Cutting gears on the laser cutter

[kurtzinater813]

@matthiaswandel ever think about building or buying a 3d printer similar to a reprap or a makerbot i feel like you would be able to do a ton of cool stuff with it

[Matthiaswandel]

When's the last time you saw somebody use one of those to build something that wasnn't miniature, and was actually practically useful?

[wondersax]

Only canada would run xp in a workshop on a tiny screen ;) kidding. I love your channel! watching all the videos right now

[NaotoNekoCutie]

I heard an "eh", are you Canadian? I get bugged online about it when people hear me say that through my headset.

[ADyingFetus]

@NaotoNekoCutie He is Canadian. lol

[NaotoNekoCutie]

@ADyingFetus Nice =) Seriously though, I get so much grief when I let an "eh" slip online.

[HammerFist1970]

Mattias, are you German?

[kdc43]

A $100,000 machine to make fragile wooden gears, sorta like buying a big industial dishwasher to wash two cracked coffee cups.

[snemeis90]

Very interesting. I wondered why your camera wasn't able to capture any light while it was below the glass plane.

What wavelenght does the laser emit? It should be 1064nm, which should be visible to cameras, if I remember correct.

[muh1h1]

if i were the printer, i'd cut a "HAHA!" out of the camera ;)

[handps1]

Great Vid!

[Rtech]

Did I see a sticker Ubuntu on that Toshiba laptop? ;)

[ImmoSci]

@chaddythewoodpecker we have a similar machine in my school's technology shop - the laser is barely powerful enough to cut through 10mm plywood, and can only lightly engrave (very sloow...) aluminium plates. The steel grid underneath is perfectly fine, if a little unevenly worn at one corner! Hope this helps!

[chaddythewoodpecker]

ok but how does the laser not cut throught the metal grid that the material sits on. is it because the laser is not powerful enough or what thx

[osmanaj2002]

Awesome, How much thick it can cut?

[grandexandi]

I don't need it, I don't know how to use it, but I definitely want it.

[tetlik]

Amazing. Technological progress never ceases to surprise me. Now I want to have such "printer" :)

[Phrase]

Very cool!

[UnendingGameplay]

Santas not real stupid

[albpoolshark]

dear santa...

[Culturedropout]

That's pretty slick. It must have some kind of vector-extraction built into the software? Or does your program generate vectors in the PDF file? At my previous job, I got to operate a laser cutter that would do this about as fast to a 4x8 foot sheet of 1/4" thick steel plate. That was a fun toy...

[Matthiaswandel]

PDF files usually contain vector format.

[techwizzy]

Matthias, next step is a video with a CNC waterjet cutting metal gears!! Thumbs up guys!

[Sodabowski]

I still prefer the more expensive pressurized water cutters. No smoke at all, but not really good for wood. Oh, well.

[Kratax]

How about making a wooden V8 motor that runs with pressurized air?

[123OrioN321]

Your really look like David Herman in the film: Office Space.

[Danny77uk]

this is one of the coolest things ive ever seen

[epilotdk]

Nice. Some time ago I posted a video of my 50W laser cutting gears using your software. Look it up under my username.

[drstampfli]

Matthias, I have a 120 watt Epilog, but the extra power is not always good. I can cut thru thick wood in a single pass, but it's not pretty! I found the best way to cut precise parts is to lower the power (to 10 watts) and let the machine cut multiple passes. Tighter "kerf", less burning, and much more precision. People with lower power lasers can do the same - and it actually works better than cutting in one pass anyway. Takes longer, but the results are worth it.

[neettim]

wait is it using a laser to cut it?

[Danny77uk]

@neettim yep :)

[tzkelley]

Is it just me or does that guy look a little like William Shatner?

[Danny77uk]

@tzkelley just you :S

[tzkelley]

@Danny77uk Guess so. No offense, of course. I like Shatner.

[senorquax]

Hi Matthias,

Do you know how powerful the laser tube in this machine is?

I've been looking into getting a laser cutter to complement my CNC router, this video just talked me into it.

Thanks!

[Matthiaswandel]

30 watts. Enough for 1/8" (3 mm) wood, but not enough for 6 mm plywood.

[baloneyjazz]

@Matthiaswandel Actually, I think there's enough juice to cut the 6mm but it doesn't look as nice. I will try it with 1/4 hardboard and see how that goes.

[web4deb]

@senorquax I use a 30 watt at work...it can't cut a lot of materials. The 40 watt are worth the extra cost

[SALordBaxter]

Begs the question, could you make a laser CNC machine out of wood?

[realcelestialphoenix]

@SALordBaxter using parts cut on this CNC machine... oooh self replicating!!

[TheMichaelGrace]

That's really cool. Thanks for sharing the process.

[manutube8080]

Dammmit now I want the printer, the planes and the gear program!!

[TeenWoodworker]

I had one of these at my old school, its great for thin things like this.

... We tryed some much thicker material (it didn't go well) it had an extractor but man it was SMOKEY!

I would find more use out of a CNC router myself.

[guitarherothre]

isnt that supposed to be dangerous to look at?

[baloneyjazz]

@guitarherothre The glass stops the reflected beam.

[Nhyf]

I think we are on the edge. It's only a matter of time before Mathias will build his own CNC router, to be able cut perfect gears. His perfect gear program kind of deserves it :-)

[NOLAMarathon2010]

How wide is the "kerf" of the laser? Let's assume it's 1/16" wide. If it cuts down the center of the cut line, then it removes 1/32" more material on the "keeper" side of the cut line than you want. Is this a problem? Would you consider adjusting your cut line to a position 1/32" outboard of your gear teeth so that it doesn't remove more material than your design calls for?

[Matthiaswandel]

The kerf is very narrow - maybe 0.3 mm.

[Svetty00]

It sounds kind of like a vinyl cutter. I suppose that has more to do with the motors used to position the laser than anything else.

[baloneyjazz]

@Svetty00 yeah, it has stepper motors that move the beam around.

[zazazazach]

what's wiht you and gears?

[BigDH28]

Amazing Footage! Awesome Machine!

[pavolpi]

interesting.

[attainableapex]

so... your going to make one of these right?

[Matthiaswandel]

No interest in making one.

[AndroidM1980]

@Matthiaswandel

But be honest...Your interested in buying one aren't you!!! :-)

[Mauser712]

@Matthiaswandel More likely would be a machine to move a gear blank into and out of the bandsaw. Kind of like a sewing machine buttonhole maker.

[levi799]

@attainableapex Out of wood too!!

[eried]

@levi799 hahahah in fact will be very interesting to see a cnc of wood automating the band saw of matthias

[tofu4tortoise]

I want one of those airplanes!!!

[Matthiaswandel]

You can buy one - Darcy sells them.

[tofu4tortoise]

@Matthiaswandel yes thank you i found his website from the video he has of his planes. thanks for replying, matthias!

[deezynar]

Very cool.  I mean, hot.

[slayerguitar]

Bandsaw is more fun ;)

[Serostern]

That charring around the edges contains carbon, wich actually lubricates the gear =)

[Matthiaswandel]

Not all carbon lubricates. Charcoal isn't a good lubricant.

[Serostern]

@Matthiaswandel Charcoal against charcoal - wouldnt that create quite a smooth ride?

[xXxBladeStormxXx]

@Matthiaswandel So are you gonna start using this from now on?

[timlandscheidt]

One of those machines that I wouldn't know what to use it for, but I still want it :-).

[stickerer14]

they should put "ama" before the "zign"

[LukeMcBrick]

God, Lasers are awesome...