Phil's 2.8w Jtech Laser Journey

I’m self imposing a ban on myself from reading this thread. I’m just now feeling fully confident in my capabilities for the carving aspect, even though I haven’t used anything but easel yet. I’ve wanted a laser engraver LONG before I wanted a cnc…so this is the last thing I need to look in to right now. Only problem is I just looked up the cost…and now I want the xcarve upgrade even more.

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I can’t wait to see all the cool stuff @PhilJohnson is going to crank out with

image

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Dammit Phil, now you have me wanting a laser!! I’ve got to quit reading these upgrade threads!!:anguished:

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for acrylic… cast is ideal for laser engraving. I think I’ve seen several here who have done back of the mirror engraves

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Clear acrylic will probably not work with the J-tech laser.

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I’ve got the 2.8 and love it. I recommend the ebay lens. It works very well with the 2.8. Pro tip from those that came before me. Get a piece of black anodized aluminum and use that to focus your laser. I use a spare AR15 lower. :grin: You can do glass if you spray paint it first. There is a thread around here on it somewhere.(Found It)

Clear acrylic etching doesn’t work great with the 2.8 with any method. Its not that it doesn’t work but it takes so long you will quickly wonder why you arent using a bit. I have had mine since 2015. It went on the x carve before the spindle. I have had a lot of fantastic help along the way and am willing to answer any questions and share any comments, suggestions, tips that are JTech 2.8w related. Gotta give back and pay it forward for all the great help I received

Quick shout outs to a few of those that helped me
@picengravertoo
@JohnChamplain
@JTechPhotonics
@RyanCook (For the info on glass etching)
@IanWatkins (For the write up on electro etching)

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See Picengrave laser picture thread for awesome mirror engraving examples.

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Phil, take a look at LaserWeb4, it’s a locally installed laser/CNC control program you access via Chrome. Haven’t tried it for CNC, but I’ve used it with my K40 laser which I converted to use a Smoothieboard. It’ll set up images for engraving.

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@BrianSaban

wanna sell that epilog?

I have a 3.8w and I did cut 1/16" maple wood with 3 to 4 passes… Very clean. Just make sure you focus the laser real well.





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Once you start doing shaded etching this becomes an invaluable piece of software. One of the best features is its ability to have variable feed rates and to "skip white’ which decreases burn time and allows for some very impressive depth to a gray scale image.

The glass is very cool but it takes a while to run. Super for gifts and friends, not so much for production.

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I am still using LaserWeb3, because I couldn’t be successful to configure LaserWeb4 working (it does not generate G-code for engraving) :frowning:

I think, that LW3 was easier with initial setup.

The 3.8Watt J-Tech was on order within a week of me getting my X-Carve 1000 a year ago. I’ve enjoyed doing mixed use projects but as an example of one of my laser only projects I’ll share a piece I made for my wife for valentines day this year.

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It engraves slightly nicer due to the smaller focal point… Just takes about 30% longer.

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Sadly, Jerry Honkanen has passed away, but his web site is still up. http://www.oldcharms.com/
Maybe his work represents an example of what you mean.

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Surely she doesn’t have more than one choice. :flushed:

Try it from a computer. You’ve got to see this person’s work.

Something I had in mind to try.

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I just brought it up.

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Try just: www.oldcharms.com.
Works on my Win desktop and my iPad, and my phone.

Jerry became a good web friend, but sadly we never got to meet him in person. He had a lot of false starts and frustrations, but he never gave up on his goals and ideas. He had a truly pioneering spirit.

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