Perfect video! Provided all the information I was looking for with regard to air assist. I've just ordered the air assist pump for my XTool D1 20w and I can't wait to see the difference that it makes. I've only had it a few weeks and I'm already tired of sanding everything and cleaning all the and burn marks from the wood before painting. It's also going to be nice to not have little tiny parts where it doesn't cut all the way through. I can't wait till it arrives on Monday! Thanks again for an excellent video!
Wow, finally a no nonsense video! I watched you and set mine up exactly (pausing in between) and bingo done and done. I sure appreciate your talent and generosity in the teach and show.
Thanks so much for this! I'm new to XTool. I have an Air Assist that I'll be setting up soon. The difference that you showed was remarkable. Thanks again!
i just got my air assist and it seems to be a different model than the one you demonstrated on. Mostly all of the parts are the same with a few exceptions to how it's installed. Mine came with a metal shroud (and the holes don't exactly line up with the hose) 😕and the clear tubing that attaches to the black hose is on top of the pump rather than the side... and the pump itself is white and not galvanized metal as seen with your pump. Some of these differences threw me off a little when assembling the newer version.. All in all, still works the same way and I love it. Thanks for your vid and explaining how it is installed.
Thank you very much, a great video, perfect lengh, all of the details was perfectly showed. Looking foreward to try it - just installed the Air assist👌 thanks a lot
That side screw does get in the way of the crosshairs. You can either go with just he rear screw or I disabled the crosshairs and used the low-power laser on option for framing and alignment.
@@ThereminHero If the cone is fitting correctly there should be almost no gap for the air to escape. However a small bit of tape over the open hole should alleviate that concern.
You can either just use the single screw to hold it in or even better, turn off the crosshairs and turn on low power laser framing instead. It’s more accurate.
They may have changed the kit now that the original D1 has been discontinued. Or maybe my kit was special! Either way, you'll really enjoy the air assist on your laser.
Got my xTool D1 Air Assist Set, Original install video showed two different Nozzles 16mm and 14mm inside diameter. once I received the item it had two 16mm nozzles( not sure why you would need 2 if they are the same size). Now they want me to wrap tape around the laser head since mine is the 14mm laser (10w) . It would bother me if I was paying $20 for it but I paid $113 to get an air assist that I wouldn't have to backwoods it together.
Xtool should be ashamed of their poor service! I only got the 16mm nozzle, but need the 14 mm. The poor excuses for customer service did not reply to 4 emails .
My nozzle is not tight fit so when I tighten set screws the laser is not centered to come through hole in the nozzle. How did you align the nozzle to be centered?
On mine it was a snug fit. On some older models, the brass sleeve around the lens was narrower, so they included the PTFE tape to fill that gap. That's a hit or miss way to align the cone. I would measure the outer diameter of the brass sleeve on the laser, and measure the inner diameter of the cone and see what the gap is. You could then cut some spacers to fill that gap to center the cone on the brass sleeve.
Question I just bought the d1pro with the air assist, do I have to use the air assist cones that come with the air assist pump? My shroud already had the notch cut as with as the hose adapter for the air hose. Air does come out of the cone but you swapped out the cone and put screws in, mine that came with the pro doesn’t have spots for screws . Thanks for the help
The original D1 came without air assist so the extra steps were needed to install the full kit. The newer machines like the D1 Pro do come with the air assist cone and shroud installed. So all you should need to do is attach the air assist pump and hose to that existing cone.
@@Vintauri thank you I did just that and got to finally use it. So far so good. I am completely new to this so Any suggestions on how to perfect using this or video that helped you would be highly appreciated. Thanks again !
You can add a valve inline on the tubing but it’s a part you’ll have to provide yourself. I’m planning on using a 1/4” OD tubing ball valve on mine but I have not added it yet.
Great video! Do you have a recommendation for an inline valve that will allow for air flow adjustment? I'd like to use a small amount of air when engraving.
You can use the ball valves meant for drip irrigation systems. The 1/4" OD style should work on the supplied XTool hose. Here is a link to some I've played with in various systems. amzn.to/3GNpGul
Just tried doing this and my laser box is setup different than yours and the new replacement shroud does not fit doesn’t even come close. Any ideas why?
The shroud that came with my kit was a replacement for the original non pro 10w laser. If you have a newer one, it should come with a shroud that already has the appropriate cut outs, and might already have the air line adaptor into the air assist cone on the laser module.
The material I was using in this video was some fireplace mesh screen. It's 1/4" thick and works well as a venting support layer underneath your material if you do not have a honeycomb bed. If you have a local fireplace installer they might have some old material you can salvage for cheap or free otherwise you can bu it online here: amzn.to/3HEGuoI
If you are talking about the exhaust fan I’m using a Vivosun 4” blower from Amazon. It’s rated at 195 CFM and does a decent job. I might look at upgrading to a larger fan but I’ll have to adapt it to a 6” tube to get more CFM.
I do like the slip-on metal cone design of this one. However, I think it would be great for them to offer the air assist cone and hose connector as parts without the air pump. There are plenty of other compressor or air pump options out there that would make it a cheaper option to ship and have better control of the airflow.
It does stick down just below the safety cover. I took mine off as I’m running it in an enclosure now. As for the lines, did yours fit snugly around the laser head or was there some slop? It might not be centered and the laser beam could be hitting the cone and reflecting a beam.
@@Vintauri Thanks for the reply, I have an enclosure too but I still wanted to use it because it was supposed to still help. I will test it without the air assist and go from there I guess.
@@patrickmichaels1362 One thing I don't like about the shield is that it can trap smoke and debris inside it near the lens / cone. But you are correct that it adds a layer of protection. I bought a set of OD6 laser protection glasses on amazon to give me the best protection when using any of my lasers.
@@Vintauri I saw in the comments that the second screw for the laser would get in the way of the cross beams so I left that out and went with just the one screw but I needed to tighten the one screw pretty tight. I am hoping against hope that I did not over tighten it and ruin the whole thing.
That is a fireplace screen we were able to source from a local heating shop that services and upgrades fireplaces. You can get the same material on Amazon here: amzn.to/3BCumQV
Was this supplied by the company for your channel or did you order and pay for it using the retail route? If you ordered and paid for it by yourself, how long did it take to actually get your xTool D1?
The base laser was provided by XTool. It took about 10 days to ship from China to me in the Midwest US. I paid for the air assist module on my own and ordered it direct from the website. That shipped on Jan 26 and arrived February 8th.
@@Vintauri Thanks. I am thinking about ordering one this spring. Since I will have to use it in my shed, I don't want to start playing around till it warms up a bit (I live in Michigan). You answered my question about how early I have to order it.
I just tried to install my air assist kit, but my kit only came with ONE nozzle. It is way too big (inside diameter). No matter how I tape it, it never aligns properly , resulting in no burning or engraving. Am I missing something in my kit ?
I'm sorry to hear that. I have heard that there is a recent batch of nozzles that were not drilled out correctly. I would recommend that you contact Xtool support to ask about your nozzle being replaced.
@@Vintauri Thanks for your fast reply! I sent a letter to xtool support, hopefully they can fix the problem. I did see that they have a wood washer fix file, may try that while waiting.
@@Vintauri NOPE! Waited for a response, got nothing . Very sorry I wasted money on this pathetic piece of engineering . Where else would you be told to use tape to make the piece bigger??? Some one please point me to a 3rd party supplier that cares.
I just added the air assist to my D1 and after testing on plywood and maple, the engraving with the air assist has more smoke around it and is way less defined. Any thoughts on what I’m doing wrong?
Depending on the power and material, you may want to leave the air assist off for engraving. I like to run mine if possible to help keep smoke away from the lens but it can increase the amount of overburn on the material.
I had heard early on there was a batch that may have had the plastic shroud drilled incorrectly. If that is your case you may need to reach out to Xtool to see what they have to say about a replacement.
@@Vintauri ok. It just clicked in. 10W for cutting through materials and 5W for basic engraving (metal, wood, glass, etc). I am new at the laser engraving world. Thanks
Did the air nozzle fit right around the brass lens sleeve or was there slop? It sounds like the laser is hitting the inside of the cone. You can try to center it with the included tape but that’s a bit of a hack.
@@Vintauri okay bc I’m in a group and a lady mentioned that I can cause a fire if I don’t have one. I got scared so I’m not putting mine together until I get an air assist.
@@aliciahicks8986 A fire is more likely when your power is too high and speed too low. An air assist will not change that risk, but it will help reduce the overburn and charring effect on your cuts. I've tested several lasers, and not all have air assist, so just be mindful of your settings and monitor the laser as you work.
No the air assist will help with cleaner cutting but you'll need an exhaust system to keep the smoke smell out. The smell on the items will not matter either way. Sometimes letting them sit a bit will help air them out and lessen the smoke smell.
There are fume extractors that can be used without venting outside, however to get one that is effective they cost a couple thousand dollars and the filters need to be changed regularly.
Do you have to clean the lens at all/frequently when the air assist unit is installed (if so how frequently)? Or does that negate the need to clean the lens, specifically?
The tape is there because earlier versions of the D1 had a smaller diameter brass sleeve on the laser head that the cone would slip onto. Their solution is to wrap the laser head with the tape on the smaller heads to make it a snug fit. The better solution would be to cut some small spacers as the tape can cause misalignment of the cone to the laser beam.
I just received my air assist a few days ago. The aluminum nozzle appears to be interfering with the beam. Without the nozzle I can cut through 1/8 MDF at 100% power and 3mm/sec. The pieces drop out. With the nozzle, the same settings don't cut all the way through. The nozzle is a tight fit on the lens, there's no room for tape. I tried shimming the nozzle down so the hole is closer to the focal point of the beam. Not sure what else I can do. Anyone else having trouble with the latest batch of air assists?
Perfect video! Provided all the information I was looking for with regard to air assist. I've just ordered the air assist pump for my XTool D1 20w and I can't wait to see the difference that it makes. I've only had it a few weeks and I'm already tired of sanding everything and cleaning all the and burn marks from the wood before painting. It's also going to be nice to not have little tiny parts where it doesn't cut all the way through. I can't wait till it arrives on Monday! Thanks again for an excellent video!
You'll really appreciate the air assist to improve the performance of the laser. Thanks for watching!
Wow, finally a no nonsense video! I watched you and set mine up exactly (pausing in between) and bingo done and done. I sure appreciate your talent and generosity in the teach and show.
Same here!!
However, I still have staining
great vid, short and to the point. thanks a mill for your time and advice. from Ireland.
Glad you enjoyed it
This was far better than the included instructions. THANK YOU, Sir!
I try to make my videos useful for others so I’m glad you liked it!
Thanks so much for this! I'm new to XTool. I have an Air Assist that I'll be setting up soon. The difference that you showed was remarkable. Thanks again!
The air assist is a huge improvement on cut quality of these lasers! You will enjoy getting it up and running. Thanks for watching!
Thanks for that. I suck at installing anything BUT I could follow along well with this one. I appreciate it!
i just got my air assist and it seems to be a different model than the one you demonstrated on. Mostly all of the parts are the same with a few exceptions to how it's installed. Mine came with a metal shroud (and the holes don't exactly line up with the hose) 😕and the clear tubing that attaches to the black hose is on top of the pump rather than the side... and the pump itself is white and not galvanized metal as seen with your pump. Some of these differences threw me off a little when assembling the newer version.. All in all, still works the same way and I love it. Thanks for your vid and explaining how it is installed.
Did you purchase the air assist from Comgrow? They have one similar to what you are describing that also fits the XTool D1.
Very Plain & Simple..thank you !! I'll be trying the Air Assist
Thank you sir. Just what I was looking for.
Glad it was useful!
Thank you very much, a great video, perfect lengh, all of the details was perfectly showed. Looking foreward to try it - just installed the Air assist👌 thanks a lot
Another great video I can’t wait for more d1 xtool videos I just got mine last week just waiting for the air assist and honeycomb base
Coming soon! I'm hoping to get a video out on the honeycomb and my enclosure setup soon.
Thank you! I'm installing mine this morning.
Awesome video!
Very nice presentation. Well done.
Thank you very much!
Great instructional video, got mine set up very quickly, thank you!!!!!
Glad it helped! Be sure to make sure to clean it especially after engravings where there can be more buildup of debris on the tip of the cone.
You helped to make this such an easy install!!! Thank you!
Thank you Stevi subbed your channel, thanks for the helpful tips
Thanks for the sub! I try to keep my videos informative so I’m glad you find them useful.
@@Vintauri I also bought your plans on etsy for the enclosure, looking forward to building that, thanks.
Thank you for the vid.
Thank you for checking it out!
Excellent!! Best of Show! XTools video on the Air Assist page doesn't work.....
I’m glad it was helpful to you!
Thank you for sharing!
Great video but found that my side screw interferes with the red crosshairs. Did you remove it or did i just not tighten it enough
That side screw does get in the way of the crosshairs. You can either go with just he rear screw or I disabled the crosshairs and used the low-power laser on option for framing and alignment.
@@Vintauri if you go with just the rear screw, wouldn't that allow a lot of air to escape through the hole?
@@ThereminHero If the cone is fitting correctly there should be almost no gap for the air to escape. However a small bit of tape over the open hole should alleviate that concern.
Dude... the screws thatlock in the nozzle blocks the framing laser ?
You can either just use the single screw to hold it in or even better, turn off the crosshairs and turn on low power laser framing instead. It’s more accurate.
great tutorial!
Thanks!
I did not get two air assist cones, but thanks for your video
They may have changed the kit now that the original D1 has been discontinued. Or maybe my kit was special! Either way, you'll really enjoy the air assist on your laser.
Did one of the set screws get in the way of the cross hair laser?
Yes they do, but I just turn off the crosshairs and frame with the laser on 1% power.
Got my xTool D1 Air Assist Set, Original install video showed two different Nozzles 16mm and 14mm inside diameter. once I received the item it had two 16mm nozzles( not sure why you would need 2 if they are the same size). Now they want me to wrap tape around the laser head since mine is the 14mm laser (10w) . It would bother me if I was paying $20 for it but I paid $113 to get an air assist that I wouldn't have to backwoods it together.
Xtool should be ashamed of their poor service! I only got the 16mm nozzle, but need the 14 mm. The poor excuses for customer service did not reply to 4 emails .
My nozzle is not tight fit so when I tighten set screws the laser is not centered to come through hole in the nozzle. How did you align the nozzle to be centered?
On mine it was a snug fit. On some older models, the brass sleeve around the lens was narrower, so they included the PTFE tape to fill that gap. That's a hit or miss way to align the cone. I would measure the outer diameter of the brass sleeve on the laser, and measure the inner diameter of the cone and see what the gap is. You could then cut some spacers to fill that gap to center the cone on the brass sleeve.
Question I just bought the d1pro with the air assist, do I have to use the air assist cones that come with the air assist pump? My shroud already had the notch cut as with as the hose adapter for the air hose. Air does come out of the cone but you swapped out the cone and put screws in, mine that came with the pro doesn’t have spots for screws . Thanks for the help
The original D1 came without air assist so the extra steps were needed to install the full kit. The newer machines like the D1 Pro do come with the air assist cone and shroud installed. So all you should need to do is attach the air assist pump and hose to that existing cone.
@@Vintauri thank you I did just that and got to finally use it. So far so good. I am completely new to this so Any suggestions on how to perfect using this or video that helped you would be highly appreciated. Thanks again !
What a difference. Is there a way to vary the pressure on the air pump with xTools system?
You can add a valve inline on the tubing but it’s a part you’ll have to provide yourself. I’m planning on using a 1/4” OD tubing ball valve on mine but I have not added it yet.
Great video! Do you have a recommendation for an inline valve that will allow for air flow adjustment? I'd like to use a small amount of air when engraving.
You can use the ball valves meant for drip irrigation systems. The 1/4" OD style should work on the supplied XTool hose. Here is a link to some I've played with in various systems. amzn.to/3GNpGul
@@Vintauri Thank you for the super quick reply.
Just tried doing this and my laser box is setup different than yours and the new replacement shroud does not fit doesn’t even come close. Any ideas why?
The shroud that came with my kit was a replacement for the original non pro 10w laser. If you have a newer one, it should come with a shroud that already has the appropriate cut outs, and might already have the air line adaptor into the air assist cone on the laser module.
Thank you! Easy to follow and clear instructions. ☺️
What is the material you are using that the wood sits on? And where can I get it?
The material I was using in this video was some fireplace mesh screen. It's 1/4" thick and works well as a venting support layer underneath your material if you do not have a honeycomb bed. If you have a local fireplace installer they might have some old material you can salvage for cheap or free otherwise you can bu it online here: amzn.to/3HEGuoI
@@Vintauri thanks so much for the quick response and helpful information
great video. any luck in cutting through 1/4" acrylic with the air assist?
I’d like to know how thick of acrylic can this machine cut.
Thank you for sharing...new and I mean new, so did not have anything (meaning the tube) going outside. Just cut the wood inside the shop....
Hopefully you are able to vent that outside somehow. I've run a laser briefly inside without ventilation and the smoke quickly got to be too much.
Which in-line blower are you using, and are you satisfied with its performance?
If you are talking about the exhaust fan I’m using a Vivosun 4” blower from Amazon. It’s rated at 195 CFM and does a decent job. I might look at upgrading to a larger fan but I’ll have to adapt it to a 6” tube to get more CFM.
If you had to purchase the air assist all over again would you?
I do like the slip-on metal cone design of this one. However, I think it would be great for them to offer the air assist cone and hose connector as parts without the air pump. There are plenty of other compressor or air pump options out there that would make it a cheaper option to ship and have better control of the airflow.
Never would buy it again. have not been able to use it for over a month.
Is the nozzle supposed to stick out past the orange part? Did they send me the wrong size? Everything is coming with lines going across the design..
It does stick down just below the safety cover. I took mine off as I’m running it in an enclosure now. As for the lines, did yours fit snugly around the laser head or was there some slop? It might not be centered and the laser beam could be hitting the cone and reflecting a beam.
@@Vintauri Thanks for the reply, I have an enclosure too but I still wanted to use it because it was supposed to still help. I will test it without the air assist and go from there I guess.
@@patrickmichaels1362 One thing I don't like about the shield is that it can trap smoke and debris inside it near the lens / cone. But you are correct that it adds a layer of protection. I bought a set of OD6 laser protection glasses on amazon to give me the best protection when using any of my lasers.
@@Vintauri I saw in the comments that the second screw for the laser would get in the way of the cross beams so I left that out and went with just the one screw but I needed to tighten the one screw pretty tight. I am hoping against hope that I did not over tighten it and ruin the whole thing.
Where did you get that chainmail material you're using under it?
That is a fireplace screen we were able to source from a local heating shop that services and upgrades fireplaces. You can get the same material on Amazon here: amzn.to/3BCumQV
Was this supplied by the company for your channel or did you order and pay for it using the retail route? If you ordered and paid for it by yourself, how long did it take to actually get your xTool D1?
The base laser was provided by XTool. It took about 10 days to ship from China to me in the Midwest US. I paid for the air assist module on my own and ordered it direct from the website. That shipped on Jan 26 and arrived February 8th.
@@Vintauri Thanks. I am thinking about ordering one this spring. Since I will have to use it in my shed, I don't want to start playing around till it warms up a bit (I live in Michigan). You answered my question about how early I have to order it.
What is your laser bed made from?
In this video I was using a fireplace mesh screen. It works well if you can stretch it out and secure it to a waste board. amzn.to/3V85VDR
I just tried to install my air assist kit, but my kit only came with ONE nozzle. It is way too big (inside diameter). No matter how I tape it, it never aligns properly , resulting in no burning or engraving. Am I missing something in my kit ?
I'm sorry to hear that. I have heard that there is a recent batch of nozzles that were not drilled out correctly. I would recommend that you contact Xtool support to ask about your nozzle being replaced.
@@Vintauri Thanks for your fast reply! I sent a letter to xtool support, hopefully they can fix the problem. I did see that they have a wood washer fix file, may try that while waiting.
@@Vintauri NOPE! Waited for a response, got nothing . Very sorry I wasted money on this pathetic piece of engineering . Where else would you be told to use tape to make the piece bigger??? Some one please point me to a 3rd party supplier that cares.
I just added the air assist to my D1 and after testing on plywood and maple, the engraving with the air assist has more smoke around it and is way less defined. Any thoughts on what I’m doing wrong?
Depending on the power and material, you may want to leave the air assist off for engraving. I like to run mine if possible to help keep smoke away from the lens but it can increase the amount of overburn on the material.
@@Vintauri I thought that was the whole purpose of the air assist, no overburn. I'm new and learning so thanks for the video!
My screw holes didn’t line up like yours did?
I had heard early on there was a batch that may have had the plastic shroud drilled incorrectly. If that is your case you may need to reach out to Xtool to see what they have to say about a replacement.
Ok. Seems like I need to send back the 5W D1 I just got and buy the 10W.
If you plan to do much cutting, I'd recommend the 10w, the 5w is plenty for just engraving.
@@Vintauri ok. It just clicked in. 10W for cutting through materials and 5W for basic engraving (metal, wood, glass, etc). I am new at the laser engraving world. Thanks
What program do you use with the d1
I use lightburn for the laser control but sometimes I’ll predesign in Illustrator for graphics or cad for structural design.
Where can I buy one?
I have a couple links in the description for both direct from Xtool or from Amazon where you can find the air assist kit for the XTool D1 laser.
After I install air asssit. My D1 stopped working. No laset shoot out hix.
Did the air nozzle fit right around the brass lens sleeve or was there slop? It sounds like the laser is hitting the inside of the cone. You can try to center it with the included tape but that’s a bit of a hack.
What were your cut settings?
On the 1/8" plywood I was running at 5mm/sec and 100% power. For the 1/4" plywood it was the same speed but with two passes.
Did you initially use it without an air assist?
I did run it first without the air assist but picked it up shortly after.
@@Vintauri okay bc I’m in a group and a lady mentioned that I can cause a fire if I don’t have one. I got scared so I’m not putting mine together until I get an air assist.
@@aliciahicks8986 A fire is more likely when your power is too high and speed too low. An air assist will not change that risk, but it will help reduce the overburn and charring effect on your cuts. I've tested several lasers, and not all have air assist, so just be mindful of your settings and monitor the laser as you work.
@@Vintauri you’re so kind to reply to me and answer my questions. Thank you! #newfollower
Does the air assist help with the smoke smell?
No the air assist will help with cleaner cutting but you'll need an exhaust system to keep the smoke smell out. The smell on the items will not matter either way. Sometimes letting them sit a bit will help air them out and lessen the smoke smell.
@@Vintauri Is there an indoor exhaust system or do I have to use the one that goes out of the window?
There are fume extractors that can be used without venting outside, however to get one that is effective they cost a couple thousand dollars and the filters need to be changed regularly.
@@Vintauri Thank you!
Do you have to clean the lens at all/frequently when the air assist unit is installed (if so how frequently)? Or does that negate the need to clean the lens, specifically?
Do you have the 10 watt d1?
Yes I have the 10 watt version of the D1 laser.
What is the tape for?
The tape is there because earlier versions of the D1 had a smaller diameter brass sleeve on the laser head that the cone would slip onto. Their solution is to wrap the laser head with the tape on the smaller heads to make it a snug fit. The better solution would be to cut some small spacers as the tape can cause misalignment of the cone to the laser beam.
To hide the bad customer service that Xtool provides.
I just received my air assist a few days ago. The aluminum nozzle appears to be interfering with the beam. Without the nozzle I can cut through 1/8 MDF at 100% power and 3mm/sec. The pieces drop out. With the nozzle, the same settings don't cut all the way through. The nozzle is a tight fit on the lens, there's no room for tape. I tried shimming the nozzle down so the hole is closer to the focal point of the beam. Not sure what else I can do. Anyone else having trouble with the latest batch of air assists?
Sorry to say I had the same problem with the laser not working with the nozzle on. I might try drilling the laser exit hole a tad bigger.
Engrave metal sheet?
You can mark some metal sheet by adding laser marking spray, but it cannot dig into and actually engrave metal.
My nozzle doesn’t just slip on
Check that there are no burrs on the set screw hole. It should be a snug fit but still slide on over the end cap on the module.