Using the Epilog Legend 36EXT Laser
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Parts made in our laser
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Specifications
• Maximum Engraving Area:
900 X 600 mm
• Maximum Material Thickness: 300 mm (350mm)
• Effect:
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60W CO2 laser
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Materials
Engrave:
Wood, Acrylic, Glass, Plastic Coated Metal, Anodized
Aluminum, Ceramic, Delrin, Leather, Marble, Granite,
Matte Board, Melamine, Paper, Pressboard, Rubber,
Wood Veneer, Fiberglass, Circuit Boards, Stainless
Steel, Painted Metal, Cork, Corian, Cloth, Mylar, Tile
Cut:
Wood, Acrylic, Plastic, Delrin, Cloth, Leather, Matte
Board, Paper, Mylar, Pressboard, Rubber, Wood
Veneer, Fiberglass, Cork, Melamine, Corian
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Cutting of non-metals
• Melt shearing
– Thermoplastics: (Nylon, Polystyrene, …)
• Vaporization
– Acrylic: BEST CHOICE, perfect cut edges
– Polyacetal (large volumes of gaseous formaldehyde)
• Chemical degradation
– Thermoset polymers, cellulosic material, rubber,
epoxy resins
• Cellulosic material: 2000 °C
– PVC: Dangerous !! Highly toxic HCl fumes
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Laser process
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Cutting wood or other grained material
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Lowering the table before focusing
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Auto Focus
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The Printer Preferences window
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Table of line weight that will Raster engrave at a given resolution
Line Weight less or equal than (mm)
Resolution (dpi)
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75
150
200
300
400
600
1200
0.1
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
0.125
No
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
0.150
No
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
0.175
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
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Table of line weight that will Vector Cut at a given resolution
Line Weight less or equal than (mm)
Resolution (dpi)
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75
150
200
300
400
600
1200
0.1
No
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
0.125
No
No
No
Yes
No
No
No
0.150
No
No
No
Yes
No
No
No
0.175
No
No
Yes
No
No
No
No
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Summary
• Use always 600dpi
• Use line weight 0.025mm to cut
• Use line weight greater than
0.175mm to engrave
• Or if you are doing something very special consult the tables …
• Note: Check for hidden lines
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Raster engraving
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Piece size
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Top-down and bottom-up engraving
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Center Engraving
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Center Engraving
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Image Dithering
Clipart Modes: Standard, Brighten and Low Res
Photograph Modes: Floyd Steinberg, Jarvis and Stucki
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Image Dithering
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Vector Cut Settings
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Creating a Perforation using low Frequency
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Advanced Properties
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3D mode
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Stamp Settings
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Color Mapping
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Multiple passes
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The Operator Panel
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Air assist
Cone style air assist
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Lifting the table
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The Rotary Option
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Leveling the surface
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Pin Table
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Advanced Combined Work
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Safety Rules
• NEVER let the laser system operate if it will be unattended.
• KEEP the area around the machine clean and free of clutter,
combustible materials, explosives, or volatile solvents such
as acetone, alcohol, or gasoline.
• ALWAYS keep a properly maintained and inspected fire
extinguisher on hand.
• ALWAYS use air assist when vector cutting.
• BE CAREFUL! when vector cutting. Many materials have the
potential to burst suddenly into flames – even materials that
may be very familiar to the user. Always monitor the machine
when it is operating.
• KEEP YOUR LASER SYSTEM CLEAN – A build up of cutting
and engraving reside and debris is dangerous and can create
a fire hazard in its own right. Keep your laser system clean
and free of debris. Regularly remove the vector grid to clean
any small pieces that have fallen through the grid.
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Acrylic - Tips & Tricks
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•
•
•
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In principle it is very easy to cut acrylic. Generally speaking, the maximum laser output is set and
the speed is adjusted so that the material is cut through. High-quality cutting results, however, can
only be achieved with carefully selected parameters. At slow speeds, the cut edges achieved are
rather more polished. However, if cutting is too slow, the resulting cut is wide and extends
outwards towards the bottom. However, this also depends on the point of focus and the focal
length used. Use a focal length of 2.5 inch for thicknesses between 3 and 8 mm, for thicker
materials the focal length set should be 5 inch. The focus should not lie on the surface but
approximately a third of the way inside the material. Striation increases with speeds that are too
high. The gas flow should be set as low as possible to achieve the best possible quality. However,
a higher gas flow allows faster cutting speeds.
The acrylic used is also very important. Acrylic may be cast or extruded. Cast acrylic is excellently
suited to laser cutting. With extruded acrylic, the cut edges become milky after cutting due to the
stresses released. It is also important to achieve clean adjustment of the beam since the cut
edges are not vertical if there is any astigmatism and exhibit different angles depending on the
direction of displacement. Therefore, the selection of a laser source with good beam quality is
particularly crucial.
Also, it is particularly important to prevent reflections of the laser beam as far as possible since
they cause visible unevenness in the cut edges. For this reason, the material may not lie
completely flat on the processing surface. Use a special cutting table for this purpose. As a result
the beam will barely be reflected and you will get clean-cut edges.
It is also important to remove the protective film prior to processing.
Caution: Never operate the laser without supervision as acrylic tends to burn and create flames!
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