Full Version: New to engraving...
From: Engravin' Dave (DATAKES) [#19]
20 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#18] 20 Mar 2007
EDITED: 20 Mar 2007 by DATAKES
From: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#20]
20 Mar 2007
To: George (GPRIVATEER) [#15] Unread
George,
I am just outside of East Aurora. I know this is an engraving site, but could you privately e-mail me. (pangelp@aol.com) I would like to talk to you about sublimation. I believe you did say you were with Romark.
From: PenTrophy (PENINSULATROPHY) [#21]
20 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#18] 20 Mar 2007
Your Profile is empty so it is hard to give you any direct assisatance but there is an Epilog for sale in NY ..
(JDLASERGIFTS) I am sad to say that I will be closing up shop due to a family illness. I will no longer be able to juggle my full time job and my part time business along with devoting my attention to my family member. I will be selling my Epilog Mini 18 25W(manufactured sept 05) along with the 600 cfm dust collector and 30 psi air compressor. The laser has less than 100 hours on it. If Only serious inquiries please!
From: Rodney Gold (RODNEY_GOLD) [#22]
20 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#18] 20 Mar 2007
I would not use a laser to cut circles and holes in wood , its a bad tool for cutting wood unless you looking at 200w+ power , a small overhead router or shop bot would be better. You get charring and it dirties up the laser big time with vaporised resins or glues
In terms of what you could do , well 20-30 an hour would be reasonable with loading and unloading etc , say 200-250 a day.
But that depends on the wood and its thickness.
I run Gcc machines and am pretty happy , but all lasers do the same thing anyway so buy based on service and nearbye support not brand.
As I said , as a compliment to your embroidery , you cant go that far wrong with a nice 30 w system.
I would really try make a push into lasers and fabrics. We have cut a lot of diverse fabrics with ours and i can see how they can fit in with embroidery We have cut and engraved
Faux leather , faux suede , suede , leather, , polyesters , fleeces , denim , flock , aplique, lace , cotton , baise , felt , foams , t shirting material , leatherboard
There are not many ppl specializing in this and it can be a nice profitable niche market.
From: UncleSteve [#23]
20 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#20] 20 Mar 2007
Sublimation is a small part of what the "etc." is in our name...... :-)
We even have a "Digital/Dye Sub" folder! :D
Many of our members do combination products/projects such as the sublimated plates on placques.... Right Harvey?
From: Harvey only (HARVEY-ONLY) [#24]
20 Mar 2007
To: UncleSteve [#23] 20 Mar 2007
Engraving Etc.
From: Stunt Engraver (DGL) [#25]
20 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#20] 20 Mar 2007
Patti,
This is primarily an engraving site, but the reason I named it "Engraving Etc." was to encompass all the processes currently being used in today's modern awards and engraving establishments, which are included in the long list of folders you see, on the left-hand side of your screen.
One of those folders is pertaing to dye sublimation and other forms of digital imagining.
If you think a person with over seven years experience in that field and a person who has performed an ARA presentation on "Sublimation Equipment and Supplies" could be of any use, I'd be happy to answer your questions. :-)
Edit: Oops! I should have read all the posts, in this thread, before making mine. :B
EDITED: 20 Mar 2007 by DGL
From: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#26]
20 Mar 2007
To: Stunt Engraver (DGL) [#25] 21 Mar 2007
I have to tell you I have looked for a forum like this for engraving for quite some time now and when I seen engraving on the left ....I never continued to scroll down..... Duh? Ha!
Wow... you guys truly cover it all. I think you probably are qualified
(ha ha) to talk about sublimation and I do have questions. I will go to the sublimation folder though...
See you there!
From: LaZerDude (C_BURKE) [#27]
20 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#18] 20 Mar 2007
Patti,
That is good, but again, I would state that as a relative newbie myself, (three years) I seriously regret NOT buying a more powerful laser......I like to think of it as buying a little more tool than you need, and growing into it, as opposed to buying less tool now, then realizing that "if" you had a little more power, you could do this, or you could do that.
You are on the right track and you will be AMAZED once you get started at what you can do.....
just my two cents...want change?
From: Engravin' Dave (DATAKES) [#28]
20 Mar 2007
To: LaZerDude (C_BURKE) [#27] 20 Mar 2007
Chuck,
I would agree with that. I've worked my way through a couple of 30-watt machines over the past years and will be looking at a 40-50 watt the next go-around, which is coming sooner than later. The main reason for more speed is it will allow me to cut 1/4" acrylic faster and with a cleaner edge.
From: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#29]
20 Mar 2007
To: LaZerDude (C_BURKE) [#27] 20 Mar 2007
From: LaZerDude (C_BURKE) [#30]
20 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#29] 20 Mar 2007
Patti
Patti,
Thank you for your kind words, however my advice is worth exactly what you paid for it. ( insert laugh here).
That is just the lesson that *I* learned based on my experience....so it is something for you to only take into consideration as you work toward your decision.
Regardless, we will all be here for you as you grow.......good luck and keep us posted.....so to speak ;-)
From: Randy (RANDALL) [#31]
21 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#1] 21 Mar 2007
Patti,
I am the territory manager for Gravograph in Southern California and new to this forum. And yes "I am a salesman. That being said I will offer you my opinion. I have worked with the Embroider Me franchise and adding engraving to their business has been huge interest. When and if you decide to purchase either a rotary engraving machine or a laser engraver put as much emphasis on the person you are buying from as you do on the machine you are purchasing. You need to know you will have support after the sale. There are no machines that magically do something different then others. Kick the tires check the engine and buy from someone you feel will be there for you if you have a problem.
Randy
From: Dave Jones (DAVERJ) [#32]
21 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#18] 21 Mar 2007
OK, 14,000 pieces would be a serious sized order. When you said "ornaments" I was imagining him trying to sell bags of them to local retail stores.
For that size order I personally would probably not cut them with the laser. I would either farm the whole thing out, or I would buy the wood already cut into circles. Their are sources for buying wood circles in that size.
The hole in most ornaments for hanging them can be drilled in a drill press, doing several at a time in a little fixture you make, or those could be cut on the laser at the same time you engrave. Using pre-cut circles would save a fair amount of time making the ornaments, and the edges would be clean instead of brown from lasering.
It also speeds up the whole process because you would make a pair of fixtures to fit in the laser to hold the circles. One that is holding the ones currently being lasered, and the other one is being unloaded and reloaded for the next batch. Plus the fixture can utilize the entire bed of the laser, while most thin woods come in sheet widths that only partially fill the bed (ie: 6" or 8" wide sheets) unless you use thin plywood, which usually costs more.
On the other hand, depending on the look you are after, you may want to clear coat the wood first, and that is easier to do with sheets than loose circles.
Lots of choices and trade-offs.
From: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#33]
21 Mar 2007
To: Dave Jones (DAVERJ) [#32] 22 Mar 2007
Dave,
I am sorry you lost me when you said " a pair of fixtures"? Is that something already made or is the some 'jig" that is created to hold the circles? I am new to this engraving - sorry.
From: Harvey only (HARVEY-ONLY) [#34]
21 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#33] 21 Mar 2007
Basically you set up the job with cutouts for the circles, then put the message properly inside the circles.
You then cut out a sheet of something thin, like 1/8 plywood. (Circles only.) Back this with maple plywood to prevent it from warping and also giving a back to the jig.
You then put your circular pieces in the holes and send out only the engraving part of the layout. (Be sure to save a copy or the cutout file to use as a template for later runs.)
From: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#35]
21 Mar 2007
To: Harvey only (HARVEY-ONLY) [#34] 21 Mar 2007
From: Larry B (PALMETTO) [#36]
21 Mar 2007
To: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#18] 21 Mar 2007
Patti:
I'm a newbie here, but I just went through the purchasing experience. I chose an Epilog EXT 24x36 40 watt. This kind of flys in the face of the folks that advocate more power and less space, but I too have a tendency to overkill. I chose this route because the laser can be upgraded for more power down the road but you can't make that table any bigger. Their's no fix for that except a different machine. I am like you, as I don't know exactly where I may end up with this investment (and it is a serious one) but I know where I have been. I own CNC router and a 16x24 large format Vision rotary machine. I make signage for multifamily developments and door i.d. plates are one of the items I make. I used to make them with rotary and to me it is a slow messy process. With the bigger table I can run a whole building plus some at one time..36 plates and at $8.00 a plate thats $288.00 per run. That can be done in a fraction of the time it takes to do in rotary. I can't report the times to you yet, because we just got the machine today, but I will.
I also chose Epilog for their service reputation. That was probably number 1 on my hit parade for buying from them. The distributor also is local to me and is a very experienced guy with a good rep. That's important to anyone buying high tech machines. Good luck with your decision! :-)
From: Patti (ENGRAVINGHELP) [#37]
21 Mar 2007
To: Larry B (PALMETTO) [#36] 23 Mar 2007
Larry,
Thank you for your response. I am glad I am not the only one that thinks "overkill". I am happy to hear there are more of you out there. You are right, I have some vision where I will be in the future...but I don't want to have boundries. (when my machine can't handle a job). I am glad you mentioned you have a rotary because I struggled for a while with rotary vs. laser. Congratulations on your purchase and I wish you all the luck and happiness in the future. Looking forward to hearing how you and your machine are getting alone.
From: Rodney Gold (RODNEY_GOLD) [#38]
21 Mar 2007
To: ALL
Overkill is a very poor business model , you are paying a huge amount of money that could better be served elsewhere to enable you to do a VERY small percentage of jobs. Table size too is a double edged sword as there are lots of issues related to big tables such as power drops , alignment issues and so on. We have 3 machines with 980mm x 510mm beds and hardly EVER use the full bed size for production cos the power across the whole bed varies. NO flying optic laser can give you the assurance that power is constant EVERYWHERE on the table , so using the full bed is always a compromise of sorts to do multiple jobs over the whole bed.
One does not buy a 9 seater 500HP suv just in case you need to haul a trailer and fit a whole soccer team inside and get to 150 mph when that is NOT what you do normally.
I do a huge range of jobs on my lasers and have been at it for over 6 yrs and can count on my fingers the times I have had to refuse a customer cos I either dont have enough power or size.
25-40w is more than adequate and a bed size of 700mm x 450mm is also perfectly ok. When you get to a situation where this is not adequate , then look for a real production type laser such as a 150w kern laser or a big 250w beam dynamics machine or something like that.
I will repeat , If you intend to go into production woodwork , a laser is a very poor tool.
EDITED: 21 Mar 2007 by RODNEY_GOLD
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