Wish I had seen your video earlier. I have a X40 Pro and your video shows exactly the problem with laser cutting. It is always a balance act between cutting and burning your material. I mostly try to cut 9 mm plywood (multiplex) and get huge issues to cut more complex shapes. Cuts are inconsistent or the surroundings are heavy burned.
I've been dealing with some of the same problems as well. It seems that plywood is one of the most inconsistent materials, some layers must be fare more dense and don't cut so well. I think that may be the reason we see so many pieces made from MDF, or thinner plywood. The only way around it seems to be to make more passes to make sure you get through everything. I'm not sure if a CO type laser would be better for this. It's nice to have a laser, but I agree that thicker materials can be tough to figure out.
@@NeedItMakeIt I came to the same conclusion for the 9 mm plywood. after all the advertisement and the reviews I didn't expect that that will be the endboss. It's a lil bit disappointing, more passes raise the risk of burning again and much more passes with less power raise the time you need for cutting. I ask my self the same question about the CO2-Lasers but do not have a experience or an answer. Another approach I think about is to replace the Air Assist with a persistent compressed air line. The Air Assist is by design not very strong and maybe a controllable air pressure between 1-2 bar will improve the results? But as we both know more air can also promotes the formation of flames. -.-"
just bought an atomstack A20 pro - now all I have to do is learn how the settings work i.e. cutting and the engraving. What would be your settings for cutting 3/4 poplar - I ask this because I woodburn wedding plaques and use the scrollsaw to cut out the ovals. - btw good job explaining how you do the cutting
can you make inlays with this laser? Let say there is a end grain patterned cutting board and now inlay is required, instead of using a precision CNC mill to create the inlays, can the laser cutter do the task instead?
How about some gasket cutting? There is various gasket materials and many thicknesses. Some of the better heat resistant gasket materials can be tricky for lazer
Any ideas why my x20 pro seems so under powered? It struggles to cut quarter inch plywood. 100 mm/s, 100% power 2 passes. I adjusted the S value as recommended. Any ideas?
I've struggled with some plywoods, I believe it could be related to the type of plywood you're using. If you're using high quality Baltic birch ply it'll be more dense and the laser will struggle. Plywood is a bit tricky, it changes density constantly, I've had areas which require 4 passes, and areas which only require 2. That's my best guess, if you want to provide some more info we could try to get to the exact source together.
Most of the lasers available these days have a rotary tool that can be added which allows the dowel to rotate while it's being engraved. There are newer machines now which might be better options than this one, Creality has one called the falcon 2 as well that you might want to check out. I assume you were talking about engraving along the length of the dowel and not the ends.
Yeah, that's marketing at it's 'finest'. The 130W refers to the power supply used for the electronics and laser, not the power of the laser itself. When looking to purchase a laser, the key feature to check out is the power of the laser first, the other numbers are not very useful and tend to confuse potential buyers.
I figured that would confuse people as well, I like to do the tests to see what the capacity is regardless of the printed wattages, hopefully the video helped to show this.
You didn't mention what power you where running at? Cutting should be a balance of speed and power, cutting at 100% power all the time will shorten the life of your laser. I usually cut in the 70-85% power range and slow down the cut to help maximize the life of the laser.
Wish I had seen your video earlier. I have a X40 Pro and your video shows exactly the problem with laser cutting. It is always a balance act between cutting and burning your material. I mostly try to cut 9 mm plywood (multiplex) and get huge issues to cut more complex shapes. Cuts are inconsistent or the surroundings are heavy burned.
I've been dealing with some of the same problems as well. It seems that plywood is one of the most inconsistent materials, some layers must be fare more dense and don't cut so well. I think that may be the reason we see so many pieces made from MDF, or thinner plywood. The only way around it seems to be to make more passes to make sure you get through everything. I'm not sure if a CO type laser would be better for this. It's nice to have a laser, but I agree that thicker materials can be tough to figure out.
@@NeedItMakeIt I came to the same conclusion for the 9 mm plywood. after all the advertisement and the reviews I didn't expect that that will be the endboss. It's a lil bit disappointing, more passes raise the risk of burning again and much more passes with less power raise the time you need for cutting. I ask my self the same question about the CO2-Lasers but do not have a experience or an answer. Another approach I think about is to replace the Air Assist with a persistent compressed air line. The Air Assist is by design not very strong and maybe a controllable air pressure between 1-2 bar will improve the results? But as we both know more air can also promotes the formation of flames. -.-"
could you provide the settings (power-speed and passes) when you cut box presumably 3 mm lite ply. Thanks
just bought an atomstack A20 pro - now all I have to do is learn how the settings work i.e. cutting and the engraving. What would be your settings for cutting 3/4 poplar - I ask this because I woodburn wedding plaques and use the scrollsaw to cut out the ovals. - btw good job explaining how you do the cutting
can you make inlays with this laser? Let say there is a end grain patterned cutting board and now inlay is required, instead of using a precision CNC mill to create the inlays, can the laser cutter do the task instead?
Would 3mm and 5mm plywood be a problem or just fine or just fine on this x20? Looking for a Diode laser prior to co2 laser arriving for my classroom.
Setting up my atomstack a70 max now. So ready to get started.
Nice! I'd like to know how it does, that's way more powerful than mine.
@@NeedItMakeIt I'm going to do a video. Probably won't be great but I'm learning.
How about some gasket cutting?
There is various gasket materials and many thicknesses.
Some of the better heat resistant gasket materials can be tricky for lazer
I'm definitely up for that, I will need to get an enclosure going ASAP!
Any ideas why my x20 pro seems so under powered? It struggles to cut quarter inch plywood. 100 mm/s, 100% power 2 passes. I adjusted the S value as recommended. Any ideas?
I've struggled with some plywoods, I believe it could be related to the type of plywood you're using. If you're using high quality Baltic birch ply it'll be more dense and the laser will struggle. Plywood is a bit tricky, it changes density constantly, I've had areas which require 4 passes, and areas which only require 2. That's my best guess, if you want to provide some more info we could try to get to the exact source together.
I want to burn an image on a 1 inch wooden dowel. Can this system do that?
Most of the lasers available these days have a rotary tool that can be added which allows the dowel to rotate while it's being engraved. There are newer machines now which might be better options than this one, Creality has one called the falcon 2 as well that you might want to check out. I assume you were talking about engraving along the length of the dowel and not the ends.
I would love to see if it will really engrave steel.
Impressive, I had the impression those type of lasers are only good for cutting paper and felt
It used to be that way, now it can cut through thick wood.
On the web side it says Atomstack X20/S20 Pro 130W Watt laser not 20watt.🤔
Yeah, that's marketing at it's 'finest'. The 130W refers to the power supply used for the electronics and laser, not the power of the laser itself. When looking to purchase a laser, the key feature to check out is the power of the laser first, the other numbers are not very useful and tend to confuse potential buyers.
@@TheGabb3r company's should get punished for making fals advertising.
I figured that would confuse people as well, I like to do the tests to see what the capacity is regardless of the printed wattages, hopefully the video helped to show this.
You didn't mention what power you where running at? Cutting should be a balance of speed and power, cutting at 100% power all the time will shorten the life of your laser. I usually cut in the 70-85% power range and slow down the cut to help maximize the life of the laser.
Good point, these tests were all at 100% power, not ideal for the laser lifespan.
Ya
I would like to see leather, both veg tanned and chrome tanned leather.
Pretty sure one of those is a bit dangerous
@@NeedItMakeIt it's an internet myth.