Laser Cutter

We have a 12"x20" (300mmX500mm) 50W laser cutter.

Requirements

Please contact someone who has used the Laser Cutter for a brief rundown before using it for the first time. People currently cleared to train you up:

• Philip Kin
• Blixa Morgan

Required Software

If you want to do cuts from your own computer, you'll want to install RDWorks version 8. The software can be found at: http://www.thunderlaser.com/download/down/RDWorksV8_thunder.rar

Software setup

After installing the software, you'll need to do some setup to connect to the laser cutter. If you are using Linux, see the extra setup notes at the bottom.

1. Click the "Port Setting" button in the lower right corner
2. Click the "Add" Button
3. Fill out the form
   • Name: Laser
   • IP: 192.168.0.30
4. Click "OK"
5. Check the box next to the new device.
6. Click "Exit"

Materials

Materials, and the max thickness of each, that can be used are listed below.

• masonite: 1/8"
• plywood: 1/4"
• glass: Etching only, either flat or cylindrical (with attachment)
• HDPE: 3mm
• PLA: 6mm

Recommended Settings

Material	Cut % Power/Speed	Scan % Power/Speed
¼"(actually .2") plywood [birch, oak]	60% / 7mm/sec	20% / 150mm/sec
3/8" acrylic	60% / 10mm/sec	20% / 160mm/sec
3/16" acrylic	90% / 4mm/sec	20% / 160mm/sec
Adams Readi Board (WIP)	20% / 25mm/sec (2.5KHZ no laser through)	20% / 1200mm/sec

Calibration

You can use these files to calibrate the cutter with your specific material.

Laser Calibration Template

This file will allow you to zero in on the proper cutting and etching power and speeds for your material while use very little material or time. The file consists of an outer square, for cutting, and an inner circle, for etching. Adjust the power and speed for each and cut until you are happy with the results.

Kerf Gauge

This file will allow you to determine the kerf ("tool width") of the laser with your specific material, as various materials tend to react to the heat on the laser in different ways. Simply load the and cut the file and use the key in the various positions of the gauge to determine the kerf. You can then factor this kerf into your designs to get tighter, more accurate dimensions of your final product. This is VERY useful for press-fit designs.

Notes

• If you are using the Z table, be sure not to let the y axis connector rest on the endstop, or you may not get the first few MM of the cut/etch.

Linux Install Notes

You will need to have wine and winetricks installed to use RDWorks. If your on ubuntu, just install both through Package Manager, or by running sudo apt install wine winetricks

Once those are installed, you will need to use winetricks to install wincmd

1. Open Winetricks.
2. Choose "Select the default wineprefix" and click OK.
3. Choose "Install a Windows DLL or component" and click OK.
4. Check "cmd - MS cmd.exe"
5. Check "mfc42"
6. Click OK
7. Follow the prompts.

When you get back to "What would you like to do to this wineprefix?" is is safe to close out of winetricks.

Now run wine ./RDWorksV8Setup8.01.35-181106.exe This should install RDWorks. Finish by following the above setup steps as normal.

An additional note when using Linux. RDWorks does not correctly render scaled objects in the window. If you are simply importing from Inkscape, this will have no effect on the final cut, but it may look weird when previewing.

Troubleshooting

1. No Enough extend space - One of your scan's is to close to an edge, it doesn't give the laser enough room to slow down after a raster pass.
2. X Slop over - A part of the cut extends over the left or right side of the cutting area
   1. Check the size of your cut?
   2. Check your origin
3. Y Slop over - A part of the cut extends over the top or bottom of the cutting area
   1. Check the size of your cut?
   2. Check your origin