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I'm a maker. Tell me more about this $700 Shenzhen laser cutter? I googled it and I'm coming up with a few things, but only very small $400 units and very big e

I'm a maker. Tell me more about this $700 Shenzhen laser cutter? I googled it and I'm coming up with a few things, but only very small $400 units and very big expensive units.

chromaton 11y ago
CamFive sells a variety of machines. You might try them.
Ccecil 11y ago
Pretty sure they are talking about the K40 "blue box" laser. I have heard they require some mods to get working properly but for the price some think they are worth it.
- matheweis 11y ago
  More info please :)
  - Vexs 11y ago
    These things. http://www.ebay.com/itm/High-Precise-40W-CO2-Laser-Engraving-Cutting-Machine-Engraver-Cutter-USB-Port-/201264099304?hash=item2edc466fe8 http://www.ebay.com/itm/High-Precise-40W-CO2-Laser-Engraving...
    - samstave 11y ago
      How big is that one on Ebay? I don't see any specs. Also - if you click on Shipping -- it says "free shipping" then it says "$300 shipping" Which is it?
      - Vexs 11y ago
        > Engraving Area: 12x8inches/300x200mm > Free shipping Standard Shipping (UPS Ground) > US $300.00 One-day Shipping (UPS Next Day Air®) Come on man, it says right there.
        samstave 11y ago
        Weird... I must be blind -- for whatever reason, I couldnt find it so simply. Hmm... Thanks though
  - deleted 11y ago
    [deleted]
  - dougmany 11y ago
    Just search 40w laser engraver on ebay and you should get several hits around $400. Mine is working great after some mods. Mods: ~$25 for 8ft ground rod and wire ~ $35 for 24V DC power supply( includes 5 volt supply because I blow out the DC section of the board it come with) ~ $45 Raspberry Pi CNC Board + drivers ~ $35 Raspberry PI I can scp dxf files to the raspberry then rdp or ssh -X to open bCNC. Open the file and click Run. bCNC just added laser support so the setup is trivial. I'm not too sure on the cutting power though. I have done paper, leather and cardboard but the 1/8in plywood I have tried is too thick. I also had to put a 3904 transistor and a resistor in the board to make the laser on signal be sinking.
samstave 11y ago
You can also get a membership to techshop.ws where they have cutters among MANY other items. https://www.noisebridge.net/ https://www.noisebridge.net/ hacker space on Mission in SF also had a fairly large 40W cutter... It was not setup for a while - but I think its working now... and you can use that one pretty much free (donate to the space though is a good idea)
- jasonlaramburu 11y ago
  Laser cutters are by far the most popular tools at tech shop. Reservations typically fill up 2-3 weeks in advance. Having a hobby machine at home for smaller or recurring jobs could save a lot of time.

I'm a maker. Tell me more about this $700 Shenzhen laser cutter? I googled it and I'm coming up with a few things, but only very small $400 units and very big expensive units.

chromaton 11y ago

CamFive sells a variety of machines. You might try them.

Ccecil 11y ago

Pretty sure they are talking about the K40 "blue box" laser. I have heard they require some mods to get working properly but for the price some think they are worth it.

matheweis 11y ago
More info please :)
- Vexs 11y ago
  These things. http://www.ebay.com/itm/High-Precise-40W-CO2-Laser-Engraving-Cutting-Machine-Engraver-Cutter-USB-Port-/201264099304?hash=item2edc466fe8 http://www.ebay.com/itm/High-Precise-40W-CO2-Laser-Engraving...
  - samstave 11y ago
    How big is that one on Ebay? I don't see any specs. Also - if you click on Shipping -- it says "free shipping" then it says "$300 shipping" Which is it?
    - Vexs 11y ago
      > Engraving Area: 12x8inches/300x200mm > Free shipping Standard Shipping (UPS Ground) > US $300.00 One-day Shipping (UPS Next Day Air®) Come on man, it says right there.
      - samstave 11y ago
        Weird... I must be blind -- for whatever reason, I couldnt find it so simply. Hmm... Thanks though
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]
- dougmany 11y ago
  Just search 40w laser engraver on ebay and you should get several hits around $400. Mine is working great after some mods. Mods: ~$25 for 8ft ground rod and wire ~ $35 for 24V DC power supply( includes 5 volt supply because I blow out the DC section of the board it come with) ~ $45 Raspberry Pi CNC Board + drivers ~ $35 Raspberry PI I can scp dxf files to the raspberry then rdp or ssh -X to open bCNC. Open the file and click Run. bCNC just added laser support so the setup is trivial. I'm not too sure on the cutting power though. I have done paper, leather and cardboard but the 1/8in plywood I have tried is too thick. I also had to put a 3904 transistor and a resistor in the board to make the laser on signal be sinking.

samstave 11y ago

You can also get a membership to techshop.ws where they have cutters among MANY other items. https://www.noisebridge.net/ https://www.noisebridge.net/ hacker space on Mission in SF also had a fairly large 40W cutter... It was not setup for a while - but I think its working now... and you can use that one pretty much free (donate to the space though is a good idea)

jasonlaramburu 11y ago
Laser cutters are by far the most popular tools at tech shop. Reservations typically fill up 2-3 weeks in advance. Having a hobby machine at home for smaller or recurring jobs could save a lot of time.