You can make EPIC things with this $500 LASER! Creality CR Falcon Laser 10w Test and Review

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Жыл бұрын

If you've ever wondered what you can make with a $500 laser engraver, then this is the video for you! We'll show you all of the features of the Creality CR Falcon Laser 10W laser engraver, and how it can be used to create beautiful products. After watching this video, you'll know exactly what you can do with a $500 laser engraver!
Can carve 12mm balsa wood at 100% power, speed 150mm/mins. In my test, I was cutting 13mm plywood.
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Пікірлер: 97

@ThomasWilliams-ee6li Жыл бұрын

I've worked on some industrial laser cutters for excusing complex shaped PCBs. We always perform several passes and move the z axis for each pass in order to get the optimal focal length. If not, you get high amounts of burning an a shoddy cut.

@caesardgreatest Жыл бұрын

This makes a lot of sense to me. These laser cutter have fix focal point at 3mm, so it should be 3mm to the cutting/engraving surface and it goes out of focus with the beam widening the further it goes. Cutting thicker material should have multiple pass with z axis adjusted closer to the material each time so it's about 3mm to the cutting depth (below the surface of the material) after the previous pass.

@pint_size_crawler Жыл бұрын

Love this video! I just got one from the 9 year flash sale for 40% off! Very informative video, love seeing the honey comb bed and air assist. Going to get those immediately with the money I saved!

@aaronblackford981 Жыл бұрын

Another great video Andy. Even though Andy called Anodized Aluminum “painted Aluminum.” It’s really not equal. It is a coating kinda paint ish but it actually changes the face of the aluminum structure and colors it. It adheres to the molecular parts of the changed surface. I would just think of a gold plated surface. Still not exactly the same but closer. I am quite sure Andy knew this much and more.

@radiofan2454 Жыл бұрын

I have the CR Falcon 10 Watt, and while it won't mark aluminum, it will mark some metals. For example, I have marked a variety of hand tools. To mark aluminum using a marking spray or tape should provide good results. CerMark makes a variety of products designed to mark metal, including aluminum. Brilliance Laser Inks is also working on a product to mark aluminum.

@MrEmericks Жыл бұрын

In university we had a couple of Epilog CO2 lasers. Whenever I noticed it wouldn’t cut all way through (when it probably should) that was an indicator that the lenses needed to be wiped with some alcohol (to remove soot). I’m not sure how the diode laser module is constructed but perhaps there is something similar you can do.

@scottmorris4914 Жыл бұрын

Yes, there is a Lena’s that can be cleaned. When air assist it used, it also keeps the lense clean, less cleaning

@scottmorris4914 Жыл бұрын

Great video, as always. One of the questions is, are all 10w lasers the same? Each vendor seems to identify the laser is better due to the focusing/beam shape.

@padcraftingvideosandfiles8013 Жыл бұрын

Sorry for being a little late to your channel. Focal point is an important factor, not just laser power. Lasers are so precise because they can focus the energy at just one point. But the thicker the material is, you're actually looking at multiple focal points. You can increase the energy, but the resulting power will just burn more stuff rather that having a precise cut. So, best to plan for multiple passes, each one going slightly lower in the Z axis for focus.

@TreggatTaggert Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the great overview and thanks to the folks leaving helpful suggestions as well. For the ‘expert’ advisor it would be cool to share why you’re an expert. Or are you regurgitating scary factoids you’ve collected across the internet. I’ve been curious about these and actually have one here still boxed up. It’s fairly easy to build a quick and dirty fume extraction setup that would raise and lower for use and protect the lungs and one’s close environment. Though I did see you wearing eye protection, I almost feel like the fume hood could also include some drop-down panels that would become a sort of ad-hoc enclosure as needed. My goal for a machine like this would be to inexpensively mock up cool old car parts etc. Plus my kids have all sorts of crafty type plans for it.

@jonhatton4354 Жыл бұрын

What led light do you use in your lanterns?

@babbagebrassworks4278 Жыл бұрын

Was about to go down to the workshop and try my 2.5W on some black coated aluminium business cards, so timely video to watch while drinking the morning coffee. Just did an image on a Bamboo coaster. I think it was coated as at low % the Bamboo got lighter, coating burnt off without Bamboo burning.

@monicaharvell Жыл бұрын

Do you have a file for the lantern? Would love to try it on my laser.

@turmfalcke Жыл бұрын

i have the same laser i dont have problems with marking aluminium oder stainles

@Huriye-ju9vx 7 ай бұрын

Hi! thank you for the video! May ı ask what are the speed and power you used to mark on the aluminium surface?

@davidadcock9421 Жыл бұрын

I have a Neje 3 Max with the 40640 12w optical power module, cuts 6mm MDF at 300 speed 100% power and 3 passes, clean and no charing of the wood. Focus set minus 3mm and air assist is an absolute must. I'm sure with a bit of tweaking on your part this machine will do similar. Also cuts and engraves 3/4 mm acrylic ( black and some of the darker colours, diodes will not cut clear or very light colours). Hope this helps.

@TreggatTaggert Жыл бұрын

Ah, cool info on the clear acrylic! Saves me the hassle of thumping my head about that lol

@jtsokiehobbyandadventures6666 9 ай бұрын

Do you think the 80e neje worth buying it. Is it worth buying the 4 ver 3 . Or is the 3 good with the lower price

@dr.killbot6860 Жыл бұрын

Hi Andy - have you tried this engraver with a rotary attachment? I've noticed that Creality doesn't currently offer one and was wondering if you've tried another brand with this unit. Thanks!

@scottstarck293 Жыл бұрын

Great video. This laser is definitely on my list. Would have been interesting to see a comparison of acrylic without the masking or to see the results of a multiple pass on the last test.

@mike60521x Жыл бұрын

On a 50 watt ThunderLaser, I did a test alternating with and without the mask (on top and bottom ) using a different laser varying power settings to check depth of cut - I noticed a SLIGHT ridge where the acrylic is masked vs unmasked - barely perceived by my tired old eyes but I could notice the ridge with my fingernail. I think leaving the mask on is best because you have a smaller chance of scratching the acrylic

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing!

@akudanpensil Жыл бұрын

Can i use different brand air assist such as sculfun

@patrickhenderson1964 Жыл бұрын

The thicker plywood not cutting at a slower speed is probably because of different density of the internal layers. Use a slightly higher speed with multiple passes (5 for example) and I bet it gets through.

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

I agree! Material density is the issue here. Thanks!

@HogwartsBasement 2 ай бұрын

6:00 ‘Successively’ definition: “ immediately one after another” I need to turn this off my Sheldon brain 🧠

@seangrant7745 7 ай бұрын

What setting did you use in LightBurn to get it to burn of the paint on the anodized aluminum? I tried 1pass, 5mm/s and 100% power and no luck

@ilmbutton Жыл бұрын

I have a creality 10w laser and I was able to do light engraving on both high carbon spring steel and stainless steel. I haven't tried aluminum. I was running at 2mm/s, 100% power and did 4 passes total. It wasn't real deep but it definitely etched/engraved. I was putting a symbol on a knife and bumped it, which messed up my setting up and it took 20 minutes of hand sanding to fully sand away the engraving that I messed up so I could start again.

@skeetarus 7 ай бұрын

That's what I thought, the Creality website claims this laser cutter can engrave and cut matte stainless steel.

@stoffel89 8 ай бұрын

adjustable focal point would be a huge upgrade for these hobby lasers. one where you would not need to adjust the laser head manually, must be done with software.

@Rafael_Alavez Жыл бұрын

to cut thick materials you should do multiple passes, with a diode laser I cut 3mm MDF at 220mm per minute with 2 passes

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing!

@babbagebrassworks4278 Жыл бұрын

Yep, faster feed speeds and multiple passes. Other chs have done that, the faster cuts reduce the charring too. Seen some chs go up to 8 passes. Air assist sure is needed to reduce char but don't use normal air compressor, that is too much air and cools the burning down too much.

@andrewknapik Жыл бұрын

For Cleaning of Anodized Aluminum - spray some ZEP Fast 505 or Awesome (found at the dollar stores), then hit it with a magic eraser and it will look amazing!

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Great tip!

@trekgod3 Жыл бұрын

Glad I waited for the $399 20 watt Elegoo Phecda. Also, Creality is pronounced like "reality" as in "Create your Reality" = Creality

@TommasoDiDonatophoto 7 ай бұрын

Hi mate! just came across your video, very nice... Just my .02. I just bought the laser, and I am using it to engrave my logo un the knives I produce. So.. yes, it can engrave steel. I don't know if there is a difference between aluminum and steel... but I tried carbon and stainless steels... and both can be engraved......

@joekempker6108 3 ай бұрын

Do you know what settings were used for the photo engraved on wood? I have this machine and it would take me hours

@TheElectronicDilettante Жыл бұрын

Can you hook up an inert “shielding “ gas ((Ar, N, CO2, with proper ventilation)to the air Assist? Also, can you “dish” an area of wood? I’m trying to imagine a painting pallet made of lightweight wood (balsa, etc) with dished areas around the pallet for paint. I was thinking set the depth of the laser depth at about 1/3 the thickness of the wood in the shape of an egg”ish”, then crank up the air assist with the inert shielding gas. I’m sure someone’s done this by now, if you’d point me in the right direction, I’d appreciate it. Thanks for the video. Very informative!

@IrrationalBstrd Жыл бұрын

Dude, it's cree-ality, like the word REALITY. portmanteau of create and reality, Creality.

@Dahna_ Жыл бұрын

I busted out laughing when he said “creelity” then I was like wait have I been pronouncing it wrong all this time?

@jayarcher4200 Жыл бұрын

Agree with previous. Need multiple passes.

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

I agree on denser materials I would need multiple passes. I think something less dense, like balsa wood you could do it on one pass

@ReckItRob Жыл бұрын

just a thought about the diminishing cutting depth , is the laser lens getting dirty from smoke/debris?

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Possibly

@jessewhalen9986 Жыл бұрын

Wondering if the air assist is cooling the surface too much on a slower pass to not cut as deep.

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Possibly? Not sure

@JohnColgan. Жыл бұрын

Only if air moves faster than the speed of light! Laser will reach progressively deeper levels faster than the air can blow the at point of contact

@cbcdesignsllccakesuppliesa6321 Жыл бұрын

what setting did you use for cutting the acrylic and have you tried it with clear acrylic? Thanks

@erynschulfer3729 Жыл бұрын

Wondering same 😊

@MariaGarcia-zf6bv 11 ай бұрын

Me too

@waskito3443 Жыл бұрын

11:40 you need to run everything on separate breakers.

@CNTHINGS 11 ай бұрын

Id say slowing down the laser doesn't give you a deeper cut because you've already reached the point of carbon buildup in the material. Which would also explain why you got a worse cut by slowing it down. As you cut and it burns the wood that would material turns to ash inside the cut which prevents the cut from continuing. If the cut wasn't going to be made anyway then slowing it down just creates more ash and makes the cut harder for the laser to reach the end of. Aerosys doesn't really help with this because it's not going to get all the way down into the bottom of the cut to clear the build up. That's why I even large lasers tend to make cuts in multiple passes versus trying to make it all in one pass super slow. Not only does it create less build up in the cut but it's often faster and cleaner then going as slow as possible in a single pass. Good video, i like your logo and the geometric background wall.

@blakelawson5862 Ай бұрын

I really want to do this, but I live in an apartment complex that has an attached garage unit. The issue I see is the lingering smoke or smell emminating from my open unit and there is also a fir sprinkler in my garage, any advice would be greatly appreciated!

@72mgmidget 29 күн бұрын

You need a multi-stage HEPA/carbon fume extractor to control the smoke and fumes/smells when using one of these lasers in a confined area. Costs as much or more than your laser but effectively does the job! Amazon has them, as well as lots of other suppliers

@HalfAssHomestead Жыл бұрын

Rather than using alcohol wipes, try going to the Dollar Store and picking up some LA Awesome Degreaser. This stuff is amazing.

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the tip!

@joshuadickson4862 7 ай бұрын

I know this is an old video, but based on your tests with the thicker plywood, do you think this could handle cutting 1/4" balsa decently?

@AndyBirdBuilds 7 ай бұрын

I think so

@CornerCreekWoodworking Жыл бұрын

How long did it take to cut out the lantern?

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Less than 30 minutes

@CornerCreekWoodworking Жыл бұрын

@@AndyBirdBuilds thank you

@JohnColgan. Жыл бұрын

I think trying to cut 1 pass isn't doing you any favours. Your focus point needs t change, but your focus is at top of the material never progressing through. Multiple passes in Lightburn will allow faster speed & progress to greater depths at each pass. In 1 pass you've probably found the limit of intensity of the Laser per pass at about 5mm. But inspection of the cut face might show changes in burn intensity/depth.

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the tips! Any idea why when I slowed the laser down by half, it didn't cut any deeper? I feel like going from 1mm/sec to .5/mm should have cut deeper. I know that multiple passes would solve the issue, but that still wouldn't solve the above.

@JohnColgan. Жыл бұрын

@@AndyBirdBuilds soot build up in the groove? Can't remember if you were using air blower for that carve, but it's possible overheating soot will caramelize it to chunks of carbon rather than loose soot

@mattivirta Жыл бұрын

normal 10W focus power laser can ccut 20mm wood. maximum , multipass. but 5W laser only 3-5mm

@karlriley1314 Жыл бұрын

Lower the Z by 1 or 2 mm and try it. That way the laser is focused deeper into the wood. Let me know what that did.

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Thanks!

@mcbeam85 Жыл бұрын

Did the laser run on full power? I've been told and noticed myself that the laser may deteriorate in doing so. In such case you probably can not cut through the same material at 1mm/s anymore either.

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

This was at full power. I've heard the same thing but I think its more of a gradual decline. I don't think I would see the loss of power this quickly

@mcbeam85 Жыл бұрын

@@AndyBirdBuilds For me it was rather quick. I would not generalize this. But I think its worth considering in your investigation.

@joelbrown4110 Жыл бұрын

I think your answer as to whether your laser can mark metal may be a little misleading. I believe most diode lasers can mark stainless steel to some degree. Obviously the higher the laser power and/or number of passes, the better the results.

@thanemakes5377 Жыл бұрын

Why not cut faster and multi passes? I think with air and 3mm per/sec you might get there in 2 or 3 passes

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Yes that would work. But I was testing the power of the laser and multiple passes wouldn't tell me that. My question is why when slowing the laser down didn't it cut deeper?

@mattivirta Жыл бұрын

@@AndyBirdBuilds cnc machine u can cut lot better ewery pass laser go little down and focus have better/optimal. how smallest line wide have then better laser focus have and cut better.

@babbagebrassworks4278 Жыл бұрын

@@AndyBirdBuilds Fixed focus lasers seem to have shorter cutting range, those that have a focal distance of about 50mm have longer cut range. Still pretty crazy that these cheap lasers can cut through this thickness of wood.

@glong2720 Жыл бұрын

Can't download; can't evaluate. I always watch when time and evaluate.

@Fobes 5 ай бұрын

It will mark stainless steel.

@rjakiel73 11 ай бұрын

It will 100% mark stainless steel

@AndyBirdBuilds 11 ай бұрын

Marking is different than engraving.

@100xminimum8 Жыл бұрын

ik this is a longshot, My Engraver Got burnt a while back while cutting a bunch of phone stands in wood, the wood caught on fire... Anyways I got all the parts I need besides the red Magnetic Lense/Sheild that attaches to the bottom of the laser module, I want to 3d print one but need to know the dimensions, more specifically just the height of the red shield, I can measure the laser module for the with, but cannot just guess the height because the beam needs to be focused. If anybody can measure the height of the red Sheild with a caliper and tell me how many mm it is i would appreciate it more than you could imagine!!

@thacorruptor4472 Жыл бұрын

Well your "Focal point" is at the surface, so 10+ mm deep that focal point is not even remotely working, not to mention the air, burn particulate etc. Hence why many that cut deep like this would try multiple passes or have the laser a bit closer to the surface?

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching. The focal point was set per the manufacturers recommendations. I think its pretty obvious that multiple passes would cut all the way through, but that wasn't what I was testing. Multiple passes doesn't explain why when slowing the laser down in half, it didn't cut any deeper.

@hollosaroka Жыл бұрын

@@AndyBirdBuilds I do not own an engraver and never saw one working but I am watching your videos to educate myself and set my expectations properly when buying one. Allow me to make a wild guess: I suspect the engraver has preprogrammed protection and when you lower the speed under a threshold it will automatically lower the power. How to measure the power of the laser beam? I do not know but I would use the following method to compare the power actually used with the two different settings: use a digital camera and take a picture with 1s shutter speed when the laser cuts at 1mm/s and a picture at 2s shutter speed when the laser cuts at 0.5mm/s. No light in the room. Experiment with the aperture and ISO of the camera to avoid overexposure but use the same ISO and aperture for both. Basically in both pictures, you should see the same length impression but you would expect that in the second picture, the impression is much lighter as more energy was expected to be delivered in twice as long time. If it isn't, that proves that the laser was dimmed at lower speeds. When I will have an engraver I will put my thought experiment to practice. Thank you for your videos. It is a pleasure to watch them. I like your presentation style.

@amjtech 10 ай бұрын

Ash and debris build up and inhibit your cutting. Its better to run faster and make more passes..

@alpha_pixel_ Жыл бұрын

You are wrong about metal engraving and power.. atomstack 5.5w can do engraving in metal with compressed spot technology.

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

It can mark or remove the paint from the surface of the metal, but it cannot actually engrave into the metal.

@skeetarus 7 ай бұрын

@@AndyBirdBuilds Creality seems to claim it can.

@mattivirta Жыл бұрын

you can cut wood better little more speed and not can one pass, need many pass then cutting good. mean laser need draving picture etc, round 2 time or more then cut and not burn edge lot. best have if use cnc carving machine Z axis can drop ewery pass better focus and cut better not burn wood edge lot, because ewery pass laser optimal focus have little down has burn/cut wood little more down ewery pass.

@ftl900 Жыл бұрын

$350 at Microcenter.

@tyreeyoung Жыл бұрын

Clean the lens

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Good tip! The lens was clean here. The issue was the density of woods that I was trying to cut. The manufacturer says it can cut 12mm Balsa wood in one pass

@robertbuckley4165 Жыл бұрын

This is a awful piece of kit. Arrived broken, I had to soldar the control box wires back together after they asked me to do it. This morning it blew every fuse in my house and will not work. No customer service in uk even though I bought it from the UK store. Buyers beware

@AndyBirdBuilds Жыл бұрын

Can you confirm that you purchased this exact laser? I ask because there are a lot of similar knockoffs.

@Jamvan001 Жыл бұрын

If this little thing could blow every fuse in your house, the problem lies with your house.

@mattivirta Жыл бұрын

@@Jamvan001 sure, or one soccets have too many device sametime. 230V 10A fuse can use max 1200W machine 16A fuse normal can cut 3400W or sauna stove or big motor circular saw.