Oh, I fully understand how the discovery process plays out. I live it every day at work.
What I was really trying to get at is, given the excellent results on tile, is there some explanation as to why your earlier test on glass didn’t look so great other than pointing a finger at the laser?
Maybe I should just pull the trigger and buy the NEJE in the confidence that it’ll probably do most of what I want. Until a couple of weeks ago I didn’t even realize lasering tiles and glass was a thing and I was more focussed on engraving and very light duty cutting.
Funny enough. That’s one of the ones I was looking at. Can’t wait to see how it works for you. I was wanting to etch the Yeti-like tumblers with it too.
Sorry for the confusion. The NWT method for ceramic tile is, unlike slate, quite sensitive to the speed and power required for a decent image with a given laser and paint. Until I actually did a proper NWT test tile using the Neje laser, I’d simply not found the proper speed and power with that laser… and it’s not likely found by accident.
So it wasn’t the laser’s fault and I certainly didn’t mean to imply the A40640 laser module was faulty in any way… I’ve bought three of them!
I would not hesitate to order one. Though it was the first dual-diode laser module available, it’s still one of the best IMHO. I’ve got a number of posts featuring it cutting 3mm plywood and it is impressive.
Unboxed the Xtool RA2 rotary fixture and started getting set up to do inital testing. First, I raided the pantry for some custom leg extensions for my new Sculpfun S9 laser engraver…
Stuck in a relatively long piece of 1" dowel… there’s a handy little roller support included that acts as a tailstock support… and lasered a torus (vector) that never did well on a roller-style rotary (it slipped too much)…
I still need to sort the math, as I’m not using LightBurn to actually control the rotary… yet. But I still got a solid first burn that gives a pretty neat optical illusion…
I’ve gotta say I’m impressed with this unit. It’s a bit pricey (as all the Xtool machines seem to be) but it is so well thought out and versatile that it’s well worth the money IMO. I’ve got a couple of roller units that are so kludgey to set up and use… they’re next to worthless by comparison. Another nice thing is that Xtool actually includes a couple of little wiring adapters that allow use of their rotary fixture with several other popular machines… as with the Sculpfun S9 here. Good on them for doing that!
Since I’ve already got a laptop next to this machine, I’ll probably just directly control this unit with LightBurn in the future. It provides a rotary tool setup that is well documented, handles all the math, and compensates for the circumference without messing with Grbl’s steps/mm setting…
Duplicating all the people expressing their joy at reading your posts. I’m always happy to see another notification that you’ve posted something. Keep on tinkering!
Yeah that xtool does seem expensive compared to the usual 4th axis + tailstock combos, but it does have the rollers and size that make it a great fit for laser work.
Similar to what others have said… I get all excited when I get a noti that you posted something new. Enjoy the nap, stay hydrated, and hold a comfy pace… last thing we need is for you to get burned out posting!
I’ve read in several places (and seen in a couple of videos) of paint removal/scrubbing being a PITA. What are you using?
I use acetone almost exclusively and it usually does very well… especially on flat surfaces, like a ceramic tile. I just pour just enough to “flood” the entire surface and within seconds the paint bubbles up and often comes off in “sheets”, wiped and lightly scrubbed with steel wool. It evaporates rapidly so I usually follow up with a paper towel, wetted with acetone. It usually comes pretty clean pretty quickly. I then go scrub it with dish soap and water.
Coffee cups/handles and odd surface are a bit more time consuming (can’t “flood” the surface) but still not that terrible. Then again, I’m usually doing small pieces… and just onsies and twosies at that.
I don’t get nearly so good results using paint thinner… and it smells worse IMO. Some videos I’ve seen, folks are using denatured alcohol or other cleaners and having a dickens of a time removing paint. I’ve never had that kind of trouble with acetone. YMMV of course…
Yes, it’s acetone, i just didn’t have an appropriate container to flood and didn’t want to use any more than I had to. I soaked a small rag and got scrubbing. Honestly, it wasn’t HORRIBLE, just tedious.
And the “flood” isn’t much more than a couple of tablespoons of acetone per tile. No container needed… any excess simply soaks into the cardboard work surface and evaporates almost instantly.
Yeah. Read the label, but acetone isn’t a huge risk. You are supposed to ventilate, to avoid high concentrations. It is flammable. Dust masks don’t do anything.
If I was using it on the weekends I would open a window, or just do it in the garage and not stay that long. But if I had to do it for my job, OSHA would probably require some better precautions.
I was working at a job and used acetone to clean something. I poured a teaspoon worth on a rag and started wiping, they absolutely freaked that I was getting it in contact with my skin. I never looked that up, just put a glove on there. Couldn’t help but think of my Mom and Sister doing their nails all the time, stinking up the entire house and getting it all over their hands. MEK…different story.
I pretty much assume that if one or more of the following are true, it’s probably something you shouldn’t breathe, soak in, or drink: it’s a solvent (other than water), it ends in -one, or it ends in -ene. My guess is that it’s some sort of nasty substance that would scare me even more had I ever taken an Organic Chemistry class…
Mostly, I was being the resident safety ape. :juggalo_face:
:juggalo_face: