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Mike Audleman
08-04-2014, 1:49 PM
So, its clear that these seem to be universally accepted as a support bed. So...which one? What cell size? What thickness? They range from 1/8" to 3/4" cell size and anywhere from 1/2" to 2" thick.

If I understand the concept here, they need to be thick enough to allow the laser distance from back of piece to reflect off the baseplate before hitting the piece again and thus burning the back side. This would indicate a thicker is better scenario. Then there is cell size. I presume you need the cells small enough to support your smallest cut pieces. This is in opposition to the thought that larger cells means fewer laser edge hits and their subsequent burning from the reflected laser.

One ebay item (161369847641) I was looking at is 3/4 cells, 1" thick, The vendor said he usually sells 1/4" to 3/8" to people for laser beds as they offer more support.

In my situation, the comb will be supported by the aluminum baseplate so all it has to do is support the material in the realm of compression. The comb will not have to support any torsion, flex or shearing stresses.

In general its going to be supporting sheet material such as plexi, plywood and hardwoods. I will eventually be putting gun parts in this beast so at some point the bed will need to support entire handguns and rifle receivers. Right now, no gun parts yet. I am too new at this laser thing to be putting my $1200 sig handgun or my $7000 Barrett MRAD in there any time soon so right now, I am looking for sheet stock support.

So, any suggestions on a starter sheet of honeycomb? Its not like this stuff is expensive so replacing it later is ok, I just want a good starting point.

Bill George
08-04-2014, 1:52 PM
Try LightObject dot com he carries the honeycombs which are steel BTW and kind of heavy. The one I have sits on the existing laser table and came with the machine. Mine is more like 1 inch thick a little under perhaps.

Mike Audleman
08-04-2014, 2:30 PM
Looks like they do not have a 300mm x 500mm panel. And all say they are aluminum though appear to be more rigid than the ebay panels.

Bill George
08-04-2014, 9:15 PM
Looks like they do not have a 300mm x 500mm panel. And all say they are aluminum though appear to be more rigid than the ebay panels.

its Not aluminum I have the. 400x600 it's listed at 6.5 lbs. The outside frame might be aluminum. Will that size fit on your table? I think that's the size I have now. Yup just went out and measured . My cut area is something like 525 by 375 mm.

Mike Audleman
08-05-2014, 10:35 AM
its Not aluminum I have the. 400x600 it's listed at 6.5 lbs. The outside frame might be aluminum. Will that size fit on your table? I think that's the size I have now. Yup just went out and measured . My cut area is something like 525 by 375 mm.

I will put a tape measure in it tonight and confirm. Ebay listing said 500x300. If it was bigger they would have said so!

Its the space between the base plate lift screws (4, 1 in each corner). I can get a 12x24 sheet of 1/8" plywood on the bed. Just. But I can't laser to the ends of it. Math says that sheet is 304.8 x 609.6. I don't remember how much room there was front/back. Might get another 100mm, might not, but I really don't think there is another 3+ inches in there.

As for the materials...all I can do is go by whats listed on the website...


Honeycomb for 4060 CO2 laser machine

Materials: Aluminum
Frame: Yes
Weight: 6.5lb
Size (W*D*H): 463.5mm x 679.5mm x 20mm +/-2mm OR 18 1/4" x 26 3/4" x 0.8" +/- 1/16" (with frame)

Size (W*D*H): 419.5mm x 635.5mm x 20mm +/-2mm OR 16 1/2" x 25" x 0.8" +/- 1/16" (without frame)


Without removing it from the frame and then cutting notches in corners, I see no feasible way to get it in my machine. And even with the notches, I am not overly positive there is room so that it would clear pieces of the chassis.

I sent an email to the only address on their pages (for order returns) asking if they can do custom sizes and I asked what the comb is made from. Who knows if they will respond.

Bill George
08-05-2014, 11:19 AM
I can guarantee you the 600x400 honeycomb from LightObject is steel. I had one here when I ordered for my laser machine I was going to build. Its the same size as the one I have now that came with this machine and its also steel.


Its the space between the base plate lift screws (4, 1 in each corner). I can get a 12x24 sheet of 1/8" plywood on the bed. Just. But I can't laser to the ends of it. Math says that sheet is 304.8 x 609.6. I don't remember how much room there was front/back. Might get another 100mm, might not, but I really don't think there is another 3+ inches in there.

Mine measures 410 mm so you would need 105 mm or 16.2 inches total front to back.
As far as getting in the machine, doesn't your left side panel or front panel lower side open?

Kevin Gregerson
08-06-2014, 12:38 AM
The one from Rowmark is actually pretty slick in regards to laser needs. You can get it from Johnson Plastics.

Mike Audleman
08-06-2014, 11:03 AM
The one from Rowmark is actually pretty slick in regards to laser needs. You can get it from Johnson Plastics.

Got a URL to the product? I searched for Johnson Plastics and ended up at http://www.johnsonplastics.com/ then I clicked on their store link and searched there for "honeycomb". No results.

I ordered a 24x24 sheet of 1/2" cell 1" thick off ebay. This should get me started until I can find a proper comb. At least it will be better than the two aluminum C-channel things I am using now ;)


So, anyone have thoughts on the size of the cells and the why/wherefores of them?

Mike Audleman
08-08-2014, 4:47 PM
Well, the sheet from ebay arrived today. They really boxed it well. It was in a wood frame with 1/4" plywood sides and all that wrapped in cardboard. Looking forward to getting it cut to size and in the machine. Stopping by Home Depot to pick up some Krud Cleaner to clean the old bed before I put this one on top :)

Wish my LED strips from ebay had arrived too...sigh, Monday.

Kevin Gregerson
08-11-2014, 12:33 PM
Got a URL to the product? I searched for Johnson Plastics and ended up at http://www.johnsonplastics.com/ then I clicked on their store link and searched there for "honeycomb". No results.

I ordered a 24x24 sheet of 1/2" cell 1" thick off ebay. This should get me started until I can find a proper comb. At least it will be better than the two aluminum C-channel things I am using now ;)


So, anyone have thoughts on the size of the cells and the why/wherefores of them?


http://www.rackstarlasersystem.com/

It's available through Johnson Plastics. If you ask they'll give you 5 percent off.

Mike Audleman
08-11-2014, 1:20 PM
Interesting system. Not sure it would be good for what I am cutting. I had been suspending the materials on aluminum C channels. The problem was when small parts were cut, they would drop down on the baseplate and sometimes end up under an adjacent cutting and be damaged by the laser as it was cutting the next piece.

Its that reason I began searching for a fix and it seems honeycomb is the best solution. Its inexpensive, it restricts the laser to a single cell at a time, and it supports small pieces after being cut.

Thanks for the link though. It was worth the look and to know it exists. Who knows where this road is going for me, it might be worth it at some point.

Kevin Gregerson
08-11-2014, 1:46 PM
Interesting system. Not sure it would be good for what I am cutting. I had been suspending the materials on aluminum C channels. The problem was when small parts were cut, they would drop down on the baseplate and sometimes end up under an adjacent cutting and be damaged by the laser as it was cutting the next piece.

Its that reason I began searching for a fix and it seems honeycomb is the best solution. Its inexpensive, it restricts the laser to a single cell at a time, and it supports small pieces after being cut.

Thanks for the link though. It was worth the look and to know it exists. Who knows where this road is going for me, it might be worth it at some point.

The Rackstar also has a honeycomb attachment for it. literally just a drop in piece.

Mayo Pardo
08-16-2014, 4:46 AM
I just got a light diffusing grate made by Plaskolite and cut it to size using a diagonal cutter/wire cutter.
It's just a white plastic grid about half an inch thick, about 2x4 feet. The squares are maybe 5/8 inch or so.
I tried cutting some acrylic on top of this grate and it worked good. I could see the potential for acrylic sticking to it because it also melts but I didn't have problems. Cheap enough to experiment on.

Gary Hair
08-16-2014, 10:20 AM
I just got a light diffusing grate made by Plaskolite

I used those when I first bought my laser, they were cheap and worked well and I didn't mind replacing them as they were only $9.00 each. Why did I stop using them? One day I was cutting acrylic and the grid caught on fire. Fortunately I never leave the laser when I'm cutting, especially acrylic, and I caught it pretty quickly. In the 30-45 seconds it was burning it melted quite a bit and made a mess of the laser. After about an hour of cleanup you would never know it happened. My next phone call was to buy a metal grid so I'd never have to go through that again. Imagine if I hadn't caught it in less than a minute, it could have really been bad, not just the laser but my house too! A $250 metal grid has been totally worth the expense.

Mike Null
08-16-2014, 11:33 AM
I occasionally use an acrylic light grid if I absolutely can't have any marks. It works well and I have never run into any flame up. If you're going to use this grid be sure it isn't made of styrene as that burns and melts quite quickly.

I try to use just the right power/speed setting to cut through the piece but not cut the grid.