A DIY air assisted cutting nozzle for CO2.

[dar303]

Ok, 10600nm might not be the most popular wavelength around here but I thought some of you might like a few well behaved photons even if they are invisible!

I made a quick prototype of a simple cutting nozzel using somewhat basic tools and stuff from my "scrap heap"

I have a 12,5mm ZnSe-lens with a 50mm focal point in there. It is sandwiched between two O-rings and held between the mounting plate and a recess in the round part.






Gives the lab a nice mad professor-look doesn't it?


The result on black anodized aluminium


The nozzle is made from a 30mm diameter and 45mm length of aluminium round stock.
The precision isn't that good but it works surprisingly well!
The airpump is some kind of medical kompressor that a friend gave me and it is used to keep debris and smoke of the lens when the laser is mounted vertically.

Here is a short film shot with my mobile phone:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTXSKPI-5F0


This is going on an engraver that i'm collecting parts for, only missing a linear stage and about 24h of continuous work now....


oh, the laser is a Synrad 48-1 RF excited CO2 with aprox. 14W output measured with a Scientech meter.

[ImageLight]

Wow, we just used the cut-off end of a plastic turkey baster for our air assist. The only downside was it tended to melt when the work piece
caught on fire. I like yours better!

Mark

[mliptack]

Thats awesome! Post some pictures once its all finished. There have been a few times I've tossed the idea of buying an Epilogue printer around. I also looked for DIY equivalents, but there arent too many.

In that last picture of the quality work it did, I didnt realize it was the squiggly lines, I was thinking it cut the metal in the center and the side. Then I kept reading and saw it was 14w

[swamidog]

nice, and not quite as scary looking as mine.

Ok, 10600nm might not be the most popular wavelength around here but I thought some of you might like a few well behaved photons even if they are invisible!

I made a quick prototype of a simple cutting nozzel using somewhat basic tools and stuff from my "scrap heap"

I have a 12,5mm ZnSe-lens with a 50mm focal point in there. It is sandwiched between two O-rings and held between the mounting plate and a recess in the round part.






Gives the lab a nice mad professor-look doesn't it?


The result on black anodized aluminium


The nozzle is made from a 30mm diameter and 45mm length of aluminium round stock.
The precision isn't that good but it works surprisingly well!
The airpump is some kind of medical kompressor that a friend gave me and it is used to keep debris and smoke of the lens when the laser is mounted vertically.

Here is a short film shot with my mobile phone:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTXSKPI-5F0


This is going on an engraver that i'm collecting parts for, only missing a linear stage and about 24h of continuous work now....


oh, the laser is a Synrad 48-1 RF excited CO2 with aprox. 14W output measured with a Scientech meter.

[Hemlock Mike]

The local metal shop uses a 1KW and a 1.3 kW CO2 with "gas" assist. I think it uses a mixed gas for super cuts! Neet to watch it work. The focus lens is ZnSe 5" FL.
Keep posting on this.

Mike

[dar303]

Wow, Alien @nal-probe anyone?
What synrad 48-laser do you have, it must be a bigger one since it is water cooled? Where did you get the Probe?

How does the lens adjusters work and how do you control the laser, PWM from Mach3? Many questions, i'm a nosy bastard!

nice, and not quite as scary looking as mine.