Creating genuine inlays using a diode laser engraver.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 22 ส.ค. 2024
- First time creating genuine inlays using a 10W diode engraver. This is a real inlay. Demonstrating it can be done. It simply takes a little practice and a lot of patience. My next attempt will only be better. And better yet the third time.
I'd love to see examples of your inlays
The only question that needs to be asked is: Did you "Inlay" one piece of wood into another? And you DID! Don't pay attention to the naysayers, there is a new way to do it. Keep up the good work and don't let the comment trolls get you down! Be proud of what you do! (I bet they didn't do as well as you their first time, 😝)
I have a 10 w d1 pro. Super stoked to know I can do this!!!!
I like this, it shows what a diode laser is capable of. I think I would go for a thinner inlay though using a veneer of maybe 1mm, it should be easier to cut, and the pocket would not take so long. As long as it's below the surface it's an inlay. It probably wouldn't stand up to planing but would sand smooth quite easily. Looking forward to your collaboration with Rich (Louisiana hobby guy) and others.
The reasons I went so thick were multiple.
A few of which are:
1.) I wanted to see if I could.
And
2.) This is how some make their thin veneers. Some feel is easier to make a thick piece then slice it into thin veneers.
I like pushing the laser to try and find it's limits, (and mine). I appreciate you watching. The future is looking bright.
I've been trying these sort of inlays as well, but as another person commented, have taken to using veneer. I try to get some thicker veneer (around 1.5mm) which makes the process a lot less finicky and lowers the chances of accidentally breaking off small parts of the thinner parts of the inlay.
At least for the veneer, the trick is to really dial in on the correct offset/kerf that you need to take into account. That way you get a tighter fit, and a little less of that black line around the inlay.
Been thinking about trying this. Perfect timing for this video
You'll have to post pictures of your results. Hope this was a little helpful.
If you can do this with rosewood or ebony it's a game changer for guitar luthiers.
Fantastic job, the results look like you have been doing inlays for years. I'm going to try it myself.
Not bad. Just found your channel.
Enjoying videos
Welcome aboard!
thank you for the informative lesson.
You are welcome!
Great work and have been thinking of doing inlays. Thanks for the video and keep it up
Thanks, will do!
Very nice job!
Thank you! Cheers!
I like what i see. and by golly i am going to give it a go sometime for sure..
Start out playing with scraps. Figuring out the required kerf for your laser and the materials used may take a few tries. But you can produce some awesome inlays with a little practice.
Since usually the inlaid piece is of much less "area" than the base, it seems better to have the inlaid piece just a bit higher than the base, thereby when sanding, the inlay will remove much quicker than having to sand down the base, (to meet the inlay), that is of a larger area.... Just another one of your great videos I'm getting smarter with when my Alpha arrives next week....
In your video you talked about posting settings etc... I was expecting a link in the desc. However they were at the end as video links. Thanks for that.
Very nice! I may have to try that.
Looking good.
Nice job!
Thanks!
new to this.. are they three separate actions to get the desired depth? Programmed separately? I guess your using lightburn after me thinking about it.... wondering if it can be done in xcs as that's my current software..... looks great! Is the size of the engrave exactly the same size as the inlay? thanks for sharing your experience!
in LightBurn your design layers can have sub-layers. So yes, it was three different layers on the engrave to create the pocket. I used a bidirectional cross hatch, which is technically two layers itself. Followed that with a line only at the same power. Then a flood fill to blow away the floor of the pocket. repeat as often as needed to create the depth desired. I'm not familiar with XCS. Didn't know anything about laser or LightBurn until June this year. I wouldn't want to use anything else in the way of designing. I did increase the kerf on the inlay, but only by .0032", and it was way too tight. I won't be adding any additional kerf on my next attempt.
Thanks
Ignore the idiots. Looks like inlay to me.
I like it.
I just received my new 10 watt laser engraver / cutter last week and decided to try your settings on a piece of 3/4" pine.. I had to stop the job as the laser was cutting through the board. After some playing around, these are the setting I ended up using on my Ortur Master 3 LE... I ran two Fill passes in a row. First pass Speed 3000 / Power 100%, Bi-directional LPI: 200 and Flood Fill. Second pass Speed 3000 / Power 100% Bi-directional LPI: 200 Cross Hatch (to flatten the bottom of the engrave) and Fill shapes individually. This gave me a 3.80 mm depth. Overscanning was turned off for both passes. Time to run both passes was 5:09 minutes. The OM3 LE came with the LU2-10A laser module. I would like to hear any thoughts you may have.
P.S.
I just ran a second test on the same piece of pine. One pass only...settings: Speed 1500 / Power 100% Bi-directional LPI: 254 Flood fill Overscanning: off. Depth of engrave 3.83 mm Time: 3:30 minutes. Air Assist on for this test and the above as well. Also, the engrave for both tests was the word INLAY in Cooper Std Black Height: 0.5371
Third test on same piece of pine. One pass only...settings: Speed 750 / Power 100% Bi-directional LPI:254 Flood Fill Overscanning: Off. Depth of engrave 5.45 mm Time: 13:12 Air Assist: On. Engrave was the word LAY in Cooper Std Black Height: 1 inch
This is why tell everyone to test their laser. Settings from one laser to the next are going to vary. I wish one of my 10W lasers would cut through a piece of 3/4" pine. No way that's happening with my diodes. Check out this video where I did some more tests with inlays using my 10W Comgrow Comgo Z1.
th-cam.com/video/8hX6JkV2bQQ/w-d-xo.html
I'm working on a 15" lazy susan cut out of 1" pine with 1/8" walnut inlays. That video will be up soon.
May have missed it, but what were the settings for the cutting of the inlay piece and how many passes?
Did you have to make any allowances for the kerf??
Cheers
Ian
P.s keep up with the great videos I enjoy them
I didn't mention the cut specs because it would vary so much depending on the material used. This wood was cut with three passes @ 3mm/s & 100% pwr. But the first piece of Wenge failed to cut cleanly. Parts of it were simply too hard. That's why I should the test cut. You'll need to find the optimal cut settings for the piece you're using. The pocket technique I used could possibly work on multiple types of wood. The variable would be the number of passes required to create the desired depth. I did increase the kerk by .04 mm, or .0018 of an inch. But the next attempt I will not be increasing the kerf, it was too tight.
You did a nice job but I think it would be easier to use veneer for your inlay since it’s much thinner. Another option is to fill with epoxy. You also have a lot of color options that way. Your project looks good but I don’t think it would be practical from a time standpoint. Maybe when you get your CO2!😏
You are right.You could do it much quicker with veneers. But why I did what I did... Veneers are a little less forgiving. More expensive. I don't have any. Everyone probably has some scrap they could do this with. And I'd practice a few time with the scrap before using any veneers. But you are correct. Once you are comfortable with the technique it will be much quicker. As for epoxy, I just bought my first gallon. It's a lot of work for a little bitty project. I want to do a larger project for my first epoxy pour. As always, thanks for watching.
You mentioned multiple passes. When it started getting deep did you have to refocus by putting the focus foot IN the engraved section? Good job and I will have to give it a try.
I did not refocus the laser.
You say you fill crosshatch, then fill and line, and then ( senior moment here) the quick setting?? Sorry !
Why does the last one clean it, how come it just doesn’t burn again? Are you using full air on the last with low settings? I have a Thunder co2 so can alter the air. Great work just cant get my head around why the flood fill( look out I’m back ) cleans it, and doesn’t continue to burn????
I've been getting a lot of questions like yours. I uploading a video tomorrow that will address them. As I understand it, Flood fill will NOT work with CO2 lasers. It only works in GRBL controlled diodes. So, if you only have the CO2, this doesn't apply to you. The reason it doesn't "burn" is I'm using just enough power to clean the surface of debris.
@@HoboWithWood as I see it, you can use flood fill as I know it. I do it for coir mats , saves a lot of time. its in the advanced settings in light burn , but you'd already know that! so you can!! what your saying is just drop the power and or maybe increase the speed . thanks for your reply keep up the great work
PD
Actually, I drop power and speed when doing the line after fill and the flood fill.
I have an Atomstack 10 watt and love it. I'll have to try an inlay. Mmm just though of doing an inlay on a wood turned candle holder or something. Now that would be interesting and challenging. What software do you use?
Thanks for watching. I use LightBurn for all my design and laser engravings. And allow me to say the 1976 Celica GT was one one the coolest cars ever. And right there with it would be the 85 Celica GTS convertible. Awesome cars.
@@HoboWithWoodHa ha. Yup I've had my 76 Liftback for about 28 years now and have modified it with a 302 V8. It's pretty scary.
I think you can save a lot of time and use some exotic colors using veneers instead of 3 mm material.
You work with what you've got.
Nice work 👍
Thank you.
No kerf adjustment needed?
I didn't use kerf on this one. I'm uploading a video tonight showing more detailed information and an even more refined process I'm using to produce "Perfect" inlays. Watch for it.
What was the over size for the inlay?
Depends. Depends on your laser. Depends on your materials. You just have to test. There is no one way. Or one setting. That would be to easy. You could just burn a pocket and cut the inlay. It'll fit. But to dial it in perfect with little to no gap, you'll nee to test. Then test some more.
@HoboWithWood Thanks for reply.👍