OPT laser 15w vectric settings questions

Everything Lasers
1

Good day.

I finally got everything up and running.
Question:
In vectric tool database…what would be the kerf of this laser.
I am using 25"/min cutting speed which works well. any advice on this?
What is the max burn rate?
Anyone might have some settings for different material and process so I can use.

and last in Vectric do I need everytime to select the post processer? it seems when I go from cut and fill to the laser picture I have to reselect the correct post processor.

Thank you!

2

The 15W laser has a kerf of about 0.004" on one axis, and around 0.007" on the other if its focused properly

Feedrate will generally be between 5in/min, and 100in/min depending on what you are egraving or cutting. I can cut 0.125" plywood in one pass at around 10-15in/min depending on the plywood.

The max burn rate setitng in Vectric is only used for simulation to try to get the correct darkness of the simulated lines with respect to the feedrate and power settings. Thats a little trial and error and personal taste. Mine is set at around 50ipm.

I think the default post processor in Vectric is just the last one used. I also have to toggle back and forth between my spindle and laser PP.

1 Like
3

With the optlaser 15W. what is good starting point to calculate the focus height for cutting.

4

For the standard nozzle (long nozzle) the distance is 4mm or .157"

Are you using our Avid CNC laser kit or a home grown setup?

5

Home grown setup. I found the laser to cut easy through plywood, but struggles with mdf. Both 3mm thick.

6

from our experiments late last year, you get a square beam if you turn the laser sideways and raster on 45deg.

7

yeah I think the amount of glue in the MDF makes it hard for it to cut.

8

Yep, the amount of glue really matters. Same with plywood, the more layers, the more glue, the harder it is to burn through.

9

Hi Eric. I watched your presentation on the Vectric Forum. some very cool ideas. You do mention the video and documentation on the Avidcnc site, yet it is based on version 2.5 of the Mach code. Where do I get a copy of this as it is not on the download site.