With Laser cutting or CNC for that matter think seriously about what is the biggest likely wiget I will want to make 'sometimes' or if it is a one off or very rare you need a big widget then look at the differential between out sourcing the work to extra size and cost of owning the bigger toys and the space requirement.
Initially I went for an upmarket 300x200 40W Laser and should have gone to at least a 600x400 60-80W in hindsight but I am now building a 1200x900 100W In reality this is larger than needed for all likely jobs but it is the last Laser I will need or build (famous last words ).
The larger CNC I own and still need to get rewired and operational (separate dirty workspace reasons partly) is a 1000x600 working area with a 2.2kW spindle, which while not huge if I need anything larger done I would be happy at this stage to farm out as the next step up is really to a full 8x4' bed and the space required is massive. I could generate work and $ locally if I owned a larger one but it is not where I am currently at.
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Hmm. Well, I have the challenge of finding an "apartment friendly" solution that avoids being lynched by my neighbors, plus all the normal challenges getting into CNC and laser for the first time. I have plenty of available windows, so fume extraction should not be a problem, and I'll probably have to use a tarp/drop cloth to catch dust and debris, and supersize my mini fire extinguisher. Is CO2 commonly used to keep work pieces from catching fire? Working area size-wise for spindle use, the baby 3018 kits are too small but the 6040 kits are a bit too expensive for me ATM. For laser, it would be nice to have a larger format but cheap frame big enough to cut reasonably sized colored acrylic panels for a dry box and 3DP enclosure. I'm still scratching my head on this one: you can get away with a large cheap belt driven frame for laser, but using the same kinetics and controller for both the spindle and laser saves a lot of cash...
For spindle: What wattage/RPM should I get for PCB work and/or non-metal enclosures, or generally speaking milling/cutting/drilling materials up to but NOT including metal? I'm arbitrarily using surface mount and through hole PCBs as my minimum capability bar. As far as noise pollution is concerned (apartment...), how much of a difference is a water cooled spindle compared to air cooled?
For laser: I really, really, really, REALLY want a higher powered CO2 or equivalent laser, but that just isn't going to happen any time soon unless there is an extremely good fire sale, so I'm looking at cheap-ish chinese laser modules. Any idea what the minimum output wattage laser module would be that isn't a complete waste of money, for cutting colored acrylic on the upper end of use (and rubber or silicone gaskets)?
I'm sure I'll have questions more related to Fusion after new toys -- ERR -- I mean tools get ordered and delivered.
Dammit bean, would you stop waggling your Fusion-Fu in our faces like that? We feel inadequate enough next to your collection of lasers and wood-mangling tools...
mnem
"widget... widget-widget..."
It will NOT admit feelings of inadequacy! But I can't hide the Olympic sized pool of drool collecting on my desk... Hmm... Apparently drool volume can be measured in watts of laser output. Who knew?