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UberVexer posted:I've been toying with the idea of getting a small laser cutter to have in the garage for a little over a year. I really like making things out of acrylic, and my Shopbot Router is kind of aggressive when it comes to cutting small features in plastics. Our hackerspace has an older model of the 40W Hobby Laser. Full Spectrum's support has been less than stellar-- In 3 years, we've experienced 4 sets of electronics go bad (poor design on the stepper drivers, until the latest rev), a laser tube that burned out at 20% it's rated life, and a laser power supply that gave up the ghost without warning. We've also had our fair share of silly problems, like X-axis rollers that melted when cutting small circles through thick material. Except for the first two sets of electronics, we had to pay for everything out of our pocket. The machine itself is simple and easy to fix. Full Spectrum simply imports Chinese laser cutters, replaces the electronics and software, and slaps a healthy markup on the things. If the electronics in the newer models are solid, it should be a decent tool. If you're feeling adventurous, you can import your own from China at a great discount. I'm currently working with http://www.wklaser.com/ to import a 100W, 3'x4' laser. With high-end chiller, extra laser tube, and a few other options, they quoted under $7000 to ship FOB LA. I'm still working with a customs broker locally to figure out how to handle the handover in LA, and get the thing to the Midwest, taxes and import fees paid. Overall, it will be less than $10,000, door to door. Probably less than $8500.
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Apr 29, 2014 12:39
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Motronic posted:Painting is mostly prep. A sprayer adds even more prep time unless it's a vacant that's partially finished. I (mostly) agree with this: If you've got acres of empty wall with little furniture to work around, a paint sprayer is a god-send. Occupied house? Nope. I disagree about the primer bit, though. Yeah, you've got to backroll it, but that's a hell of a lot easier than rolling it out from nothing, and if you've got someone to help, it goes quick. First time I used a sprayer, two of us were able to lay down 10 gallons in under 8 hours, start to finish.
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Sep 5, 2014 03:48
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I finally broke enough stuff out of my harbor freight ratchet set to pick up a new one. I bought a set from these folks: http://www.tektontools.com/All_Tools They ended up donating a crapload of hand tools to our hackerspace, and I've yet to use one that isn't decent. This clearly isn't snap-on, but for solid, inexpensive tools a few steps above harbor freight, they're great.
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Nov 18, 2015 20:50
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TapTheForwardAssist posted:I could use some advice about what lightweight, versatile general tools I should be packing for working in rural Africa. One of these things? http://kk.org/cooltools/clamptite/
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Dec 30, 2015 00:12
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