ok, I looked it up while I was waiting and it looks like operating temp is up to 257f. With no load it is getting to around 244f with out a fan. With a fan it is holding at around 130f.
A cooling fan is optional but a good idea. The laser when in operation will not run as hot. What voltage power supply are you using? What do you have the output voltage set to on LD+
Ok, have you wired your m140 yet? What you should do is put a multimeter on LD+ LD- and give the m03 comand. You can then adjust your voltage to 7.2vdc Next you wire your M140 and adjust its power level using the current adjust. In your case you have no worry because your diode can handle anything the driver puts out. GLASSES PLEASE
Laser will come once I make all my mistakes. Speaking of mistakes. I figures out why I was having temp issues. I had my stepper driver in backwards. I am lucky I ordered a batch of them or else I would not be happy right now.
Ahhhh I figured something was up because with no load you should not see temps that high and hence why I asked if the diode was connected.
Ok I have slapped a care package together with 2 blue stepsticks, 2 x 12vdc fans, stand offs with screws/nuts and your custom plates. I have a biz day tomorrow so it will go out tue's
Wow, that is one heck of a care package. I am still sourcing a few parts that I want to have before I put it all together so I am sure it will get here before the rest of the parts do.
LD2X has sold out on Openbuilds A new version the LDX2 will be made in a lot of ten with the following changes. Relay is powered by 5v regulator rather then the arduino A 5v pin rail added along side of the negative pin rail A manual laser on/off pin-out for a momentary switch beside the reset pin-out Everything else is the same, board size stays the same and it is still single sided for easy DIY
The new LD2X is ready for production. I will be ordering a batch from an online fab company to save me time. This is what it will look like pending what PCB the fabricator uses The board is a little smaller Has 3 amp relay Increased amp output to 1.25-1.35 Manual laser control 5v rail output from regulator RX TX pinout Power indication led
@Robert Hummel : I'm idly debating the relative merits of laser cutters and CNC mills at the minute with a general intent to build one or both, probably sometime in the next year (just ask Mark about my timescales, lol). I'm more interested right now in cutting rather than etching (since etching is just really fast cutting), but more specifically cutting materials with depth. Let's say for example, 1/2" ply, or maybe styrene. Or 1/4" ply if you think 1/2" is overkill for a diode laser. Now, this LD2X/Nano/4988 setup seems pretty much plug-and-play by open source standards, which is awesome. But like many others, it's just X-Y- which of course is an issue when it comes to laser focusing through the Z axis to continue cutting downward. Since I prefer the idea of a laser diode head (that could theoretically be replaced at will with a brushless spindle like in your other build), I'm currently thinking a 2W 445nm M140 diode (unless you think, say, a 5W at a longer wavelength would be better in some way) over a CO2 tube and having to mess about with mirrors. But... I'm not sure how this hardware assembly could hold the focus throughout the material to be cut. Whether that's moving the laser assembly vertically, rotating the collimation assembly on a thread, or whatever. It seems to me that this repetition-at-various-Z-values should be a function of the driver board rather than the G-code from Inkscape, right? But there must be a way to do it other than continually running the same code whilst manually moving Z between runs. Back to the overarching laser-vs-CNC; I'm also assuming a 2W diode isn't going to cut any noticable depth of metal regardless of the pre-treatment for absorption? Your beautiful mill work is part of the reason I want that capability, but I'm also not sure how often I'd use it. I imagine a laser cutter would be more useful day-to-day, at least initially. Then again, with a DIY spindle and a Z-axis, I may not have to choose. Who knows!
