Practical Usage Notes about the Boss Lasers

1. Consider 1/8th inch Birch for prototyping your designs; a 5 foot square block is about $14.

2. The kHz repetition rate range of the lasers are 4 to 150. Use the smaller rep rates for smooth edges and the high rep rates for cutting.

3. Output Direct setting is the only time that the min and max values being different matters. Otherwise the laser only cares about the maximum value for  power objectives

4. Frequent and heavy duty users can consider buying their own lens kit.

5. Purposely de-focusing the laser by moving it by one or 2 mm away from the autofocus can create wider/bolder lines for artistic expression.

6. Orient the wood grain perpendicular to the X-Swing direction for best results.

7. High density polyethylene (HDPE) tends to melt.

8. After engraving wood with the laser, you can clear coat it for preservation but do not use any liquid wood stains.

9. After working with plastic substrates, keep the laser lid closed after job completion to allow the fumes to be fully evacuated.

10. The 4 inch focal length laser is generally better at making clean cut throughs, especially for thicker materials. The schematic below shows a somewhat exaggerated view for how the 2 inch focal length is somewhat trickier to autofocus for cutting purposes.