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BenCutLaser / Re: Size limit for dxf file?
« on: October 14, 2019, 09:20:33 AM »
A long ways backwards!!!!!
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General Discussion / Re: Rescue Project
« on: October 13, 2019, 07:06:15 PM »
If you solve the problem please post the solution. I also purchased a cheap one then then did some research. It appears that the 3DTouch is an unauthorized clone of the BLTouch with a reputation for being quite useless as a generic upgrade, Works ok on some printers but fails on most. Chinese marketing at its best - copy, manufacture, sell, and then check if it actually works.
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General Discussion / Re: Rescue Project
« on: October 12, 2019, 08:03:46 AM »
Time to add the voice recognition option. It works just like "Hey Google" on except it is "Hey Octo". If you have the change filament remaining and auto unload properly setup you can pretty much control the whole operation from your phone. Whoever wrote the app did a great job interpreting voice commands. I especially like the "Obscene" mode where I get a sassy reply for trying to do something ridiculous (disable when grandchildren are present).
For instance:
"Hey Octo - print swan in white" will find the swan.stl, load the white filament, print it, remove from print bed.
"Hey Octo - print flowerpot at 4 meters tall in bronze" will reply with "You got to be kidding"
"Hey Octo - print ar15 in carbon pla" will respond with NFW.
Since the printer and laser have a lot in common I am confident that it will soon support the cut/etch cycles.
For instance:
"Hey Octo - print swan in white" will find the swan.stl, load the white filament, print it, remove from print bed.
"Hey Octo - print flowerpot at 4 meters tall in bronze" will reply with "You got to be kidding"
"Hey Octo - print ar15 in carbon pla" will respond with NFW.
Since the printer and laser have a lot in common I am confident that it will soon support the cut/etch cycles.
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BenCutLaser / Re: Laserbot Marlin (CONTINUED) Plywood
« on: October 11, 2019, 02:32:36 PM »
I think you have glues, grain, and focus going against cutting 3mm ply.
1. I had the best, but not great, success when I raised the laser to about 150mm and focused the dot
on a scrap if 1.5mm wood, Having the laser at a distance keeps the beam spread over the 3mm smaller.
2. Make sure your laser beam is at 90 degrees to the work in all directions. Being tilted will cause the beam
burn the walls of the cut.
3. Add an air bower to remove the char. Getting the glues mixed with the char creates a very hard to burn
material.
My 1.6W laser does a great job on detailed etching and cutting thin veneers.
1. I had the best, but not great, success when I raised the laser to about 150mm and focused the dot
on a scrap if 1.5mm wood, Having the laser at a distance keeps the beam spread over the 3mm smaller.
2. Make sure your laser beam is at 90 degrees to the work in all directions. Being tilted will cause the beam
burn the walls of the cut.
3. Add an air bower to remove the char. Getting the glues mixed with the char creates a very hard to burn
material.
My 1.6W laser does a great job on detailed etching and cutting thin veneers.
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Projects / Seasonal image
« on: October 10, 2019, 10:01:28 AM »
Attached are two versions of a seasonal (in my corner of the world) image sized for 100x100mm (4x4 inch) slate or mirror coasters.
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Trouble Shooting / Re: stepper motor exchange
« on: October 09, 2019, 06:44:12 PM »
Google quickly found the motor for about $10US. Going to 0.9 step angle should provide twice the resolution vs 1.8. I don't know the effect on power or maximum step frequency. Recently ordered a pair for a 3D printer to hopefully get more accurate X/Y dimensions.
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T2 Engraving / Re: Feature request
« on: October 08, 2019, 09:50:28 PM »
Minnesota has a state law banning creativity. If you can't hunt it or fish for it then its not appropriate behavior. (I used to work there)
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General Discussion / Re: big thank you
« on: October 08, 2019, 09:46:33 PM »
Been ice fishing yet?
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T2 Engraving / Re: Y axis and X axis
« on: October 08, 2019, 05:44:17 AM »
I have been dabbling in Marlin firmware for 3D printers so GRBL homing options are a little fuzzy.
1. GRBL is a bare bone gcode interperter designed to fit in a Atmel 328 CPU.
2. The difference between HOME and LIMIT switches can be confusing.
3. When I first used my core-xy fixture the HOME position was the upper right and was corrected to lower left via the parameters.
4. The source code for GRBL firmware is readily available. Read the comments around line 135. You may be able to configure per your expectations.
5. The difference between "lower left" and "upper right" can be reversed by rotating the machine 180 degrees.
There have been other posts on this forum with similar questions. Perhaps their solutions will assist you.
1. GRBL is a bare bone gcode interperter designed to fit in a Atmel 328 CPU.
2. The difference between HOME and LIMIT switches can be confusing.
3. When I first used my core-xy fixture the HOME position was the upper right and was corrected to lower left via the parameters.
4. The source code for GRBL firmware is readily available. Read the comments around line 135. You may be able to configure per your expectations.
5. The difference between "lower left" and "upper right" can be reversed by rotating the machine 180 degrees.
There have been other posts on this forum with similar questions. Perhaps their solutions will assist you.
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Trouble Shooting / Re: Total noobie that tried to upgrade and now wife is ticked!!!!!
« on: October 06, 2019, 05:56:55 PM »
3W is plenty of power to ignite pine. I use a small air compressor. It keeps down the flames and blows away the char.
As Zax said, on 3-wire fixtures you typically need to add a pull-down resistor between the laser ON signal and GND. During CPU reset the CPU I/O pins are set as inputs which float high causing the laser to turn on, You can solder a resistor to the header on the laser module, header on the controller, I/O pin on the CPU board. Some controllers have an additional unused header with the signal routed to it. Zax likes 1K, I prefer 3.3K. It really dosen't matter for our purposes. At a minimum, turn OFF the laser power when resetting the controller.
As Zax said, on 3-wire fixtures you typically need to add a pull-down resistor between the laser ON signal and GND. During CPU reset the CPU I/O pins are set as inputs which float high causing the laser to turn on, You can solder a resistor to the header on the laser module, header on the controller, I/O pin on the CPU board. Some controllers have an additional unused header with the signal routed to it. Zax likes 1K, I prefer 3.3K. It really dosen't matter for our purposes. At a minimum, turn OFF the laser power when resetting the controller.
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Trouble Shooting / Re: Total noobie that tried to upgrade and now wife is ticked!!!!!
« on: October 06, 2019, 03:55:30 PM »
I would keep the 3W. My 5.5W has a real poor focus.
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Trouble Shooting / Re: Total noobie that tried to upgrade and now wife is ticked!!!!!
« on: October 06, 2019, 02:55:46 PM »
Seems to me there is a very simple solution - purchase another laser for the wife and spend 200 hours fixing yours!!!
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BenCutLaser / Re: Size limit for dxf file?
« on: October 04, 2019, 09:14:03 PM »
If you prefer a more parametric approach there is openscad. It is a computer language that in some aspects resembles C.You build you design using primitives such as CUBE & CYLINDER and operators such as TRANSLATE, ROTATE, DIFFERENCE, and UNION. The mouse only enters the game for displaying the resulting model. I chanced upon it about 3 years ago when doing my first 2D laser cutting and now for 3D printing. I have zero free hand art skills so drawing a circle of radius R at location X,Y fits my abilities and its great for complex designs where parts must align with kerf compensation.
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General Discussion / Re: Modding my Eleksmaker A3 (2500mW) with cross line laser
« on: October 03, 2019, 04:03:20 PM »
I think most of the user hacking their machines ended about 2 years ago when the vendors started making more consistent products. I have a couple home brew core-xy fixture with 3D printed parts. They just work.
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General Discussion / Re: 15Watt Lasers?
« on: October 03, 2019, 03:51:41 PM »
A uniform 1mm deep cut is not something I would want to do with a laser. Small variations in wood grain or moisture will greatly affect the burn. I purchased one of the low cost 15W diode lasers and suspect the 15 refers to the raw supply current. It behaves like a 3W. Nothing like Chinese specs!!!! On the plus side, the optics are quite good. It will focus to a really sharp dot.