Vector Cutting using LazerBuzz Software

[Terry Swift]

I am trying to cut out some plaques that LazerBuzz has. The initial vector cutting is for the backpiece. My Universal M300 35 Watt / 2.0 laser, even set at 100 power / 5 speed will not cut thru the 1/8" baltic birch I'm using.

Am I going to have to run multiple passes since it doesn't cut all the way thru on the 1st pass? Is their a way to not to have to run multiple passes as that slows down the progress of making these plaques significantly?

Thanks

[Chris DeGerolamo]

I think that if you are using those settings and not cutting all the way through 1/8" baltic birch you've got a problem somewhere down the line with your laser. How old is your tube?

To answer your question: try crtl+A then crtl+c then crtl+v to select all, copy and then paste on top of itself. This should run it twice. Paste subsequent more instances of your objects to create more runs. Good luck...

[Dennis Solomon]

try 1.2 speed 100 power and x ppi we have a laser pro 40 w and those settings work great!!

[Terry Swift]

Dennis,

1.2 Speed looks awefully slow. Does it leave a lot of burn on the wood?

[Lee DeRaud]

1.2S, 100P is my normal setting for 1/8" MDF and solid wood...for a 25W laser.

If your 1/8" ply won't cut at that setting, it's either exterior-grade ply (phenolic glue) or something's wrong with the laser.

EDIT: (I just reread the whole sequence again...) A speed of 5 probably won't work for a 35W machine. Try something more like 1.5.

[Michael Kowalczyk]

Terry,
Make sure all your mirrors are clean and adjusted correctly. My Settings are around 100% at .60 but that is for a Trotec 60 watt so my speeds are different but it cuts like butter. Your edges should look just like my biz card you may have picked up in Ft Worth. A nice yellowish brown with no charring.

Lee,
Terry is using our 3mm birch and it is not exterior glue.

So Terry you may need to check your PPI. Not sure how other lasers work in that area but ours goes from 0-1000. It's like cutting perforated paper. The lower the # the further the dots are from each other. Also the higher the # the hotter it is.

[Terry Swift]

All,

Thanks for helping. I tried the 1.? setting and it burned pretty badly and wasn't nowhere near what Michael said it should be - like butter / business card with no charring. I've boosted the speed up to 10 power and run 3-4 passes to cut it. Works with only slight smoke discoloration - which I hope to eliminate, as sanding just adds extra time to the whole process. What kind of PPI should I be running, as I'm currently using 500? Should I be lower or higher?

Again thanks for helping a newbie out.

[Michael Kowalczyk]

Terry,
Try PPI at 750 and then 1000. Power 100% and speed at .75 then .50. Experiment with settings to see how it effects the material. Do you have the Air assist on? It may look slow but the only way to gain speed is with more POWER.

Call the Universal laser and ask them what the standard settings would be and adjust it from there. Hope you get this resolved quickly so you can make lots of product.

How old is your laser? When was the last time you check the power of the laser? Rent a laser power meter and check to see if it is still putting out 35 + watts or has it dwindled below. Clean all mirrors and check alignment and make sure your lens is clean. (Good article in A & E June 2010 issue about this)

[Gary Shoemake]

For Laserbuzz products I use 200 ppi on my mercury at 100 power and 1.1 speed. The more ppi poured into an area the more heat is generated, the more charring. The next probably dumb question is; you are using air assist?

[Stanley Waldrup]

Hello Terry,
I am using a LaserPro 30 watt set up and cut a lot of his products. My settings are 1.6 Speed at 100% power. I have run into some 1/8 Baltic Birch that uses an Exterior glue and it leaves a little more residue on the wood. Make sure you are using some kind of grid with airflow under it to remove the smoke and air assist. I have always had a little cleanup. Denatured alcohal workes Great. I will be seeing Buzz again tomorow here hat the NBM Show in Indy If you have a Question for him. What package do you have?
Stanley

[Michael Kowalczyk]

Terry,
Try PPI at 750 and then 1000. Power 100% and speed at .75 then .50. Experiment with settings to see how it effects the material. Do you have the Air assist on? It may look slow but the only way to gain speed is with more POWER.

Call the Universal laser and ask them what the standard settings would be and adjust it from there. Hope you get this resolved quickly so you can make lots of product.

How old is your laser? When was the last time you check the power of the laser? Rent a laser power meter and check to see if it is still putting out 35 + watts or has it dwindled below. Clean all mirrors and check alignment and make sure your lens is clean. (Good article in A & E June 2010 issue about this)

My Mistake I meant hz PPI is for rastering.
My exact settings are 100% power .70% speed and 5000hz. Residue will almost always show up on untreated wooden material. I will normally put a clear-coat on the front and back (very important 2 do both sides otherwise massive bowing) if I want them to clean up 100% otherwise ala natural works for mii.

[Terry Swift]

Wow - thanks for all the feedback.

My laser does not have an air assist at the focus point. The only removal of smoke, etc. is thru the exhaust vent. I do use the vector table when cutting, so no issue there.

I've played with the PPI settings and was a bit confused by Michael; as to which way I should go - up in PPI or down. For the vector cutting (red), I went up and use like 750. For the vector cut thru (black & blue), I have lowered down to about 200. If I go anywhere below about 7 on the speed setting - noticeable smoke marking and some charring begin to occur and it's quite heavy when getting below 3. It does manage to cut thru though at those type speeds. Even when using 10, having to do multiple cuts - the smoke and charring do begin to show up as well.

I've cleaned my mirrors just recently and haven't done any heavy work since. Robert from Engravers Network here in Arlington checked my laser about a month or so ago; but I can't say for sure he checked all the alignment aspects. I called Universal about it and they sent me some instructions that seem like Greek to me to check laser / sight alignment using some masking tape to find alignment. I can finish sand the pieces fairly quickly, but it's still an extra step and time spent doing it. I may have to get Robert or Josh from E.N. to come back out and give the rundown on checking for alignment issues.

[Gary Shoemake]

I think air assist might be your answer. The air assist will blow debris from the cut and reduce the charring. It is also pretty important for cutting acrylic as it also blows the debris from the cut and stops it from melting back and closing the cut.

[Bill Stein]

Terry,

I have an Universal M360 35 watt. I just replaced the tube (after five years) so it is running 'hot'.

My settings for blue and black are 100p, 4.5s, 250ppi

Red is 80p, 10s, 500ppi. I also use the auto Z function to take it out of focus .05" when vectoring the red.

With those settings, I get a nice honey brown on the edges. No charring. And I don't have air assist. (And I am cutting Michael's wood also). I was down to slow speeds (like 1.0) and multiple passes with horrible charring when my tube was dying. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but your tube may need replacing.

Bill

[Terry Swift]

Thanks Bill. I'm trying to locate an "air assist" for my unit and getting a wattage tester to check out the tube. I've also tried raising my table a couple hundredths closer to the laser, but not much difference on using higher speed settings. If I go above 1.3, it usually won't vextor cut all the way thru, but less charring / smoke than say at 1 or so. As Tom's design's are located in right corner 24 / 0; per some feedback - I've moved them to 0 / 0 on the table and found in 0 / 0 it does seem to cut better on that side all the way thru, as when over in 24 / 0; it didn't always cut thru the whole pattern. And as we all probably know, trying to cut thru the wood with a exacto knife can be frustrating as well. I also use about 10 for RED and it does pretty well.