Getting a laser

JTknives

Blade Heat Treating www.jarodtodd.com
Joined
Jun 11, 2006
Messages
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So after the talk here and much discussion with a handful of customers the wife and I have decided to invest in a fiber marking laser. After talking to a few manufactures it looks like we are going to get a 60w JPT M7 MOPA laser. Thy are not cheep, but after talking to the manufacture we feel it’s the best for what we want to do with it.

The cool thing about this laser is it can mark in color on stainless. Don’t know how it does it but it does. But the real potential is how deep it can engrave. This opens the doors for use to use it to make steel touch marks as well as all kinds of other things.

But to start with it will be used to engrave your logos into your blades you send us or that you have us cut. It’s capable of very fine detail as the focused spot is around .002-.003. So the sky is the limit with this and it can be used for anything you guys can think of.

As for engraving cost we are looking at the range of $5-$10 per logo. With a laser it’s all about time. So by going with a higher power laser we are able to go a bit faster then if we used a 30w like is commonly used. Yes the 30w is cheeper but the features of the 60w laser supply are amazing compared to the 30w.

So let me know your thought and any questions you have. We have not pulled the trigger yet as we are still waiting on the banks lone paperwork. Did not want to drain our working capital to buy a laser so the bank was glad to foot the bill for us. thanks guys - JT
 
Very nice! Where I used to work they used a 30 watt for engraving metal information tags for motors. A 60 watt is going to be awesome. I'm really curious about how they can do color.
 
If your wife is involved in your business, she could run the laser.
Contact local jewelry shops, trophy shops and gun shops. Tell them you can engrave metal for them. Offer pick up/delivery.
You need to maximize use of your machine. There is a market for engraving required owner information on receivers for short-barreled AR 15s and other NFA weapons. You can do these while the owner is present. You can't keep any gun frame over night without a federal gun dealer license.
I can tell you many other ways to make $$ with the laser, if you wish to contact me.
 
how about please get ahold of me when you have it in hand/set up to use.. thing i might want you to make me a couple things with it..
 
I have a friend that knows the guy who use to do all the laser engraving for a gun part manufacture. He has agreed to give me some pointers. but thank you on your tip I will look into that.

I thought JPT did not make a MOPA in 50w? I know thy make a standard 50w fiber laser that I believe is Q switched but at about half the price of the 60w MOPA. How do you like it? What brand did you go with?
 
I thought JPT did not make a MOPA in 50w? I know thy make a standard 50w fiber laser that I believe is Q switched but at about half the price of the 60w MOPA. How do you like it? What brand did you go with?

As I'm made to understand, all JPT sources are "hybrid MOPA" as I called it. Or in borrowed words, "Fixed pulse width MOPA with a wider frequency range than a q-switched laser, but without the ability to adjust pulse width like a standard MOPA."

In simple terms, a standard MOPA gives you control over pulse frequency and pulse width/duration. A "hybrid MOPA" gives you control over the frequency but not pulse duration.

I bought SFX brand, it's great and came calibrated and ready to burn. I bought on Amazon, paid more than if I had bought direct, but in exchange for paying more, I got the security of buying from a vendor (Amazon) that has some accountability in case the deal went south. The cheaper option (if you're buying Chinese like most of us) is to send a bank wire to China, which seems risky.
 
As I'm made to understand, all JPT sources are "hybrid MOPA" as I called it. Or in borrowed words, "Fixed pulse width MOPA with a wider frequency range than a q-switched laser, but without the ability to adjust pulse width like a standard MOPA."

In simple terms, a standard MOPA gives you control over pulse frequency and pulse width/duration. A "hybrid MOPA" gives you control over the frequency but not pulse duration.

I bought SFX brand, it's great and came calibrated and ready to burn. I bought on Amazon, paid more than if I had bought direct, but in exchange for paying more, I got the security of buying from a vendor (Amazon) that has some accountability in case the deal went south. The cheaper option (if you're buying Chinese like most of us) is to send a bank wire to China, which seems risky.

that’s what I had originally thought but in my research thy say to use alibaba as thy have come along way and are more like eBay. Thy insure and guarantee your purchase as long as you use a verified vender.
 
Oh ok I got ya. You got the LP+ where you can’t adjust pulse width.
 
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