Laser Engraving Tips & Tricks – Settings, Optimization & Troubleshooting Guide

Every Component Manufacturer makes 2-3 Levels of Components. JPT, Raycus, Maxphotonics, Sino Galvo, ZBTK and BJJCZ are Manufacturers listed on their Website. Without knowing which specific Components are good quality, you will end up with the lowest quality from each Manufacturer.
And your laser seller probably make you believe that they can help you to save a few hundred $ by using cheaper parts. But they choose not to tell you that you will pay much more when the issue comes in the 1st year, especially that if they only provide 1 year warranty for the most expensive components.

OMG Laser only uses the best Quality Components from each Manufacturer. They don't use downgraded components to lower price just for competition.
3 Year Warranty and Replacement Components shipped in advance in most cases with Prepaid Return Labels for Parts return.
OMG Laser:  Genuine - Better - Responsible

Most other laser companies have a 2 year Warranty, likely you will need to removed the failed Components and ship them to China before a replacement is sent. And you will have to pay shipping fees.
Sometimes when the expensive parts got issues, you will might find out that those expensive components with fake lable on them.

Join Fiber Laser Metal Engraving - https://www.facebook.com/groups/fiberlasers

Mike Kartchner:
JPT makes 3 M7 60 Watt Laser Modules, the original M7 is the most expensive and currently a special Order Item. The EM7 is stable and has been out for about 2 Years. The E2M7 is a cheaper lower quality version of the EM7. It has taken JPT a year to sort out failure issues with each Wattage and Series of E Modules. 6 Years ago all Scan Heads were Quartz Mirrors and 10,000mm/s Motors in Billet Aluminum Housings. The norm now is Glass Mirrors with 7,000mm/s Motors in Cast Aluminum Housings. There are 3 Versions of the common BJJCJ Control Card, the original LMCV4-FIBER-M, the cheaper FBLI-B-LV4 EZCADLITE and a Generic Clone Card. Lenses are a significant factor is Beam quality and efficiency. There are 3 Power Supplies inside the Laser, 5VDC, 15VDC and 24VDC. A RF Filter, Wiring, Switches Tower and Case Manufacturing and quality are all fair game. Richard Zhang of OMG Laser builds the best in class Laser of the Chinese Manufacturers and doesn’t downgrade components.

Think of it like sandpaper.....lower frequency=lower grit, higher frequency=higher grit. The lower the frequency, the more aggressive the material removal will be. So to get depth quick, use your minimum frequency, for a light etch, use a higher frequency.

It's more complex than that, but that's the simple explanation.

Q-Pulse is how long the Laser Fires in Nano Second.  Frequency is how may times the Laser Fires in 1 Second. KHZ is 1000 Firing Cycles per Second.
There is not an unlimited amount of Power, so there are limits on what the Laser can output. Small Pulse Widths can only generate small amounts of Power. Frequency works opposite of Pulse Width in the sense that the faster the Laser Fires the less Energy it can Output. To keep from damaging the Laser Module, it self protects and limits Power when User Settings are outside of the Module Limits. It simply overrides the Setting and Outputs the maximum power available. Cutoff Frequencies are just that, the Frequencies where the Module Cutoff and reduces Output(Power)

If you use Raycus 30w...start freq at 30..if Raycus 50w..start freq at 50khz..

If 50w jpt.. start at 40khz..if 60w start at 45khz@200ns..if 80w..start at 60khz at 200ns.. if 100w start at 75khz@200ns.. if 120w start at 90khz@200ns.. if 200w start at 240khz@200ns

You can run Windows on a Mac using Parallels or BootCamp or VirtualBox.

If you have issues to install Ezcad2 driver on a new computer with win11, you need to uninstall/remove the "windows preferred driver" (USBLMCV2) with the laser on and connected. Find "Universal Serial Bus devices >> USBLMCV2 >> Uninstall device", select "Delete the driver software for this device" and click "uninstall" button. Then scan new devices in device manager. If needed, power off the laser and power it back on.

You need to uninstall one software driver first, then power off and power on the laser, scan new device in device manager, then install the other software driver.

Mike Kartchner:
MOPA = Master Oscillator Power Amplifier. The Master Oscillator controls how long the Laser Fires (Pulse Width) and how many times it Fires every Second(Frequency). As the Frequency increases (it fires more times in a second) the amount of energy it can deliver goes down. The Power Amplifier slows the loss of Power so it has a larger Frequency Range.

Joseph Haddad:
the MOPA will give you a larger frequently range (pulses per second). If just a hobby anything will probably work. MOPA will allow for fine tuning, more power will allow deeper engraving faster. Lower power will provide a cleaner end result but take longer to get to same depth. I find I use the extended frequency range of the MOPA often, especially on my stainless pews. I’m running a 60watt MOPA, it seems to be perfect for me. I found a setting I like that produces clean straight edges, nice clean matted background and minimal post processing for cleanup. Not saying that mopa is a requirement or that my settings are the best, but the frequency setting I use aren’t possible on a non-mopa.

Mopa:
Colors on SS or Ti. Has finer adjustments for Removing Coatings that are Engineered for the Wavelength, some Keyboards and Switches.

If colors on SS and Ti are your primary needs then MOPA is the way to go. Much finer heat control compare the the Raycus Modules. If deep engraving is your primary needs then Wattage is the best. Higher means faster engraving. The 50 Watt Raycus RFL-P50QB is 50-100KHZ, good for deep engraving in Metals.

JPT only makes MOPA Engraving Lasers. The 20, 30 & 50 Watt LP-E has a Fixed Pulse Width of 200ns, the 30 Watt M7 is 2-350ns and the 60 Watt M7 and above are 1-500ns.

1. Q pulse: 50 Watt LP-E has a Fixed Pulse Width of 200ns, the 60 Watt M7 is 1-500ns.
2. Frequency: 50 Watt LP-E is 1-600khz, the 60 Watt M7 is 1-4000khz.

   MOPA is an acronym for Master Oscillator Power Amplifier. It’s a Technology that adds Active Pulse Width Control. That give a more consistent Output and a broader Frequency Range. Both the JPT LP-E and the EM7 are MOPA Lasers. Broader Frequency Range gives more adjustability and heat control to engrave and mark more materials.

Cutting aluminum blanks.. 1.5mm and 3mm thickness.. if you have 50w jpt run at 40khz...raycus 50khz..60w jpt 30khz@500ns..80w jpt 40khz@500ns..100w 60khz@500ns..120w 80khz@500ns...power range 75-95%..(depending on your modules).. speed range 750-2000...lens 70-110mm..offsetting at 0.1-0.3..hatch 0.03-0.05..mode continuous until parting.

Run a bunch of depth passes, then run a cleaning pass and then black setting.

Once it's engraved, put a little oil in the engraving and it will pop the black really nicely.

No and yes. Fiber laser is mainly designed for metals. Galvo co2 laser is the right tool for wood marking. But you could try wood with fiber laser, sometime it works. 

Paint it, or put aluminum foil on it, then engrave with fiber laser.

Yes. Just buy a 50w fiber source, plug and play, nothing else.

A. 150*150mm is suitable for most applications. 
B. 70*70mm lens is helpful for deep engraving and thin metal cutting. Smaller lens is with lower focus distance which also means stronger power shooting.
C. 300*300mm lens is useful for tumblers engraving without rotary, it has deeper focus tolenrance which allows you to do around max 40-60mm width on curved surface. Also useful for big size design when needed. Bigger lens is higher focus distance which also mean weaker power shooting, also good for plastics.

Optional lenses: 100*100mm/175*175mm/220*220mm/250*250mm/400*400mm.
For similiar size lenses, for example 70*70mm and 100*100mm lens, just choose one of them, no need to buy both.

Mask the surface with black mark sharpie or just a black marker.

For cutting reflection, put tape or paint over it first.

Cutting comparison base on 120w and 80w JPT YDFLP-M-R AkA CM7 model (Laser Source by Richard Zhang of Omg laser) .. all components and parameters are identical.. difference only on lenses.. 120w on 70mm..80w on 112mm both on Opex..

2. 1st pass.. speed 2500 with wobble activated (ellipse) dia. 0.15..dist 0.1
3. 2nd pass.. speed 2000 without wobble activated.
4. Power 1st pass (cross hatch 45deg) @75%..2nd pass @40% (cross hatch -45deg)..hatch type.. unidirectional
5. offsets at 0.5mm hatches @0.03.. 45 deg angle.. auto rotates @13 deg.
6. pulsed width and frequencies on 120w 1st pass 80khz@500ns..2nd pass 90khz@200ns...on 80w 1st pass 40khz@500ns..2nd pass 60khz@200ns

(Material base on 1.5mm aluminum and brass)

120watts (70mm lens) tooks 3.5 cycles and 80watts(112mm lens) tooks 6.5 cycles (1 cycle 4 passes) with clean cutoff.

above base on aluminum and for brass just add another cycle for both module.

Save as ai8, then import to Ezcad.

Save as plt format, then import to Ezcad.

You can use software like Adobe Illustrator or Inkscape to turn a PNG into a layered vector file. Both can separate colors and create layers automatically with the ‘Image Trace’ feature.
or
Highlight the image in light burn, click copy, then click copy in place, then choose another layer for the color.

For singed, sorched, burnt edges, after a quick spray of clp and a pass with nylon brush, still have sanding and polishing to do, but the burn marks are gone instantly.
clp: generic gun cleaner "clean lube protect"

Use the settings for 1 pass, wait 1 minute, then do another pass, do that about 6 times for most sigs, I do 4-5 on the thinner areas if you can, 320s I think you can do 8 passes. So 1 minute between each pass, it will look bad when you are done,don't worry it's ok. Toss it in the sand blaster and blast it lightly 5-10 psi keep moving, doesn't take much. Pull it out and blow it off, then add a dab of oil to rejuvenate the cerakote.  
Some times it also leaves a black residue on top, not sure if an air assist would help, I'll leave that to the experts to figure out. 

30w OMG Laser , with a 200mm lens. The real truck is the waiting time and the sand blaster. 
700 speed, 40khz, 60 power, 0.08 line distance

Sand it. 
Sand and smooth. Then coat then engrave. Or engrave then coat.

Plastic brush + isopropyl alcohol leaves it super clean.

If you have gun cleaner or scrubber it works great. 

You have to finish the firearm with a corrosion protection finish. That could be just oil, annealing to bluing to cerakote. It’s all part of the gunsmithing process.

Whatever finish the customer chooses. Cerakote is popular. Small engravings, most just agree to keep it oiled.

It ended up being a driver issue. Reinstall the driver.

Laser Mark Control Errors are a Communication Error, USB Cable(External/Internal) Driver corruption or Windows Blocking the Driver. Check the External Cable at both ends first.

UV laser works the best. For Co2, use the smallest lens you have. Use a low power as the glass fractures. Use a brass brush on a drill to remove the chards.

For anyone on the fence about getting a co2 galvo you won’t regret it for doing tumblers.

Same settings for every brand and color of powder coat. Not like the fiber where sometimes you have to diddle the settings from cup to cup even if they are the same color!

1 minute start to finish and 90% of the time you don’t have any washing or clean up after!

For reference the same job on my 100w gantry is 7 minutes + clipping into the rotary and washing after with cleaner and magic eraser

60w omg co2 galvo
300mm lens
1000mms
55% power
635lpi
2x 45degree passes

Colton Backman

Laser engraving-->Tumbling with 2mm stainless steel balls-->polishing with guitar fret rubber--> Cleaning with isopropanol-->Spray coating with zapon coating for verdigris prevention.

Basically it comes down to wavelength and hertz of the laser and power. So some fiber lasers can work with wood but the average fiber laser you can’t modify the outputs enough. So co2 and diode work well with wood but not metal while fiber does well on metal and other similar material.

It allows finer heat control for different materials and affects.
When Deep Engraving Metals with a 50 Watt JPT the Frequency is 40KHZ where the output is highest. Clean Up is at 80KHZ. 50 Watt Raycus would be 50KHZ and 80KHZ.

Fiber has stopped engraving on a longer project. The mirrors still move and red laser keeps going. No errors in lightburn. But it works again after cools.

It is more like overheating, try to put a fan close to the laser box, to keep it cool, especially when you do non-stop engraving for hours.

Check the alignment of the Galvohead to the table.

If LightBurn is already set up and using a fiber laser, and you plug in a new, different fiber laser, LightBurn can't tell them apart, so it won't "detect" the new one, because it's already connected to it, thinking it's the old one.

Click 'Create Manually', not 'Find my laser', and choose JCZFiber as the device type and proceed from there.

When using the laser, run LightBurn first, choose the correct device from the drop-down list to the far right of the 'Devices' button, then power on the machine.

Right click image > trace image

Make them using STLs from sites like cults3d and thingiverse.

Try zbrush software.

ZoeDepth

Height map is usually referred to a relief terrain for GIS, depthmap is more to do with what you want on coins, but essentially they are exactly the same thing, the only real difference is that the 'heightmap' term may be one used in a geographical information system and that it may have real 'height above sea level' information.

Highmap and depthmap is literally the same. The depth is converted into a grayscale from white to Black. Call it high or depth map.

Blender

when you all are doing deep engraving on slides or frames and coins are you using air assist to help keep the area clean?

Faster cleaner better finishes. 
I do cutting with my 120 watt setup and its a must. Otherwise you are just welding swarf back to the material.
Below 30 watts it's probably not necessary and below 60 watts you might now notice that much difference.  Above 100 watts yes. 
There's a reason why industrial machines use it.

Brass requires buffing after being lasered. Use a dremel and buffing wheels. It removes the grey and brings up the brass colour. Same with silver coins. Others do use wire wool too to buff them after lasering

https://a.co/d/0yI4JiD
https://a.co/d/eejl2W6

Rustoleum flat black paint.

LightBurn requires a different driver than EZCad uses. The install is all outlined in the docs, as well as how to swap back to the EZCad driver if you need to run EZCad again. https://docs.lightburnsoftware.com/galvo/Installation.html

when you cut... having a wider kerf/more material removal can help the process. turning on wobble when cutting vectors accomplishes this.
https://docs.lightburnsoftware.com/UI/CutSettings/CutSettings-Line.html

while using line mode in layers you can manipulate the Galvo to oscillate back and forth along the path. Setting the offset and step over gives a bit wider cut which leaves a smoother finish then using a combined outline as in infill. 

30watt fiber start with 90% power, speed 150, freq 30. Wobble .05 step and a positive offset of .05

Do some sanding if you get tacky edges

For lightburn rotary you need to set your Step Per Rotation settings which is set to on the stepper motor driver..... (Ours is set to 6400)

But typically you set your split size to a multiple of your hatch line spacing.... .02mm hatch = a split size of .02mm, .04mm, .06mm ... Something like that set your hatch setting to no cross hatch and parallel to the scan direction.

You can start with 0.05mm Split size, 0 Overlap, 0.025mm Line Interval.

To minimize the visibility of misalignment, gaps, or overlaps in the splits, using a size below some visual threshold, like 0.1mm, is generally good enough.

Keep the tumbler/bottle/products parallel to the laser.

1. Change Hatch type and disable All calc, turn off Flood fill.
2. Might be Open Nodes.

• Buffing wheel, polishing rouge, then a magnetic tumbler.
• I use buffing wheel with polishing compound. You can get mirror finish.

Probably file names are too long!

You could use progressively finer sheets of sandpaper, then polishing paper to get a mirror finish on it if you don't have access to a buffing machine.

you need to place a heat sink below the subject to minimise the warpping issues..and also if you have an air assist to blow the plate surface..your speed and power need to be balanced..stainless steel was terrible at heat..better to bring up the speed rather than slow speed with full power..

You have to have an image file loaded for the 3D Sliced to come up, you can't 3D Slice a vector file.
Once you open the image layer you'll see these options.

I presently have a OMG 60W mopa and use lightburn. I just purchased a 40W Galvo CO2. Can I use the same program to run both lasers. If so how do I install the new one without disturbing the fiber one. 

Just install the new laser in light burn and name it something different than the one you already have. Then all you have to do is choose which laser you want to use for each project. Set it on a different com port. One of your lasers will be a default that will open every time lb you will just have to manually choose the secondary laser when you want to use it.

M:
Issue is with the File, it’s been corrupted. Best is to Import in the Original Artwork, FYI resizing Graphics in EZ2 changes the Line Width of the Hatch as well. You must Click Off and Ban On a hit Apply in the Side Bar to Reprogram the Hatch after resizing.

G:
Before I saw this response I ended up deleting the hatch and ungrouping the lines while in the defective file, THEN copying the artwork over to a good file and regrouping and re-hatching. Seemed to fix it. Thanks!

Press the emergency button, and restart again to try.

select "Invert"

Issue: The laser stopped working and displayed a "Busy" status in LightBurn.

Tip 1: Try a different USB cable or different computer, just in case unstable USB connection.
Tip 2: Go to control panel and shut off power saving options for USB. Haven't had the issue since I changed it years ago.
Tip 3: Unplug the internal Red Pointer to try.
Tip 4: I removed the external red light mirror, and the connection hasn't dropped any jobs since.

Looks like usb swap did the trick so far. Running like a champ now.

Plugged directly into the card.