I am debating purchasing a Laser Cutter/Engraver. Does anyone here own or operate one or know someone who does? I am interested in talking to poeple who do so I can talk tech and get a basis to form my decision upon. Thanks. Jody
I work with a smal variety of laser engravers and mechanical engravers in the workshop that I am attached to. We have Epilog, Vision, and Universal Laser engravers. The Epilog engravers are nice, however are a bit finicky at times.
What type are you looking into?
r/
ET1
So many scales, so many trains, so little time.....
Epilogs a little out of my league!! I am looking at some cheaper chinese versions that run around $1800-$3500. Not sure wich Ill get yet. Since they will be imports so far, Ill be looking at service above anything else! Unless I can find some other version from around here that is cheap enough!! LOL. What are the vision and universal ones like? When I search (google) laser engraver/cutter, I honeslt do not come up with a great deal as far as manufacturers! And many sites do not reveal thier pricing either!! LOL. I am looking for probably mostly engraving in many aspects, but do want the cutting capabilities for doing some model/railroad/dollhouse related stuff. Thanks. Jody
Universal lasers are awesome in capability. We have one of them in my workshop, and it is a breeze to work on and with. Changing out the lens assembly for cleaning is as simple as a flick of the wrist. There is also a magnifiying lens set that provides for roughly 1/1000th of an inch cutting width.
There is also a dual cutting head attachment that allows one to cut two projects at one time, at the cost of 1/2 of availiable power and table space.
I know nothing about the actual performance of imported laser machines, however, I do know that replacement mirrors and lenses cost far more than domestic laser machines, thus over the long haul, the import laser will cost you more in the long haul. We have a pair of Epilog lasers that have been chugging hard for the better part of a decade, and very little new parts have been needed.
It is kind of the same as buying an import truck vs a domestic, the inital cost may be less, but getting parts and service is harder and more expensive for an import, vs a domestic.
We had an issue with one of our Epilog lasers, it ended up being a shot motor. Getting the new motor shipped out and installed was a relatively simple process that was made more complex by the security requirements to have outside contractors on base.
I would highly recommend the Universal laser system.
About the Vision machines, those are actually mechanical engraving machines that can do some rough cutting. I have been assigned the pair of them, and I have been like a mother hen to them since I changed commands last Novemeber. Being able to engrave stuff like dog tags and signs can do wonders for one's self esteem and hobbywork.
I hope that my input has been of some help.
James
Yes, I do agree. My budget is extremely tight since I will be working with the remainder of my income tax return after catching my bills up. I was layed of in January, and just now will start getting unemployment this week. So I will have to catch my bills up, then use the remainder for the unit, my PC for it, and the programs to run it as well as things to actually engrave. The universal I have heard about, but isnt that another $5,000 unit? With thew cost of everything else, I need the unit itself to be $3,000 or less. It does not matter how I look at it. I wish I cvould do better. Its either that, Or I find something else to spend my money on like a hot dog cart. But those things are very weather dependant and you can not make enough money with them LOL. Thanks. Jody
The UniversaL Laser sets cost a little less than the Epilog lasers do. I would hold off a little bit and save a little more for better quality.
It is comparible to deciding to buy a Daewoo or a Kia compared to a Ford. The Korean car might cost less upfront, but if you plan on using it hard and/or using for more than a few months/years, the higher upfront cost is offset by the much lower lifetime cost, not to mention the damage that owning an import does to one's self esteem / image.
A laser engraver is a machine that should not be taken lightly, as in it should be viewed as a major investment.
Once again, good luck.
Trust me, I would rather spend more if I could. However, perhaps you have never been unemployed making $800 a month to support a 5 person family. There is no saving up more, unless they are going to send out two tax returns. In my case, it is like buying a kia, or walking to the city every day. Thank you. Jody
I am not trying to keep you from getting the machine that you feel is best for you, I am simply trying to point out some of the flaws in getting such a machine from overseas.
I have had quite a bit of fun with making signs and such for my train layouts, mostly for my 8 3/4" gauge ride on train.
My concern at this point is making such an investment in the situation that you are in at this point in time. My recommendation is that you might want to wait a while on the engraver and apply what you have at this point in time to ride out the current problems, and get a machine when you are better on your feet.
I have been unemployed and homeless before. That is why I joined the Navy. However, I have never been quite in your situation, as my wife and I only have one child, and thanks to the poor level of health care where I am stationed, that will be the only one, unless we adopt.
I hope that you are able to find work again and that you make the best decision based on what you need and want.
v/r
Thank you for the response. I completly understand. I am very eager to try to become self employed. I was thinking this might be a good way to try to start. The cheapest thing I found so far would cost me around $3500. Most of the over sees units can not run what programs I want, or run on my windows XP pro set up. Some of the others wont do what I want. Some will not back them up or give warrenty. Some tell me the unit costs this and shipping is that. Then they tell me I have to pay customs and this and that. So to sum it up, I am really starting to second guess it. I would really like to get a better and more exspensive American unit. But I cant afford it. So I may end up finding a different venue? Thanks. Jody
Laser cutters are expensive, no doubt about it.
I would try to see if one of the domestic firms has any sort of refurbishment program, much like how some PCs and such are sold.
I will say this much about what I have worked with so far: Universal laser systems has a far better customer service program than Epilog, at least in my experience.
Best of luck,