What Fiber Laser Engraving Machine Do I Use for Firearms and My Vector Artwork?!
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 6 сен 2024
- Custom firearms Engraving Vector Designs, builds, templates, patterns and more!!! Link to my Store here for ya! www.fragoutdes...
#LaserEngraving #Firearms #Guns #Engraving #metalEngraving #illustrator #artist #FiberLaser #art #graphicdesign #fragoutdesign #FragoutFirearms
#trotec #Troteclaser @TrotecLaserEngraving @TrotecLaserCanada @TrotecLaser @TrotecLaser
Thanks for watching!
-Fragout
To see more of my work and about myself and FDS head on over to my Website!!! www.FragoutDesign.com
man, you have no idea how much respect I have for you telling your story, especially funding this machine and the struggle. I am strongly considering getting into fiber and i wish there were more people from this community speaking their mind freely and not worrying about getting free products or whatelse kinda incentives they have.
yeah ive seen some folks get sucked into these weird deals where they come off like used car salesman and it frustrated me cause i know they have to make it out to be the best machine in the world and its not. id love to work with manufactures but i wouldnt ever put myself in that position. main reason i went head first into this one and paid cash it freed me to not have to worry about any restrictions but i just wish i could recommend it at the end of the day thats for sure.
not bashing them but they could do so much better thats for sure. i dont get it.
You just saved me a costly mistake. Thank you for your candor.
glad to hear this video helped! very welcome!
Mad respect for the upfront honesty. Thank you!
welcome! thanks for watching!
Hey brother. I feel for you, understand from experience and think your advice is sound. I’ve noticed my problems started rising as I wound up knowing more than the salespeople about the machines. My last one (JPT 50) I did an RFQ on alibaba and understand most don’t know what to ask unless you’ve been kicked in the nuts by some “surprise” or shady ass sneak, given to you by a salesperson. Unfortunate. When I did the RFQ I was extremely vocal about the driver in the machine, the pin out on the main harness and all that stuff we actually love about our trade and let them know in all caps, “UPON RECEIPT OF MY MACHINE BEFORE I EVEN THINK OF PLUGGING IT IN I WILL BE TAKING THE WHOLE THING APART!” Which I did. Then I had to paint it THEN tested it! 😂 Sorry to hear you got dicked around by people who you could teach a laser class to. Just know you ain’t the only one bro. I bought that one after paying for a machine that never came. Keep up the bad ass work and shoot me one of those bad ass files! I’m a lasering SOB but creating a graphic is like trying to read my own handwriting….ain’t gonna happen! 😂 Seriously though, bad ass. 👍
Definitely glad I picked up my 60W JPT M7 MOPA. Lots of support and good groups out there for help on the Galvo Fibers.
yessirrr
Hi, can you share were you buy it and brand?
What are “galvo fibers”?
Thank you for the heads up. I just purchased a smaller very affordable, beginner level , slow low watt fiber laser. A beginner machine. I would be insane with rage....you're doing a great job explaining your disgust in a respectful way. I think these guys owe you big. Thank you for your video.
yes sir! congrats on the new laser my friend! as for my feelings, eh yeah... still gets to me but whats done is done ya know. lesson learned for sure just glad im able to share my experince and help folks navigate their decisions better than i did. i still love the machine but if i could do it all over again i wouldnt of got it. just glad it can do what it does at least.
Which machine did you buy? I’m looking to get a starter machine too
Yea thanks for the honest opinion and for the advice
Welcome welcome
Much respect. Thank you for the honestly.
very welcome dude! Thank you for taking your time to watch.
I remember many months ago about a few things.....like the software you were using and you answered that it was proprietary...I also asked what wattage it was and you told me it was a 50W....you have always been straight with me when I ask questions.
yeah im a straight shooter with things. no reason to be otherwise. thats just me though, some folks dont like it but what can i say.
I got into laser engraving about 8 years ago. I currently have 5 lasers 2 of which are trotecs. What I will say about trotec is they are like the Toyotas of laser engravers. We still have our 1st laser a speedy 300 without a single problem to this day. And we run them all day long every single day. I also have 2 fiber lasers and I will say fiber lasers are a huge headache like mentioned. When it comes to customer service tho I feel like it depends where you live. We had a salesman out of New Jersey who sold us our 1st laser that was very informative and helpful.
yeah my laser here a couple months ago died completely they had to swap out the whole unit with the power knob on it, was told is $10000 to replace again, lasted me 2 years.... 2.
Thanks Buddy, Your a true inspiration! Amazing work!
that means a lot thanks man
If people will just go back and watch your videos they would know the struggles you've had with this machine and the service. Keep pressing on Bro, we really enjoy watching!
im sayin lol im not trying to sound like a basket case but im glad i made this video atleast now so i have something to link people too when they ask.
appreciate the support man!
always forward!
Damn bro I totally feel for ya, my last industry nobody on customer service would help and just vagueness on answers. Same now that I have gotten into the laser industry. If you don't have the skill to put countless hours into these machines you've already lost. Good on you for telling it like it is!
Sorry for the late reply. As for the industry and the time it takes I agree but atleast spending a few grand than a hundred probably helps the sting a bit. Hopefully all is well now dude
I hear your frustration.
I think the problem of "under engineering " and "over selling" runs through all industries.
It is strangely refreshing when you actually run across a manufacturer and tech support that knows their product inside out, upside down, and backwards. When a problem arises, they are open to observations and suggestions from the end user in the field.
Hopefully dark days are behind you.
Yeah I Mean I just hate being lied too. Like it's OK to say "I don't know" but it's all good. I've made due
@@FragoutDesign
I've seen thousands to 10's of thousands spent for a misapplication of equipment.
Then begins the cover-up.
The engineering can't admit they made a mistake.
The project manager can't admit there was a mistake to the owner.
The owner (for example a City) can't admit there was a mistake to the tax payers.
In the end, everyone spends more in wasted time and extra money that it would have cost to change direction at first sign of an issue.
It does make me wonder if what I see in the Mechanical field carries over to the Medical field?
I think given time (and doing honest investigation) we may find out.🤔
Now, we only need to find some honest people. 😅
Absolute legend! This is the kind of information we’ve been looking for! I have Been doing a lot of research on lasers. I’m a gunsmith and getting ready to purchase a laser for my shop. I plan on purchasing surplus police pistols and then customizing them for a little bit of side cash flow apart from the main business. Wish more folks would do in depth unbiased informational vids like this. Thanks again boss!
glad i could help. good luck with everything!
Thank you sir. You save me a lot of headache.
Glad to help!
Thanks for the information
Welcome! Thank you for taking time to watch
Appreciate your honesty, keep up the good videos!!
🙏🙏🙏
I started in a company that has these machines and I cannot figure out how you do amazing work on these slides with these machines
man it took me a long time to figure out thats for sure.
BTW...I own a cloudray 50w. cost me $5500...it is great. The PSU went out on it and the company replaced it quickly.
nice yeah cloudray reached out to me to do a partnership but told them maybe next year. thank you for the feedback on them thats good to know.
Have you tried engraving Firearms by any chance?
@@AlexOrtiz-xy3xp yes, I have...I am a FFL-07 holder.
i'm an 07/02 ffl dealer- i just bought the cloudray 50 watt fiber, along with a ton of extra lens's and accessories. so far, cloudray has been absolutely amazing with customer support. no complaints at all.... yet.
@@AlexOrtiz-xy3xp I have, there is a bit of a learning curve. But it is fun. I have done a few tax stamp engravings due to the pistol brace/SBR bullSH!T.
I’m still leaning San Antonio laser mainly for the support
I didn’t know you were signed off by the atf with your ffl.
This answers so any questions! That's crazy, but oddly is the same with most machines I've found, but not in the US. For that kind of money, they should give you an employee for 3 months haha. There is a bigger pool for the smaller machines which helps a lot, although the community at large holds it's secrets. This video shows us we don't need to spend our Lambo cash on a laser, and I appreciate that.
60w jpt mopa (hit me up if you have one and want to share settings and processes)
yeah i mean if it did the seamless id feel a lil differently about the machine and be more optimistic but def not with the company. i cant tell whats more disappointing to be honest.
Well now I feel bad for asking....lol
Thanks man.
nah youre good man, its important to ask questions like this. not doing so is how you end up in situations like i did
Thanks, for the info good buddy !
yessirrr
Really appreciate this video
thanks for watching!
At that price, I'm taking a trip to SOMEONE'S showroom, bringing a few parts, like some slides and lowers and a couple files on USB. I can't remember if it was Trotec or Aeon or both... but when I asked a few years ago about trying out my stuff, they invited me to test my files and materials in their showroom. Now I'm iffy on going with Trotec... but a salesman will always be a salesman. I know someone who got an OMTech and was told different on certain things as well. Hope ya figure out the segmentation issue.
segmentation wasnt ever going to work, it was a lie. as for the industry yeah theres no reason to buy one like mine and spend that much money. none at all. my truck has a better warranty and paid half the price of my machine for that. wouldnt be as bitter about it if it had cost me only a few grand like the chinese ones.
@@FragoutDesign Love the size though. I bet doing 20 slides at a time is better than 2 at a time. :)
yeah well cant do 20 at a time right now, need a perfect jig for that and the last time i tried to do batches of something (the coins) my laser broke and i suspect its cause it was running for so long. thankfully trotec honored the warranty or that would of cost me $10k to replace... kinda nervous to run her that hard again. id rather have 20 lasers running 20 slides than one laser doing 20 honestly
😲
@@DiverseCityPrint troof
Thank you for this. I would never buy that model of Honda lol. Been watching you from day one even before I bought my system. Keep up the work man, looking forward to seeing more!
thanks for watching! yeah my buddy had one in high school it was pretty cool though back then haha
laser everything has tremendous tutorials for beginners. Look into it.
wouldnt help me on my end. i have a laser no one else does.
I really love your work, it's impressive.
i also have a similar 50w laser, i'm in europe.
I have searched but not found, do you have a video where you explain a little the settings you use on the configuration of your laser? because I would like to customize my weapons with mine but I can not find a reference setting to start working on my own laser engraving settings. do you have a video like that? it would be really great.
not sure what you mean? if you go back a bit youll see a good few months when i ran thru testing on a bunch of materials that may help
Thanks bro
Yessir
Hey everyone does anyone know where you can find courses to learn how to use fiber laser and associated programs?
i got tutorials. for freeeeeeeeeeee ruclips.net/p/PLJsPZvRNqJrg9CS57jegTiw_n2EBU45Q0&si=dflXf-L8dDAfaAZu
Waiting for my 60w 3d mopa m7 to arrive in the next couple days
Hell yeah dude! congrats!
Thanks for the intel. I was literally thinking exactly what you were sold on seamless lasering. I was thinking how cool would this thing be to laser an entire gun barrel. But if you say it's a no-go. I'm out. Thanks for making the video.
yeah man i was like the seamless would be so awesome, but its a no go for sure on that. i dont know if ill get to be able to do it
I'm sorry you had to go through all that. Knowing what you know today, what would you have done different? like what type of machine would be your choice of "go to" today? Thanks!
jpt 50 watt
I just watched your video and it scared the crap out of me. I’m actually getting ready to buy a very expensive machine myself same price range as yours. It’s made by Laser Marking Technology. It is an X Y Z programmable gantry with a 100w JPT. They have never claimed it would do seamless engraving and I wasn’t really looking for that but more for quantity of duplicate items. There is a guy that bought one who has said he has done seamless engraving with it but it takes a bit to get right he told me. LMT is a US based company and seem to be very helpful as I have asked a million questions but then again maybe that changes once I buy. They use ezcad 3 so sounds like that’s going to have a pool of people to draw from plus they say they offer 24/7 support. I guess a guy never knows till they go through it like you did. I have heard that trotec hasn’t been the best for support so for the bed laser I had bought an Epilog. I like it and it’s been a great machine but buying into it I never expected the settings to be right on, but I understand how it works and can usually figure it out. I’m going into the fiber world the same in that there are going to be lots of things I’ll need to figure out and it won’t be a plug and play for every engraving. Thank you for your video it makes me really review my do diligence on this new machine. 0:53 Thank you!! Eric
yup LMT are good dudes, almost got one of their machines.
@@FragoutDesign That’s good to hear. Thank you and have a Merry Christmas
@@turda4u gobble gobble
@FragoutDesign can you explain what you mean by "seamless". Not sure I understand what you mean by that. I'm new and learning the lingo. Thanks.
JPT for me. Learning by trial and error... 60w MOPA for under 9k :-)
Same here! Way under 9k
Yup
I’m waiting on mine I got it for 7.5k
For the 60w Mopa
@@arc-show1787 👍
Why did you all go with the 60W over the 50W?
So what should we get??
i tell you in the video
Are there fiber lasers that can do stippling and even slide engraving for around 2500$ or so that anyone knows of? I know that’s probably really cheap but just trying to see what’s out there and if I have the option to get into this. Looking for very budget friendly but also not a pos. Thanks in advance🙏🏼
I don't know
The look on his face at 13:23 is how I feel about wasting money on my XTool F1. I cannot even fathom having this kind of experience with a machine I paid $100,000 for! OMG. Unreal. Shame on that company.
still sucks, thats my face, but yeah it is what it is lol
I’m in the same boat. Bought an Epilog fiber. I call support and they just tell me to play with settings. It’s like they have no one there that actually knows the ins and outs of their machines.
blows my mind dude
That's what I ended up with, a 50W epilog fibermark. I basically just had to play around with it and run a bunch of test pieces to I got the settings close. It wasn't really as advertised since our primary intended use was to deep engrave placards with paint fill to replicate the old acid etched placards. It works ok on 2024-T3 but it takes somewhere around 60 passes to engrave deep enough to accept paint fill.
@@psecody is the engraved portion flat and smooth? I can get it deep, just looks texturized. I’ve changed the image dithering with no success. I’m doing stainless. I’m assuming you are using the epilog software?
@@psecody in all fairness a Gantry Fiber no matter what brand was made to lightly mark and anneal only never to deep engrave. I Love my epilog Co2's but bought a JPT 60 watt MOPA galvo for deep etching.
@@trapshootingtrophies9884what’s the best engraver for stippling Glock frames? Can you do that with a jpt 60W or is that way too strong?
I am looking to buy a 40w fiber laser, I just want to make sure I invest my funds into a good company, who do you suggest?
I dont have a specific company to recommend but brand wise most of my customers use a JPT 30-50 watt machine
The truth in this video is palpable
palpable is a word i dont see often lol thanks for watching
Appreciate it very much brother!! I’m new at this and was wondering…. What do you suggest for me as a new guy trying to engrave handguns and rifles and also do some other designs on the side? Not sure if to go with Chinese or American.
Jpt 50 is what most of my customers have. Where to get it is up to you I don't have a referral there.
@@FragoutDesign I appreciate it again brother thank you very much!
welcome welcome
Thank God you put yourself in the smart financial position to pay cash for the unit. I'm sorry you spent a large amount of money on a unit not capable of their claims. I'm currently burning some of your beautiful artwork on a prybar because I saw you burn a wrench and it was the first flat piece of metal I found in my toolbox 😄 this is my first go at using a fiber laser. It took me two days to figure out how to connect it to my laptop but keep your eye out 😆 not tech savvy clearly but damn this is fun once it finally starts burning.
haha thats awesome, be sure to tag me on social media with the pry bar id love to see it. keep up the hard work man!
I don't have a Trotec. I asked the same questions. Bought 100 MOPA with CNC X and Y my biggest issue was the software for 2.5 and 3d engraving. After 4-5yrs Im still using the work arounds I found for the bugs. I would have gone belly-up if I had depended on it for a living.
yeah i didnt even get into the bugs on my machine that i have to work around as well.
Quick question, what settings (Lightburn) do you recommend to use on a gen 5 frame , I have a 50w jpt 110lens
no idea i dont use lightburn
So you bought a giant Fiber laser instead of "GALVO" Style "LENSE" fiber machine?
I already have a X,Y,Z CO2 Laser for cutting but want to engrave Metal guns and mags
I cant afford trotech....Theyre CO2 Machines are WAY over priced and don't do anything more than my 2' X 3' $6000 Chinese machine does
Only thing it doesn't do is engrave metal. I need a Fiber to engrave Metal (I get it)
I've been looking into "Full Spectrum Laser" but may just buy an "OMTECH" 50 Watt Galvo.
Sorry you had this experience
best regards, Rick
yeah i recommend a 50 watt fiber there are many great options out there.
Thanks for the video. To pay the extra expecting the support and getting bullshit answers would be a hard pill for me to swallow too. Inspired by your videos, I'm on the fence about purchasing a machine from China that I think would meet my needs now and later down the road. I'm concerned about the learning curve of using it vs spending half that for a more entry level, then having to buy for what I could do later. I realize buying from there I cant expect much in help if simply for the fact of language. I certainly feel for you and hope you can figure out the technique you want to do.
appriciate you watching and your feedback too. yeah lol like it still bugs me but im glad im able to now answer the holy grail question for folks about what machine i use and hopefully everyone like yourself atleast listens to what i have to say like you did and go from there. theres no perfect path going into all this but i can say 100% you dont need to sell your organs off the bat for the biggest badest. and also i hope this also highlights that folks really need to take what sales people tell them with the biggest grain of salt and then still question what they tell you. cause as i have found out, some of them will just make shit up to answer a very important question and this is make or break type stuff for us. we arnt millionares. im glad i had a backup plan just in case but i know this isnt something everyone can do and yeah. just hang in there and youll figure out what works for you and you can always add more or go big later. if youre just starting off, invest that money into ways to help you get off at a good pace with things. get fancy later.
Great video, potentially stopping others from investing their life savings or financing something with no customer service. Sorry you had to go through this.
Its all good, i luckily went into this with the backup plan. But yeah... thanks for watching.
What do I need to look for on fiber lasers.
gerbals
Sorry to bother asking, Is it a good machine to start a 60W MOPA with a JPT source YDFLP-60-M7-M-R for around $6400. Thank you.
Beats what I paid to get started I'd say yes youd be good to get started with that. I don't know what that code is but generally speaking you shouldny have issues with that. Just don't buy it from wish. Com or something and get it some where reputable
When engraving a firearm, do we need to seal it so it does not rust after engraving?
Yup
Do you have any recommendations on what to use? I have looked and looked and looked and have not found anything online.@@FragoutDesign
cerakote is what im doing
Thank you!@@FragoutDesign
Thats a lot of money man, that just sucks!! I would be pissed!!
thats why i had a backup plan going into this just in case. always have that lined up for things in life.
I have wanted to get into laser engraving but l'm too old now. I envy the younger generation.
I have so many customers with lasers older than my dad. Never to late
cant hear a damn thing you're saying over the sound of the background noise.
womp womp