Full Spectrum Hobby Series 20x12 CO2 Laser Cutter vs MC-Series 5'x10' Flatbed 500W Fiber Laser Metal Cutter
When comparing Full Spectrum Hobby Series 20x12 CO2 Laser Cutter vs MC-Series 5'x10' Flatbed 500W Fiber Laser Metal Cutter, the Slant community recommends Full Spectrum Hobby Series 20x12 CO2 Laser Cutter for most people. In the question“What are the best laser cutters?” Full Spectrum Hobby Series 20x12 CO2 Laser Cutter is ranked 1st while MC-Series 5'x10' Flatbed 500W Fiber Laser Metal Cutter is ranked 6th. The most important reason people chose Full Spectrum Hobby Series 20x12 CO2 Laser Cutter is:
Considering this machine's cutting power, build quality, and software, it is very complicated to find a matching laser cutter below the price point of $3500. This is a professional grade machine created for hobby applications. Multiple upgrade options are available.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Very good value for money
Considering this machine's cutting power, build quality, and software, it is very complicated to find a matching laser cutter below the price point of $3500. This is a professional grade machine created for hobby applications. Multiple upgrade options are available.
Pro Upgradable
You can upgrade this laser cutter, thanks to the multiple very useful accessories available. For example, you can get a powerful 45 W laser tube ($250), a water chiller ($600), lens upgrades ($250 a piece), or a fume extractor upgrade ($1100).
Pro Can work with a variety of materials
This laser cutter comes with a pre-installed 40W CO2 laser tube. When properly adjusted, the 40W laser beam is capable of cutting hardwood, plywood, acrylics, and leather.
Pro Well built
The body of this laser cutter is made of high-quality steel. The parts are CNC machined. Thus the construction is very solid.
Pro Versatile software
The RetinaEngrave software can receive design files from any software capable of printing (like CorelDraw, AutoCAD, Solidworks, Adobe Illustrator, PDF, MS Word, etc.).
Pro Perfect for DIY use
The power and performance of this laser cutter are balanced perfectly for domestic DIY use. It can cut practically any soft material ranging from wood to plastics, to a depth of up to 1/4". Its software and workflow are as straightforward as it can be.
Pro Safe enclosure protects users from harm
The enclosure of the laser cutter is very well designed. Once the lid is down, the operator is entirely safe. The enclosure of this machine also has plugs for a CO2 tube cooling system and a fume extractor compressor.
Pro Prevents accidental starts
This machine will not launch until the kill-switch is released. It prevents the operator from the danger of an accidental laser start. The switch is located on the front panel of the cutter.
Pro Easy to use
The graphics import process is straightforward. Just print to a 'Full Spectrum Lasers Engineering Driver' option from an image-editing software of your choice. The image then is auto-loaded into RetinaEngrave. Within the software, you can do all the pre-adjustments before producing the final cut.
Pro You can tweak the workspace
There is a chance of processing workpieces even larger than 20" x 12". You can simply remove the base plate and produce multiple continuous 20" x 12" cuts on very large and flat surfaces.
Pro Decent workspace
This laser cutter has a quite large workspace: 20" x 12", which is larger than a standard A3 paper sheet.
Pro No hassle with calibrations
The optical tools of this laser cutter are pre-adjusted. You should be able to run this laser cutter straight out of the box. However, you can still do some micro-adjustments. Additionally, the adjusting process is simple and well documented.
Pro Honeycomb base plate prevents overheating and reflections
The base plate is made from aluminum and has a honeycomb pattern, which prevents workpiece overheating and laser beam reflections.
Pro Excellent for industries
This laser cutter is an excellent professional, industrial grade machine. It was designed and built for metal mass-production purposes. It's tough and heavy and it was made to run non-stop 24/7 shifts.
Pro Can effectively cut a variety of metals
According to the specifications sheet, this machine can cut materials like carbon steel (up to 6 mm), stainless steel (up to 3 mm), galvanized plate (up to 3 mm), aluminum (up to 3 mm) and copper (up to 2 mm).
Pro Uses highly efficient fiber laser technology
Compared to the standard CO2 tube laser technology, fiber laser technology has multiple advantages. Firstly, the fiber laser machines have no moving parts or mirrors in the light-generating source, which noticeably reduces maintenance expenses. Secondly, fiber lasers have higher electrical efficiency, making the electrical bills lower. Thirdly, fiber lasers are capable of cutting very reflective metals (copper, brass, and aluminum).
Pro You can choose the machine's power that suits you best
Apart from the standard 500 W model, there are many other power options available for this product. You can choose pretty much anything between 200 W and 2 KW.
Pro No need to adjust the optics
The laser beam is channeled and amplified through a fiber optic cable. The cable is the only optical tool standing between the laser diodes and the working head. There is a lense in the working head, but it has an auto-adjust feature.
Cons
Con Low cutting depth
The maximum suggested cutting depth is only ¼".
Con Can't cut metal
The 40W laser is not powerful enough for metal cutting.
Con Expensive
This laser cutter is very expensive, costing around $130,000.
