Laser Cutter

[ABearden]

Another few hours of messing with the laser cutter now that my schedule is open. Might as well be productive, right?

Got the first CNC-driven cuts done. With some experimentation, I figured out the focal point of the laser is about 1/2" off the work surface. That's great because aluminum expandable hex sheets come in 1/2", so it'll put the workpiece right where it needs to be.

Also figured out that while an aquarium pump does great at maintaining positive pressure near the lens thus keeping the smoke off of it, it's crap at producing enough flow/pressure to blow the smoke out of the cut. Was a hell of a head scratcher when I could barely cut through 1/20" of wood and the edges of the cut were charred where the flame followed the smoke. Fired up the air compressor and cranked it to 20psi then manually followed the beam with a nozzle; perfect. Now to figure out how to make it work automatically.

However, as a testament to the joys of prototyping, I figured out my first prototype of the vacuum shroud didn't work in a spectacular fashion. Always have a fire extinguisher nearby just in case. Didn't need it, just cut the laser power, but it could've been worse.