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A potential business opportunity has presented itself (making lots of customised wooden medals for sporting events).. there is likely to be lots of other orders off the back of it too.
Slight problem is that i dont have a laser engraver...
Anyone able to recommend me a machine.. budget would ideally be about £2.5k to kick it off
I would join some laser FB groups/forums and ask there, things may have moved on a bit in the last few years! The go-to entry machine used to be a K40 but I see there are machines from Creality etc now. You might even get a 2nd hand big-ish Chinese machine for that kind of money.
Air-cooled US or euro machines are obviously way better but you won’t get one for that budget, even 2nd hand. I paid £5k for a refurbished ULS machine some years back!
maybe try outsourcing for a bit to see if there really is a market? Are you talking about riding/running events etc? I’d feel [i]extremely[/i] short changed with a wooden laser cut medal vs a metal/enamel one!!
These machines are relatively cheap & it’s a massively oversaturated market tbh.
NOt sure if the business model will stackup. Go to most craft fairs and you will find someone who cuts wood into shapes and lasers a pretty pattern onto it then charges a tenner. I considered it a year or so back but basic engravers are so cheap that anyone can get one and laser cutters are becoming affordable for hobbyists.
There is an Epilog Helix on EBay for £3k. We have run Epilog for many years. They are very reliable. 40w would be good for your needs. The uk distributor will know that machine and they will give you an appraisal if you ask. It’s the laser source that is important. If it’s worn out £2.5k. CSI based in Clevedon.
We have capacity on one of ours at the moment, pm if you want to discuss, can also make recommendations of you're just wanting to buy your own.
Haha, three people already with capacity to do this for the op. !🤣
Gravograph was what we had at work, 3000 IIRC.
That had a roughly 1200 x 400 bed, dust extractor (do not underestimate the need for this) and z axis auto levelling amongst others.
**** only knows what it cost but I know the engravers in town has a Gravograph and it's a toy in comparison. My only regret is never learning how to use it fully.