I want to buy a laser. I want one that will easily cut 1/4 acrylic {quickly too}.
I was wondering if any one had first hand knowledge of a certain 80W + ?
Just don’t get a cheap k40. I owned one and I just disassembled it in lieu of the SO3. The gantry is cheaply made. The cutting area is too small to be of any real use and that was the deal breaker for me. If it had a nice large workable area, I would have done some nice upgrades on it like mirrors and such. You’ll probably have to shell out some real dough for an actual laser that cuts fast.
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I’d looked at Full Spectrum lasers awhile back but honestly can’t recall if they had 80W options, definitely had 40 at the time. Believe they were made in the US with domestic phone support and such.
I’ve also heard of people getting surprisingly good results out of the cheap import ones on ebay.
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@fiero1 I happen to have a FSL laser. And while I’ve made some nice things with it, the amount of problems and lack of support (once they have your money) isn’t worth it in my opinion. They are “assembled in the US”, using parts from outside the US. I have what they call a 45 watt tube but everyone else sells the same tubes as 30/35 watts. I do cut 1/4" acrylic but it’s not the fastest and the odor by the time it’s done is horrible. If that’s what you want to cut then 80 watt would be the minimum I’d look at.
I think Saw mill creek has a lot of good laser information with different types and what their users use them for.
If I were buying another laser outside the US, I’d probably look at Thunder Laser. For not much more than a FSL you could have had a much more powerful and robust laser including shipping. It is shipped on a slow boat from China but they give you a tracking link that even shows it’s location in the ocean.
I’ve seen a number of Universal Lasers (Made in Scottsdale, AZ) on CL and Offer up. Universal’s are work horses and have great support from what I hear.
Do your research, they’re are a big investment. I did my research but ignored the information that was right in front of me, letting a few good reviews sway me.
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AZArtisan thanks for the info, might steer away if I’m ever genuinely in the market for one.
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