Experience combining 3D printing with laser?

22 days ago by Bronzie to c/3dprinting

Anyone have any experience with this?
Strongly considering adding a xTool F2 Ultra UV to the hobby, but it’s quite costly and I’m unsure if I’d use it enough to justify it.
Any other laser experience also appreciated

Natanox 4 points 22 days ago

Please make sure to look up the company quite a bit, including their Play Store App reviews. If I remember correctly the support and software from xTool was horrendous.

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nibbler 3 points 22 days ago

xTool user here. Support was okay when a cable was DOA. Software is okay, but running it in Linux requires 2 versions for me. One allows me to design, the other can communicate with the s1.

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Bronzie 1 point 22 days ago

Good to know!

I’ve had issues with the Orca appimage, so I have one laptop with Windows still laying around.
From what I’ve read, the xTool software should be among the better for n00bs like myself…?

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nibbler 2 points 22 days ago

Total noob, xtools software was OK. While the whole 3d tool chain is great on Linux, for laser it sucks

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Bronzie 1 point 22 days ago

Yeah, I’d pay a bit more and buy from a local retailer following our laws, but very good advice!

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AliasVortex 3 points 22 days ago

I've been considering the same as I'd love to be able to engrave labels into my prints, but have held off so far because I've heard less than great things about xTool's serviceability, repairability, and warranty. Not that I'm remotely qualified to do DIY work on high powered laser components, but I'm sure as hell not about to drop several grand on a machine only to have a random part break and be left with a paperweight.

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CameronDev 3 points 22 days ago

If all you want to do is engrave plastic, look at the the cheap diode lasers. They'll easily engrave plastic. Make sure you ventilate the area, and be very cautious about the lasers. They will blind you instantly.

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AliasVortex 3 points 22 days ago

Oh that's perfect! I'd need to do more than a 10 minute skim (since Creality kinda sucks), but something like the Creality Falcon A1C looks like something much more my speed (and budget).

Thank you!

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runner_g 2 points 22 days ago

Is there something that laser engraving prints brings that debossing in the slicer won't do?

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Bronzie 2 points 22 days ago

I guess both yes and no.
A UV laser can literally print high resolution images to a print. I think it would make great gifts, engraving photos onto thin sheets and printing a nice frame to it.

Otherwise I’d probably use it equally much for metals, glass and wood

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CameronDev 1 point 22 days ago

I have a two trees tts-55pro, its cheaper, but no enclosure.

I would strongly recommend not relying on the enclosure anyway though, and make sure the glasses are actually capable.

I tested my glasses by putting them between the laser and a sheet of paper, and ran the laser at full power. If the paper is clean, its a good sign. Does mean my glasses have a big burn on the lens in front of my pupil though :D

I start my jobs and get as far away as possible, just to be safe.

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Bronzie 1 point 22 days ago

I’ve been reading for about a week, and landed on xTool probably being the best fit for me, but they sure do come with a price tag for the nicer units.

Creality I just won’t buy ever.

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CIA_chatbot 1 point 22 days ago

Read this before please https://blazexlaser.com/...

You can absolutely kill your self engraving the wrong material.

Look at the xtool m2, it comes with a air filtration system and also can print onto engravings

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Bronzie 2 points 22 days ago

Good advice.
I have a full exhaust setup that sucks everything outside, but it’s good to be extra cautious with these things

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Bronzie 2 points 22 days ago

Considered this, but the glass and metal part makes UV a better fit for our needs.
Otherwise I’d prefer diode, price and selection wise

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CameronDev 2 points 22 days ago

You can engrave glass with a laser diode, only catch is that you have to paint it first. I got some $2 washable acrylic paint from a craft shop and it worked great. And easily washed off afterwards.

Not sure if that can be replicated for metal though, but im definitely curious to try now.

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Bronzie 2 points 22 days ago

That is neat, did not know that.

I know a fiber beats a UV for metal any day, but UV seems to be the best all-rounder for anything engraving. And those k9 crystals look bloody cool too!

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Bronzie 1 point 22 days ago

Aye, local retailer or nothing.
As long as it’s in warranty, it’s their problem.
The mark-up is high enough for me to do that with a good concience.

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Rolive 2 points 19 days ago

I used to have this but I've built a separate CNC machine for lasering and engraving: https://www.printables.com/...

Do I recommend building it? Eh, it will work but there are some issues. 3D printer controller software such as Marlin or Klipper also does not play well with applications like LaserGRBL, Lightburn or Rayforge. They are designed with GRBL in mind or other dedicated CNC controllers. The 3D printer approach used the part cooling fan to control the laser power.

Back then I had custom Gcode substitutions in Prusaslicer which would replace Retract commands with enabling the laser and the opposite command with disabling the laser. It worked pretty well back then and I was able to do some engravings of circuit boards. I

There is one big safety issue, the enclosure is not designed for laser engraving and there is nothing preventing the laser from blinding you through a bad reflection. You will need to be extremely careful with this. The CNC machine I built later has a safety feature where the laser only functions if the front door is closed, using a magnetic sensor. It is not worth risking your eyesight over a bad moment where you don't pay attention. Engraving lasers are dangerous. Also the fumes are nasty, especially when engraving plastics. The soot and tar it produces will also settle on the inside of your enclosure and also electronics that are in there. You need powerful ventilation to run a laser engraver long term.

As for engraving materials, I have two laser heads, a 0.5W 405nm laser and a 10W 450nm laser.

The 405nm laser can be used quite well to activate etch resist spray or foil and can also instantly and precisely cure UV resin. I could make legible text on a PCB using white resin, drawing the text and then washing off the excess with alcohol. This laser however is not powerful and you won´t get nice engravings on wood or metal with it.

The 450nm laser can easily cut wood and make very nice engravings in it as well. I have also used it in the PCB making process to burn away spraypaint so that the copper can be etched off.

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CameronDev 2 points 22 days ago

I have a two trees tts-55 pro laser. Much cheaper, much less safe.

What are you planning on using the laser for?

My experience so far has been:

software ecosystem is terrible. Expensive paid options, poorly maintained free options. I use LaserWeb, but its basically abandoned.
bigger is better. The more cutting space you have the better

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Bronzie 2 points 22 days ago

Glass, printed plastic, wood and metal. A diode won’t cut it for me, sadly.

And I can’t have an open gantry laser. Small kids in the house

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CameronDev 2 points 22 days ago

Open or not, I wouldn't put one in the house with kids around. It really should be in a secured workshop/shed that kids cannot access. Closed might be "safer", but the safest tool is the one kids physically can't get near at all.

And definitely make sure you get the exhaust setup correctly, the fumes are nasty.

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Bronzie 2 points 22 days ago

This combined with the price is why I haven’t pulled the trigger yet.
The upside with galvo is that I can set it up to not work when opened, but do I trust that sensor 110%?

I don’t have a worksop or the land to build one, sadly.

Exhaust is good. 100mm hole drilled through the wall and a beefy inline fan. Set up to get all fumes from printing out as PLA gave me a headache.

Appreciate the advice. One can never be to carefull with these things!

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Grass 1 point 22 days ago

I recall seeing a couple 3d print youtubers do a video on laser engraving 3d prints but I cant recall which one

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3DPrinting is a place where makers of all skill levels and walks of life can learn about and discuss 3D printing and development of 3D printed parts and devices.

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