To Mask, or Not To Mask. Thunder Laser BOLT Engraving. Working With Wood. 010 4K
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- Опубліковано 12 січ 2024
- So, why wouldn't you use mask on your wood engravings? I'm early in the learning curve, but I am trying to think of why I would not always use it. The BOLT provides a pretty clean wood engrave but masked, it comes out clean with no scorching or burn marks anywhere. If you have a minute, let me know in the comments when you wouldn't use a mask. Thanks!
#bolt #laser #engraving
Laser NUG
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Thunder Laser BOLT RF C02 Laser www.thunderlaser.ca/thunder-b...
Lightburn Software www.lightburnsoftware.com
MAC OS - Latest Version www.apple.ca
PiBurn "BOLT" GRIP Rotary www.lensdigital.com/home/prod...
Thunder BOLT 2.5" Focus Lens Kit www.thunderlaser.ca
Thunder BOLT 4.0" Focus Lens Kit www.thunderlaser.ca
ROKO Twister Tray computercreationz.online/prod...
Honeycomb Lay Flat Pins for BOLT www.etsy.com/listing/15950830...
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Hi Gord - When working with wood, as someone else mentioned, you will want to coat the material with a clear polyurethane and let it fully dry before you begin engraving. This will allow you to simply remove the sticky smoke residue using a damp sponge with nothing more than water. No masking required! Also, you will find that certain wood varieties don't darken as well as others when being engraved. Alder is probably one of the better wood products to use, as it has great contrast. If you engrave on wood that doesn't darken much (For example maple tends to be low contrast), you can paint fill the engraved areas using a small artist's brush and the color of your choice.
Good morning - thanks for the great advice. i will give that a try for sure. And the info on the contrasts with different wood species. Good and helpful. have a great week!
Hey Gord. I'm only a couple seconds in and I'm freaked out. Make sure when using your table saw that you don't push on the material that you're "cutting off". That is to say, you guide the material between the fence and the blade ONLY. If you push on the "waste" material, you can easily cause a kickback and get pretty seriously injured. (look up table saw kickback videos if you want a scare) Once you've completed the cut, you can remove the "waste" material by drawing it away from the blade, or ideally, waiting for the blade to stop spinning before removing it. PSA complete. 😊
Now back to watching the actual content you're posting about.
Keep up the great work! 🥲🥲
Hey thanks James. I appreciate it. Always try to be safe - the piece was badly warped so I needed to keep a guide on the right as well this time to stop it from binding and jumping on me. Great advice - all the best! Always appreciated!
It's good that you have the wide mask. We learned the hard way not to overlap mask with thinner strips. It make the engrave uneven because it is burning through 2 layers of tape where they overlap. Everytime you do a burn you learn a little more. Quite the journey.
My wife just reminded me that you can also use contact paper as mask as it has wider rolls.
That's pretty slick Gord. fascinating to me but I'll leave it to you folks that have tolerance to get into these programs. I do enjoy watching what you're able to do with that machine. Will be following along. Fred.
Good Evening GP 😇👍👍To Mask Or Not To Mask That is The Big Question 🤣👍👍 Outstanding informative video GP 🧐👍👍That is very precise work 😮( clock master repair !!! ) If It was Up To Me ( not to mask !!! ) 😉👍👍 Keep Up Your OUTSTANDING Video ( I'm learning too !!! ) CHeers 😇🍻
LOL! Thanks Dave!
those dark burn looking areas are smoke. Sometimes they will even be sticky. Doesn't have much to do with your settings. You will find different pieces of wood smoke more or less. Or even different area's of the same piece of wood. When we are painting something then we don't mask it. If we are leaving it natural, its pre stained or pre painted we mask.
Thanks very much - that helps alot. have a great week and appreciate you taking the time to explain. Cheers!
Good evening G.P. That new toy is something else. I like both of your samples but to me the mask is a precision look and the non mask is a rustic look. Just remember practice makes perfect and take your time. For me I best stick to tractors but I will be watching your progress with the laser. Have fun
Thanks Ronald!
Good evening Gord.
Well. I have nothing that I can add to help you.. This something I am ignorant about. But hey.. My opinion is I like the unmasked much better.. But then again I don’t have it in my hands and can really look. Sorry.. I am a very visual person..
Thanks for sharing your new adventure with us..
Have fun my friend.. You are writing a new chapter in your life..
Cheers
Sometimes when I am cutting a larger piece for practice , I’ll go to the controller on the laser while it’s running and change the speed or the power / or both to monitor the difference. I might do this when the engraving is half way up the object, making notes of my changes. Either way you prefer, it’s a lesson for the books.
Thanks! I didn't know I could change it on the fly. Have a great day!
The scorching is the air assist blowing in one direction instead of straight down, NOT uncommon. Solution is 1000grit sand paper. Masking it for painting afterwards.
Thanks Tony! I appreciate the help. Cheers!
I just turned my Thunder Bolt on for the first time. I have so much to learn. Especially LightBurn. I did manage to engrave my name and cut a square. Videos like yours are a big help! Thanks!
Congratulations. Exciting wasn't it? :)) One thing I might offer ( if it is ok) I found out ( almost the hard way) that the BOLT remembers where you last set your origin. So tomorrow when you turn it on, the laser head will whip over to wherever it was set last yesterday. So, before I turn it off each day, I send the head back to the left top corner and then press the Origin button. This way If I put something in there and turn it on , the head won't move and hit anything. Have fun with it!
@@LaserNUG Thanks for the heads up! I’m definitely looking forward to more of your videos!
I wonder if instead of weeding the masking with a picker, a high pressure air gun close up would just blow it all off in one go. Also I think the masking material itself is absorbing some of the engraving energy, making it lighter. Would it help to do a second pass? Also (and I've done this) you can spray paint the engraving before you weed the masking off to make it darker or any color you want. Great video!
Morning Richard. I haven't tried either of those yet but appreciate it. Yes, I turned the power up to 40% and it definitely made a noticeable difference. Thanks for the good suggestions!
So far, the only material I mask is acrylic. Since acrylic I buy already comes masked, it's simple. For the baltic birch, I use a variable speed orbital sander with 320 grit sandpaper to get rid of that charring. But, here's an exercise for you to think about. The speed and power settings are what determine the depth the lase can penetrate right? Slower speed more power can cut through the material, and faster speed with less power can engrave the material. Then you add masking, which is another layer on the wood in this case. You have to compensate for adding the masking layer. That layer is another material for the laser to cut or engrave through. So, either reduce the speed a bit, or increase the power a bit. Or, don't buy veneer wood, buy actual blatic birch plywood, and do a light final sanding after you've engraved and cut.
Good morning and thanks NF! This very helpful - I'll give the variations a try - appreciate your time on this answer. Cheers!
Have you tried brushing a sodium carbonate solution on the birch before masking and engraving. The sodium carbonate will give you a darker engrave and you may not need higher power.
Morning Steve. I haven't - thanks for the advice!
Here's a suggestion that I discovered accidentally and now do it always. That is to use a light clear coat on the wood BEFORE engrave and cut. If I'm planning to use a stain, I do that also before the clear coat.
After engrave and cut, I blow off any soot or debris with air, and wipe off any resin stains from the laser operation with a damp microfiber cloth.
Works great, and no "weeding " of the mask is required.
Thanks for sharing the info Kevin! I have not considered that before. Cheers!
How does it do with cutting 1/4" wood?
Could you possibly pick up the mask pieces with a piece of tape? Like picking lint off of cloth. And press hard when you put the mask down. That way you'll keep your arm muscles in condition to do more chainsawing. I'm with you though I liked the unmasked version for color. Take Care Gord. God Bless.
LOL! I will give it a try - Cheers Jerome!
Hi, thank you for your video!! Question were did you get the pins?
Morning. I found them on Etsy. There are a few folks selling them. Not sure if these specifc ones are still being sold but perhaps search for Lay Flat Pins for BOLT, or for Laser. Good luck!
Thanks for the video...Where do you get your masking tape?
Good morning. I could only find two places - one in BC and I found one place in Mississauga called Sign Supply Canada - hope that helps!
I prefer the way that round piece looked without the mask. It was much darker and actually looked like a real cabin.
Me too. I like the darker colouring. Cheers THS!
not sure which "brand" of masking tape you have, but when i mask, i dont like the "melted" glue residue that generally comes w/masking. I usually compensate power when I do mask in order to get the preferred darker look. This is especially noticeable with a "fill" operation.
Thanks - This makes sense - i will give it a try. Cheers Ryan!
I could just be me, but every one of your masked engravings looked like it was slightly out of focus, like you lost some detail and the edges of the details weren't as sharp. An easy place to see it is if you look at your cabin window, the individual panes of glass are not as clear and the mullions are not as sharp, in some places, they almost disappear.
Good morning and thanks for the comment. I think they look good but i will look under the microscope. I am new so I appreciate your help. If you have some suggested settings that would be great. Thanks again - enjoy the weekend!