To get an idea of marketing tactics search Glowforge laser over on the sawmill creek
.com
Three year late and millions of CI money lost ?

All smoke and mirrors and emperors new clothes

I have the 500mW version of this NEJE device, the kids bought me it! and it's a toy. It has been months since I played with it but from memory the software was limiting and whilst the laser will cut paper, burn cardboard and singe wood I wanted to remove resist from metal surfaces for etching and it failed miserably. I suspect the ability of the metal to conduct away the heat. I don't know if doubling the power to 1 watt will make a significant difference.

Andy

Useful to know.

Has anyone tried the next size up?

Neil

You could replace the hot-end on a Prusa with a small laser or even a small rotary tool for engraving, you would just need slightly different firmware and to generate the right 'flavour' g-code.

Neil

Tony,

These are the first 'useful' entry market models. Having said that they are not without problems having cut so many corners.

Do a Google on K40 laser problems

Tony,

I have one of these, had it for about 5 years now and it's worked flawlessly in a semi industrial environment.

I must admit that I use mine for engraving on stainless mainly, such as this.

Yeah, but you can turn it off!

I bought one of those Chinese blue box 50W laser Johnnies second hand for taking apart. I am a bench top explorer.

The software had some weird dongle, but sort of worked once you got the idea. The final lens had about 1/16" of gunge which I took to be glue residue from burning plywood. The aquarium pump designed to circulate cooling water soon demised and I melted one of the mirrors off the laser tube end. The fume extraction was totally ineffective. The high voltage power supply was an open PCB and looked frightfully dangerous.

However it sliced Perspex/Acryllic like there was nothing there. It just disappears where the laser light touches it. These things are God's gift to anyone wanting to cut acrylic.

I bought a new tube, a new PSU, I am choosing a new chiller pump frame and head.

Also the below workpiece table, a sort of frosted aluminium plate designed to scatter the beam. Could do with a bit of a raise lower mechanism. Maybe some of that honeycomb aluminium.

The laser head needs air blowing downwards to clear the fumes away.

I 3D printed new clamps to hold the tube. The originals were the wrong size and well packed below to raise them up. You get the picture.

If you are cutting acrylic and not pulling the fumes away, this would explain the gunged up lens. Acrylic smoke has all manner of nasty stuff and resin vapours in it. Some sort of vacuum extraction system as near as possible to the beam, exhausting outdoors, would probably relieve a lot of the gunge and would improve the quality of the air for breathing greatly. Probably an inexpensive shop vac could be adapted. Look for a quiet model if finding one.