Laser engraving

21

@elminster

I found when testing small images 50x50mm, I could do 4 easily on the one piece of 150gsm white card, which was my test bed. Ir was easy to do the first print to the front left corner of the platform.

When complete I could turn on the laser Focus again and re-position the beam to the right side of the first image, reset the origin and run the second print and so forth, move the beam further back above the first image set the focus. I could easily print 4 images on the one card.

BTW if you use ordinary 80gsm paper you are likely to burn holes through it depending on how much the laser dwells in the one spot and what power level you are using. That is why I tried 150gsm card.

Despite my terrible photography the greyscale image came out like a photo. As mentioned earlier I am yet to try wood, leather or acrylic materials.

IMG_0444e
IMG_0444e800×485 98.9 KB

Needless to say I am impressed at what the Snapmaker can do.

Doug

22

@doug - can you share your settings for image. work speed (mm/min) , dwell time(ms/pixel), quality (pix/mm) - and laser power

1 Like
23

Hi @gjo

All the standard settings except;

Algorithm: Stucki
Dwell: 30
Laser Power: 90% ((note this applies to my Snapmaker and I understand it varies between Snapmakers)
The image size was 50x62mm

The print took 4hrs 45mins

I hope this helps you, keep having fun

Doug

1 Like
24

Hello Team,

I would like to buy a Snapmaker to print QR-Codes on Key-Chains. The material will be leather and it will have a size of 2x2 cm. Does the laser engraving have a high enough quality so that it will be possible to scan the QR-code with a smartphone?

I am thankful for any kind of experience you can share.

Thank you for your support. Jan

25

@jan_ka
I’m pretty sure this will work when you are able to do this with an ink jet printer (of course on paper)!
Currently I’m in 2 print jobs (I have 2 Snapmakers) but I will make a test for you on wood when you send me the file.

Michael

1 Like
26

@jan_ka
Hi Jan
It works like a charm!
I’ve created my own test with Inkscape (PNG export 265x265px @ 96dpi) - set to 20x20 mm in Snapmakerjs:

QR

My prints with 100%, 50% and 33% of the 200mW laser power @ 220 mm/min on plywood:

20180820_165226
20180820_1652263024×4032 2.42 MB

The results (all 3 QR-codes are working):

Screenshot_20180820-165058_Barcode%20Scanner
Screenshot_20180820-165058_Barcode%20Scanner2048×1536 651 KB

PS: The one with 100% was a slightly different text…a little bit burnt but it works too.

1 Like
27

Hello Team,
this is really great collaboration. Looks super good.
One last question: Did one of you ever print on leather? Is the quality like on wood?
Best,
Jan

28

Dear Jan
I allready saw something in this forum.
For example here:

Michael

29

Laser engraving, which is a subset of laser marking, is the practice of using lasers to engrave an object. The impact of laser marking has been more pronounced for specially designed “laserable” materials and also for some paints. These include laser-sensitive polymers and novel metal alloys.

30

I think you should try leveling down the laser power.