I can't seem to change the intensity. Would you mind sharing yours so I can have a look and see what's different? Kind regards, Bram
Hi Bram,
Sure, send me an email at jnwdwks@gmail.com, and I will respond with my setup info and post processors and help you get going.
jim
Jim, really enjoy your videos and depth of detail. I am planning to purchase an Avid CNC 5x10 pro in the next few months - currently remodeling the space for it. I am considering going with a dual z. Any thoughts on having a dedicated Z just for the laser module?
Hi Kennis,
There are a few things to consider on the machine configuration, and it really comes down to what you are going to use it for. I think a dual axis is probably a nice way to avoid swapping in/out the laser. I haven't looked at this much (AVID hasn't published a lot on it or any video's that i know of), but I assume the two axis are independently controllable such that you can just park one or the other at the end of the gantry and use one at a time. You will give up a little X direction travel by having two Z stages, but you are already ordering a very large machine, so that is probably ok. You would probably want to add a dust cover for the laser lens to keep any dust from getting on the lens while its not in use. Beyond that, the main thing to think about is the extra weight. I have a 48" wide gantry, and the 12" Z stage, and when I do very fine Vcarving or laser work i can get a lot of vibration (small fonts are the worst). I have been working on stiffening the table, but in the end the main solution is to run slower. So obviously two Z stages will add even more weight to the gantry. I have cut down the motor acceleration settings in Mach4 and max speeds a lot when cutting fine details. If that does not bother you, then this is probably a good way to go. For me, I'm just a hobbyist, so speed is not a big deal. The other thing is that the laser is quick to mount/unmount, and there are some quick attach mounts coming for the 15W, so a dual Z stage is a lot of money for this, but I will admit that is really cool and if I had a 5' wide gantry, i would probably do the dual Z now that it is available. I would love to see your setup when you get it done. You are in for a lot of fun with this machine. It has kept me busy in retirement :-)
@@JNWoodworks thanks Jim for the response and input. Avid sells an extra wide gantry so you would not sacrifice the full cut width of which ever width you purchase. I am not totally sure how the dual Z works... I know the two heads move on the Z or A axis independently. It almost looks like the X motion is in tandem. Here is a video where they built a machine with dual Z for a router and plasma. ua-cam.com/video/8OTwT0WFBmg/v-deo.html.
@@kennisbutnerjr3947 Thanks for the video, i had never seen that before. I can't really see mixing plasma and router together on the same machine, but I definitely could see having a spindle and laser mounted on dual axis like that.
What kind of fume extraction is there for an add-on laser system to a CNC table like AVID? Are you using any here with the air assist?
I have a very large garage and usually have all the doors open so its not a problem for me. I also have a 30" wall fan to blow it away if I'm cutting something particularly nasty. However, I will be modifying my honeycomb table soon (with a video as well) to use a vacuum to hold down material as well as extract all the fumes. My dust collector vents to outside so I won't have any fumes in the garage. I do know people who have these in their basements and are using a shop vac with some kind of filter on it that catches the smoke particles and they say that works very well.
Great video! Thanks. The blue edge holding clamps you are using, could you please provide a source link for them.
Thanks
Sure. They are Kregs and they work very well. They seemed expensive for an all plastic clamp, but it turns out they work better and are more durable than the metal ones I had before. www.amazon.com/dp/B0774WBGPX?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
Good video as a new cnc user a video on how to go from v carve to g code for the laser would be great
where did you get the honewcomb ?
Ok, I added a beginner's video on how to generate a laser gcode design.
For the honeycomb sheet, I got that on Amazon: smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01AYIZ5MK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 and added a wood frame around it.
Hi Jim, When you cut through plywood, did you z-step or did you remain same Z height through both passes ?
When I cut all the 0.125" thick materials, I just set the Z so the focal point was on the surface. The cone shape doesn't expand too bad in 0.125" when it comes out the bottom. When I cut items that were like 0.2" or 0.25", then is set the focal point in the middle of the material to get about the same kerf at the top and bottom of the workpiece.
Why does it look like the head pauses every once in a while. Is that normal or just something with your set up?
You mean vs. say a c02 laser when its scanning back and forth? I think that's just a difference in the software and controller between different kinds of machines. Mine has always done that when running a router job as well. It does synchronize the laser turn on and off very well with the motor movements, but sometimes there are brief pauses between movements.
I do have few question what software you use and I have router instead of spindle would I have to get spindle plate and does the kit come with everything I need took hook it up
HI Anthony,
The kit came with all the electronics and wires etc. you need. The only thing you need to do is make a bracket to mount the laser head to your Z stage. If you have a router instead of the spindle, I think you still have the vertical part that has the T slots in it that I mounted my bracket to. Its the outside plate of the Z stage that the spindle mount bolts to, which I think is the same piece your router mounting plate also bolts too. I'm going to write up a more detailed installation document of how I hooked everything up because I've been getting similar questions from others. If you would like a copy, just send me a requests at jnwdwks@gmail.com and i will reply with a copy once I have it done.
Hi Jim Great video Do you think this laser also works on my CNc Model Versatil 1250 (4ft x 4ft)
Z-Axis head room 170mm
Milling table type Aluminium extruded Profile T- groove plate
Increment 0.00625 mm
Repeatability + /-0.025 mm
Travel speed 12 m/min (200mm per sec)
Spindle motor AC Spidle Motor 2.2 KW
Power Supply 230V, 50/60Hz
Drive system Dia. 16x10mm precision ball screw driven spindles with linear slide bearing guides in all axis with accuracy +/-0.02mm
Operating software NC EAS(Y) (real-time Operating/Controller software
Hi Peter,
I looked up your machine on the internet and it looks like mechanically it could easily support the weight and size of the laser head. I could not find enough details on the controller though. Basically, you need an extra control line that is either a digital PWM signal, or an analog voltage signal to control the laser power. I couldn't find any documentation if that machine has that capability. I would recommend contacting the machine company, or possibly Opt Lasers since they have worked on retrofitting their laser heads to many different CNC machines so they are pretty familiar with a lot of the controllers being used for CNC machines around the world. Unfortunately I mostly only know the ESS controller that is in the AVID CNC machine.
@@JNWoodworks thanks for your quick reply I will ask them
Have you cut Corp plant with the laser? 10mm or 4mm?
I'm sorry, I'm not sure what Corp plant is. Can you give a little more context?
Can you attach this to a 3d printer? I have a cr10s pro and raise3d pro 2.
This one is a good bit heavier than the 6w laser. I don't know how much weight your 3d printer can move around. I would think it would be too heavy for most 3d printers. You can contact opt lasers (see their website) to see if they know of anyone who has tried it.
so i sliced my fingers off with my laser any pointers on how to not do that in the future.
Drinking and lasers don't mix well.
@@JNWoodworks great advice thank you
What type of material is the spoil board made out of??
My spoil boards are 1" MDF.
@@JNWoodworks I'm talking about the black honey comb looking thing on your secondary table
@@girthbrooks4219 oh🙂
That is aluminum honeycomb I bought on Amazon. It just looks black due to the shadows. www.amazon.com/dp/B01AYIZ5MK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apap_UGLw1DekOL9bq
@@JNWoodworks phenomenal!!! Thank you!!
Is a 15w laser the highest they make for a CNC setup or can it range higher?
Hi David,
Right now the 15W Opt laser is the most powerful blue laser that I know of, at least from a power density standpoint, which is all that really matters from a usefulness perspective. You can adapt a fiber laser to a CNC like ours pretty easily, and you can get those in the hundreds of Watts. However they are at an infrared wavelength that is not really good for most things except metal.
I think in a few years there will be a lot of technical advancements in blue lasers and we'll have them to at least 50W or more, which will be pretty cool for cutting wood, and maybe even some thin metals.
Jim