[TacPyro]

Hello all.

We are looking to add a desk top laser engraver to engrave anodized aluminum for around $4000. It would be great if a rotary tool would fit into this budget as well.
Any suggestions would be great as we are fairly lost right now.


Thanks for the help.

[LaserImage]

The only laser you will get for that $ will be either a used one or a Chinese one. Do a search here for Chinese Laser and see what you find...

[zax15uk]

A small desktop laser engraver from China should be less than $2k.

There's plenty of information on here about them. If you want a simple turnkey solution they may not be for you, although there are several US based re-sellers that can provide support.

Zax.

[TacPyro]

What US resellers are recommended? I am off to research now, but could someone briefly outline the issues with the Chinese engravers? That could help a lot.

[swaneejuggalo]

I have just been doing a lot of reading lately as I'm in this same position budget wise. The main issue i keep reading about is poor build quality and then no support after the sale.

Here's a couple of us resellers i have come across
http://www.mbkpinternational.com/art...r_engraver.htm
http://www.the-lasersedge.com/glassc02.html
http://scottware.net/

[rayscott]

You can get a really nice 50 watt laser engraver, up/down worktable, red-dot pointer, USB control, Corel and AutoCAD drivers.. For $3500.. Yes, It is Chinese.. I have one on ebay right now. Check it out .. Item number: 330310441535

I am a US Distributor of laser machines in the USA. I sell laser machines from China. I buy the machines in sets of 10-20. We get them into our shop and thoroughly check them out. After we are satisfied they work great, then we release them for sale. They perform quite well. The Chinese machines do not have the speed and precision of the new Epilog or Universal, but I believe that they do outperform the older US made laser machines.

I keep a laser machine with 60 watt and 24x36 table.... use it for mirrors, anodized aluminum, and woodworking.

If you have more specific questions, then you can email or give me a call.

You are welcome to visit my site at http://www.scottware.net

Many of the Chinese laser machines are very similar. The difference is in the importing costs, FDA/FCC certifications, quality control, warranty, and tech support. We take care of all those for you. My company is located just north of Cincinnatti, Ohio

www.scottware.net
3503 Carol Ann Lane
Middletown, OH 45044
(513)-320-2748

Ray Scott

[TacPyro]

We will be primarily engraving anodized aluminum. Can the small Chinese engravers handle this job? How many watts are needed for this?
I have read that some suppliers only provide support for their bundled software. Is it still reasonable to think that I could run Corell Draw on a Chinese engraver?

[rayscott]

I often use a chinese-made 50 watt laser machine to engrave on aluminum flashlights. I generally buy the small flashlights from Harbor Freight. They only cost $1.50 each and are fair quality. The power setting that is needed absolutely depends on the thickness of the anodize or paint. I used about 2 watts to get though the Red Anodize and about 5 watts to get through the Blue. The flashlight demo is a quick thing to personalize a gift. The laser vector cuts the letters... I used Corel for this one.. From blank screen to done is about three minutes or less. I use a piece of silly putty to hold the flash light in place... No rotary device is used.

Most laser sales companies don't want to "support" Corel, but supporting the Corel driver is easy. Follow the manual and it installs just easy. My Corel driver does not support Corel X4. Works fine for X3 and 12. It is somewhat intuitive.. otherwise it could take a few practices to learn to use it.



Ray Scott

[TacPyro]

We are in need of a desk top unit that can engrave anodized aluminum. How much are we looking at for a good quality unit from one of the more established manufactures? Any recommendations of good quality engravers of this type?

Thanks for the assistance.

[rayscott]

I don't recommend any of the small laser machine ($1500) from China. I suppose that they have their place, but not for the user that demands some good quality and software features.

The next size up is more of a bench top model. The 3050 ($3700). It is USB connection to the on-board controller. It runs directly out of Corel 12 or X3 (driver does not work for X4). Also runs out of AutoCAD (not sure of all the versions) I am looking in to see if the 3050 will also work with ProgeCAD. ProgeCAD does nearly everything the same as AutoCAD.. and the same commands.

The 3050 takes up so much of a desktop that it nearly needs its own desk or bench. This makes me want to move to the next machine.. I would highly recommend the Rabbit machine 4060. It is 40 watts ...plenty for anodized aluminum, engraving woods, cutting leather, acrylics..etc. It is USB controlled. It has much better software compatability. Honeycomb table. better optics... Uses the MPC6515 controller. etc. The 4060 has list price at $5900. The lowest end price for that would be closer to $5500. Does not include a PC... add shipping.

Ray Scott

[Boost junky]

Hello,

I got a great system from http://www.jnsjlaser.com/enindex.asp it was there SJ6090 with a rotary device with all the bells and whisles. It came with a 80 watt laser tube,power table,built in chiller,red dot locator,USB,water temp gauge,low water warning,Lasercut 5.3 software and softdog,MPC6515 controller V 2.0,Cabnet light,Air pump,Exhaust fan,Cables,But most of all it came with great support! I did have a problem with it being held up in Customs for longer then I would have liked and cost more then it should but they help me there to. The unit is now F.D.A. Approved I got it before they had that in place but was still able to get the machine. It did not have any problems with it after I unpacked it. And tested fine. I have not really had the time to fully test it yet because I had to drain the water out because the temps were very low over the winter. But now it is time to learn and start to make some real cool stuff. My cost for the complete unit with the rotary and shipping was $4,110.00 then fees at pick up. I would tell anyone to check them out I am very happy with there product and there service!

Contact: Serena Tung [email protected]

Chris