No you cannot sketch any kind of metal unless its coated from the molecular level or having it coated individually. However there are some types of coatings (Thermark and Cermark) that you can use to coat the steel so that you will be able to use our laser machine to sketch any metal.

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I know you cant cut it but can you etch stainless steel with the laser?

What material is the 0.1mm and 0.2mm board?

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Steel sheet


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Steel Sheet

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Thanks for the response. CO2 lasers unfortunately cannot cut metallic materials. Metals are best cut with other types of lasers, or by using oxygen assist. The oxygen assist method is not encourages as the combination or CO2 laser and oxygen is very volatile.

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and I can not do this laser to cut the steel plate, but instead of the CO2 tube I put the oxygen tube, or do not I know ?! Do I have a chance in the products on the site to create a laser for 0.1mm and 0.2mm steel sheets?

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I can help with an answer, Thanks!

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I can help with an answer, Thanks!

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Can you help me with an answer? Thank you! **

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If I build a Laser with the components on this site, can I cut the 0.1mm and 0.2mm board? Is it cut in optimal conditions, or if not what you recommend ?!

An 80 watt laser can cut plywood up to 1/2 inch thick. Make sure to use a high pressure source of air to knock out all of the charring during the cutting process so the laser can work efficiently.

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I have a Chinese 80W laser. Just finished a cut test with 1/2" plywood. It cut through at 95% power 7-4mm/s with significant charring after two passes with no refocusing done between passes.

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That's great information. What is your PSI of the air assist on your laser? What focal lens distance do you have? And where did you place the focus of the lens (at the surface, or within the material)?

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What is the max thickness of material that the 80W laser can cut in plywood?

The HIWIN rails come with the same flange blocks that are sold individually.

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About your HIWIN rails. What Carriage block does the 78" rails come with, 2 flange or 2 with no flange?

Yes, other CO2 laser tubes will work fine with our laser controller (including the Reci tube). Our laser controller is a digital based controller that controls the laser tube power supply, the motor drivers and other peripherals by outputting digital signals to these devices.

Laser controller URL:
https://www.buildyourcnc.com/item/Laser-Component-Laser-Control-System

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Can other types of laser tubes work with the controller you are selling, for example, the 80W Reci tube?

If you take the standard parallel cable BoB (Break Out Board), then you will need control software (Mach 3 or EMC2) and CAM software to make your G-Code (such as CamBam). Personally I use CamBam and Mach 3, they work beautifully but don't expect to turn them on and know how they work out of the box. Give yourself a few weeks to get familiar with the basics. CamBam is VERY powerful software for it's price. I'm surprised how much I keep learning on what I can do with it...I highly recommend it if you want as much control as possible.

Mach 3 + CamBam as a bundle costs $310. EMC2 will give you a free replacement for Mach 3 and is exclusively for Linux.

If you use the USB BoB, it will cost an extra $75 + $75 for the software. This is an all-in-one package so no need for Mach 3 or CamBam.

For etching rasters (jpeg, bmp, tiff, non-vectors, photos), I highly recommend PicEngrave. It has been a labor of love for the past 9 years and John has done a wonderful job with it. It easily compares in quality compared to software that is in the $200-$300 range. John's software runs $40 and can be found here: http://picengrave.com/ (don't let the modest website fool you, this stuff can do amazing things). DotG and the Mach3 engrave plugin are two other options and instructions can be found on Dustans page in the gallery on buildyourcnc.com website.

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WHAT SOFTWARE CAN BE USED WITH THE BLACKTOOTH LASER CUTTER?

CO2 laser will not cut wood material fast at all. This is just the nature of the laser energy. The wood is a very low absorbent of the laser energy and you will need to run probably around 10 ipm to cut through the wood. CNC is much more efficient for cutting and laser as more efficient at marking or slowly cutting if you need the small kerf. You will also need a relatively high output air source to cut efficiently. The air will blow away the char (carbon) on the wood. The black char will absorb most of the laser energy not allowing the wood to be cut well. We use a compressor for the air source, but you can use a commercial hydroponic air pump instead.

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How fast can I cut 1/4" wood with the 40 watt CO2 laser?

Hello, I was wondering if the Blactooth laser cutter can engrave in 3d, different depths in the same piece of wood?

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I was wondering what the max depth is for something to go into the 40W C02 Laser cutter and engraver with blacktooth

We use purified water, but adding some coolant can be a benefit. The addition of coolant can keep the water in a state that maintains no growth of foreign organism like algae and the such. Additionally, If you are in a colder climate, antifreeze will work well.

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Do you recomend distilled water or coolant for your 80W laser tube with the CW-3000?

100W and 130W lasers and power supplies can be equipped now, but we will have to special order them. Price point for the 100W will be estimated $150-$200 more than the 80W, and 130W $250-$300 more.

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When will 100W or 130W lasers be available for the vertical laser system? What will be the price point? Ballpark figures at least, please.

The Greenbull machine can cut a very wide variety of materials ranging from foam to aluminum. We recommend the use of our 2.2kW spindle to allow the greatest flexibility. Aside from that, the most important thing is to use an appropriate end mill for the material you are cutting and to use appropriate speeds and feed rates.



BYCNC Response:
Our 40W laser can cut up to about 1/4" materials ranging from wood and acrylic down through lighter materials such as leather, fabric, foam, etc. Speed and final cut are greatly enhanced by an air assist upgrade. We also offer an 80W laser which has approximately twice the capabilities of the 40W.

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WHAT MATERIALS CAN THE GREENBULL MACHINE CUT? LASER ETCH?

Yes, we can provide a laser attachment for the long Z version of the greenBull 4x, 5x and 6x. Please call us to get more information and pricing for the laser attachment.

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I have a greenbull 5x with the long Z. Is there a laser kit that I can get for that model?

A standard 40W CO2 laser will cut up to 1/4" thick of material, be it wood, acrylic, card stock, leather, fabric, foam, cork, etc. (Decent speed and final cut are heavily dependent on a strong air assist upgrade)

Metals cannot be cut due to the power level and wavelength of the CO2 laser. But it can be marked with special solutions like Cermark or Thermark.

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WHAT THICKNESS OF MATERIAL CAN THE BLACKTOOTH LASER CUT?

The greenBull CNC machine kit can cut as thick as a material as you desire depending on the reach of the end mill that you provide the machine, if it is a straight vertical. The reason for this is that each pass is incremental (multiple passes at a certain depth per pass). For instance, if you need to cut a 2 inch thick piece of wood, you can make, say 3/4" passes until the target depth of 2 inches is met.

The depth per pass, feedrate and RPM will be determined by the material: wood, plastic, metal and will also be determined by the end mill that is used for that material. Selecting the appropriate end mill is very important. Feedrate and RPM is important to make sure the end mill is as cool as it can be during the cutting process.

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How thick can the Greenbull cut and what kind of material? Wood, plastic, steel? I was also wondering if there is one anywhere in Nevada, Idaho or Utah that I could possibly see in action. Thanks

Cutting metal with lasers even at 100W and 130W is difficult. The main problem is molten is a byproduct of lasing, which can severely damage the laser.

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For the XL Vertical Laser Machine I see it won't cut metal as it is only 80w. However, I noticed that you are working on 100w and 130w versions so will that be sufficient to cut through sheet metal? If so, how much longer until those are available?

The largest CNC machine we make at this time (12/04/2015) is the GreenBull 6'x12' model. This model has 2 options for Z-axis travel.

The short-z option has a total Z travel of 5.75 inches. From that you would subtract the length of the end mill used and the thickness of the spoil board to determine the maximum material thickness. (Example: If the end mill extends 1.25" from the collet and the spoil board is .75", then the material could be up to 5.75 - 1.25 - 0.75 = 3.75 inches in thickness). This is good for most sheet-type materials.

The long-z option, used mainly for large 3D carvings, requires a custom frame and allows for up to 36" of travel.

The tolerance of our machines, like any machine, depends on several variables. The major variables include the manufacturing tolerance, the type of machine control used, the precision of assembly, the thoroughness of maintenance, and the initial and ongoing calibration of the machine. Because we sell kits only most of these variables are outside our control. Therefore, we are hesitant to guarantee a certain level of tolerance for an end user. However, in our experience, tolerances of .001" are readily achievable with our machines.

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What tolerance can I expect from your largest cnc machine and the laser cutter? Also, what depth can I get on the z axis?

Gcode or digital files are not available for our machines.

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I have the build your own CNC kit 3 Axis CNC Machine 2008, were can I get the Gcode or vector files for it ? I wanted to have it laser cut

If you ordered lengths of rail that is not to your specifications, please give us a call and we will replace your order immediately.

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I ordered some hiwin cut to size, I ordered two 17in pieces and received a 34in instead. what can we do about this, am I SOL?

You have multiple options to run the laser but if you want us to install a OS system,you will have to buy the windows 7 license and mach3 license to run the machine with the parallel BB/if you would get the USB BB you will need to get planet CNC, you can also go with a free system Linux and have emc run the cnc machine.

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what operating system comes with the laser (Integrated Computer) Option