Are Chinese Laser Machines Any Good?

[Ricardo Capelli]

I am considering buying my first laser machine. I have seen Chinese made machines sold here in USA on eBay for a fraction of the cost of Universal or Epilog. Are these any good. An 80 Watts 36X24 is less than $7000. I appreciate any advice. Thanks.

Rick

[greg lindsey]

There are plenty of posts/threads on here to help you make an informed decision, let the search feature be your friend. In my experience, you get what you pay for.

[Joe Pelonio]

Like Greg said, this has been discussed a lot. I'd say a few very happy Chinese laser owners, many unhappy ones, but read the stories.

[Curt Heggemeyer]

Depends a lot on what you are going to be doing with it.
I have a 46 x 36 machine ans is 60 watt and it cuts 1/2 acrylic just fine and works really good and I got mine used with everything I needed because the guy was getting a larger one.

I run a sign business and we cut a lot of stuff and do a little engraving on the side. Mine will run some days all day for several days, than it might sit for a month. So for me I couldnt see spending 30 grand for a machine I use 1/2 a yr. Everyones budget is different.
Now if you are going to make your living using just the laser than yes I would have looked at a US made laser for the support etc. There are dealers in the US for the chinese made lasers and have helped me with any question I have. I am also the type that will jump in and work on my own equipment too.

So best is to think of how much you are going to use it and how much you want to spend. You can always get a better machine in the future if you wanted to at least get your name out there in the laser market to test the water before committing to a high dollar machine.

Thats my 2 cents

Like Greg said, this has been discussed a lot. I'd say a few very happy Chinese laser owners, many unhappy ones, but read the stories.

[John Frazee]

There are plenty of posts/threads on here to help you make an informed decision, let the search feature be your friend. In my experience, you get what you pay for.

I got what I paid for in buying chinese. I paid $10,000 for a chinese machine that would have costs $25,000 here. Christmas will be three years and it's still going strong! Some people slam the chinese machines while others praise them. I can tell you haven't done much reading here. This forum is very helpful as you should find answers to any questions you may have. Spend some time and go page by page.

[pete hagan]

I bought my chinese laser three years ago and have been quite happy once I overcame the initial learning curve to get stuff to work well. I doubt I would buy a USA based laser unless I really needed daily production capabilities.

[Dean Barber]

We are also very happy with our chinese laser. We bought from a US distributor and not directly from china.

[Ricardo Capelli]

May I ask where did you buy it.

[Dean Barber]

We got ours from legacy lasers

[David H. Mitchell]

Joe,
I think you better check your numbers. I think the Chinese lasers, will do anything that the US, so called Lasers can do. Many times with options that are much more expensive on US Lasers. I have a Bright Star, 3 years. Not a problem other than operator errors, call my tech and presto, he does an excellent. If anyone is interested, Jim Olson @ Bright Star. Their website is BrightStar.com.

Just my 2 cents.\

Thanks,
Dave

[Ricardo Capelli]

Dave

brightstar.com is not a laser company website!

[Joe De Medeiros]

Dave

brightstar.com is not a laser company website!

brightstarlasers dot com

[greg lindsey]

My reply was intended for the <2000.00 lasers, you find on ebay. I am sure some of you have great Chinese machines that you pd decent money for. It was my opinion, that's was he was asking for. My American made machines are as old as 15 years and still operating on the same tubes, very few optics or mirror changes and still factory tech supported. But, I take very good care of my machines. I wasn't knocking anyone's machines. I just want to see how many of the "cheap made machines" are still around in 10 + years. Sorry if I ruffled some feathers. Competion is the spice of life.

[Pete Bejmuk]

a common complaint i've heard is that the laser tubes don't work when the system arrives, due to leakages. and you can't replace the tubes, you just replace the entire machine.

i've also heard that some brands get seized by US customs due to not meeting safety regs with lasers.

give them about 10 more years and they'll be better. cost won't stay as low though.

[Dan Hintz]

a common complaint i've heard is that the laser tubes don't work when the system arrives, due to leakages. and you can't replace the tubes, you just replace the entire machine.

False... tubes from 30-100W can be had on eBay for way less than the cost of the machine as a whole. Still, I'd be pretty miffed if my new machine didn't work and was forced to purchase something else...