[Atomc]

So, I am looking to buy a SHENHUI laser and the CO2 laser tubes are not all that expensive. I can pay $200 more and go from 80-100W. There are options to go all the way to 130 W. While I have never used anything with more than 60W, I would assume higher power would reduce the heat affected zone and charring, but is that right? Is there a limit to how much power I should get? Is there a tradeoff that I dont know about?

Anhyow, thank you in advance!
Adam

[Basecamp]

Depends on what you want to use it for.

Lower-watt lasers tend to be better for fine engraving, while higher-watt lasers have more cutting capacity but at the expense of engraving quality. In terms of engraving quality, it's better to run a 40W laser in it's "comfort zone" than to run a 200W laser at a fraction of it's potential output.

Our shop bought a 100W laser because it was a pretty good balance. Still good for engraving, but decent cutting power too...although our needs may well be different from yours.

Also bear in mind that spot size matters. A 60W American-made solid-state laser (with its tiny spot size) will cut far more effectively than a 60W Chinese laser. In fact you'd probably need a 100W Chinese laser to equal the cutting capabilities.

[AmyThunderlaser]

so what's job are you going to do with the laser?
if smaller power can make it, then choose a smaller one.
since 50w/60w/80w tube are better quality than 100w/130w in China,