Boss Laser

[Ishabul Haque]

Currently I am looking at the Boss Laser LS-3655 but I am debating on whether or not I should look at other options. My needs are 100W, around 36 x 48 engraving area, filtration system, water chiller and on site warranty/set up. How good is Boss' tech support and where are their parts manufactured from. I am requesting a laser cutter for a high school robotics team and would like a laser cutter that suits our needs.

[Doug Fisher]

What is your budget? Did you look at Rabbit USA, Epilog, Universal, etc.?

[Ishabul Haque]

What is your budget? Did you look at Rabbit USA, Epilog, Universal, etc.?

We don't want to go over $20,000. We looked at epilog and FSL. We were looking at Rabbit USA but not much info was giving on their website about support. Minimum needs to be 100W

[Keith Downing]

Currently I am looking at the Boss Laser LS-3655 but I am debating on whether or not I should look at other options. My needs are 100W, around 36 x 48 engraving area, filtration system, water chiller and on site warranty/set up. How good is Boss' tech support and where are their parts manufactured from. I am requesting a laser cutter for a high school robotics team and would like a laser cutter that suits our needs.

Boss support is good. Usually able to work through problems and training with you same day. Friendly/knowledgeable.

As far as on site training, you'd need to talk about options for that, travel usually isn't free.

[Bert Kemp]

Rabbit Laser has good support,great machines, and will come setup on site if your USA based, they have a warehouse in Ohio with most all spare parts in stock. Stay away from FSL

[Kev Williams]

Are you located in the US? If so then based on Bert and others with Rabbit's, that's who I'd recommend. Prices are a bit higher but the machines and service are top of their class.

[Wilbur Harris]

Yes, Rabbit Laser!

[John Blazy]

I would be curious if Boss will set up and tutor you on your laser like Rabbit will. That alone is worth a grand, in my opinion. There is no way I would self learn the basics from manuals and Youtube videos as fast as I learned when Ray personally showed me on my laser that he actually set up - from installing all mirrors and lenses to showing me the efficient way to align the mirrors. Running me through several sample cuts and engravings took maybe a half hour. I only had to call rabbit once since taking ownership about why the file didn't download into the machine (Lasercut needed to be closed, then re-opened), and they walked me though the steps over the phone.

Then aligning my bed into perfect square was a little technical, but realized how, and Carol at Rabbit confirmed my method. She even told me that they always align the lasers into square prior to shipping. That alone is why buying from Rabbit is better than ordering direct from china, or off ebay, or from a company that never uncrates the lasers and simply resells.

[Ishabul Haque]

Rabbit Laser has good support,great machines, and will come setup on site if your USA based, they have a warehouse in Ohio with most all spare parts in stock. Stay away from FSL

We are in the US, NY to be exact. About FSL, I have seen mixed reviews from it, but also most saying that their support is helpful. From what I see we get more out of our money when getting FSL compared to others. Can you shed some light as to why to avoid FSL?

[Owen Massing]

We have a Boss LS-1630 100W at our shop, and we've been very happy with it. I only had occasion to contact support once, but the person who helped me, Ashley, was great! She offered to Skype with me until the problem was resolved, though everything was resolved before that was needed.

[Bert Kemp]

several reasons one is lousy support, th machines are cheaply built Chinese, the tube is in the engraving area and not well protected. the table is not moveable, so your limited to about 3 inches in height,..or you have to remove the bottom of thr machine and block it up on something to get thicker material in. real PITA.
remember you get what you pay for.also they arn't the power they say they are their 40 watt machines are really 30 give or take and the same with their bigger machines. email them and ask the length of there tubes and if they tell you I'll be amazed most the time they say they dont know LOL and if they say what it is check rabbits website to see how long its suppose to be. I had an FSL had all kinds of problems and sold it cheap just to get rid of it and spent the extra for a decent machine.


We are in the US, NY to be exact. About FSL, I have seen mixed reviews from it, but also most saying that their support is helpful. From what I see we get more out of our money when getting FSL compared to others. Can you shed some light as to why to avoid FSL?

[Ishabul Haque]

what about after the boss warranty, after that are we supposed to fend for ourselves and fix all our problems without any assitance?

[Kev Williams]

Look at it this way: when your car is out of warrantee, and the heater starts spraying engine coolant all over your windshield, is someone at the dealership or factory going to explain to you over a phone call the procedure to fix the problem? No... your only options are to either pay a mechanic to fix it, or attempt to repair it yourself.

So yes, we are supposed to fend for ourselves after the warrantee is up.

Fortunately, that's what WE'RE here for, to help out any way we can! :D

[Doug Fisher]

Yep, or if I remember correctly, Boss offers an extended warranty if you want to pay $$$.

[Kevin B Russell]

We took delivery of a Boss 2436 100 watt machine June 30th. My partner and I had no experience with lasers, but I do have a commercial embroidery machine, for which there is no customer support locally. That being said, I was used to having to fend for myself as far as problem solving. Our machine arrived well crated and in good shape. After setting it up, we attempted to run some simple jobs, only to realize that it wouldn't cut 1/8 acrylic, regardless how hot or slow we ran it. We studied up on aiming the mirrors, and after some trial and error, we got it aimed. Im sure it was set up properly prior to shipping, but the trip across country must have not been smooth. We have had no problems with the machine since we got it set up, and we have been running it much more than we initially expected to. We are pleased with our purchase.

[Bill George]

You get what you pay for and unless you are an experienced laser person and can repair machines then stick with USA based companies with support. You see them all the time posting on here after they have purchased cheap Chinese equipment. These machines are not plug and play like a inkjet printer they require time to learn.

Rabbit laser USA may be higher priced but they support what they sell. FSL has a poor reputation from customer service issues in the past.

Do some Searching and reading on here before purchasing. Many of those questions you have posted have been asked and answered, over and over again.

[Junior hall]

All i can say about Boss Laser they are the best. Never had a problem with warranty or after warranty.. Only problem i ever had was my own fault. ( Ashley, Que, Michelle my future wife's ), Tom, even the French Man and all the other tech support people at Boss Laser are very very helpful.. The French man you got to have your dictionary out to look up words he uses he is very educated. If i new how to do face time it would be even better. I have never had a problem with Boss Laser. After my warranty was up they still help me.. With my problems with aligning my mirrors was my own fault as Boss Laser will tell you it is tedious time consuming witch i have no patience my fault. I got my mirrors aligned now after 10 months of leaving the machine as a dust collector.

I would suggest is getting with some one local and asking to learn from them or watching how they do things. As with me i am more of visual hands on instead of reading a manual or watching videos. Does not make sense to me..

I would buy another laser machine from Boss Laser machine..

All i can say is Boss Laser machines and there tech support is suburb even for a hard headed suborn person like my self with no patience. Give me a dog to train i have all the patience there is.

Yes Boss Laser does do on site tech support if memory is correct it is $1000 plus expenses

What i would suggest is a company that sells Laser machines do a step by step video on each thing the machine does step by step while engraving some thing also cutting some thing. Youtube does help a little. Yes this may be time consuming but well worth the time as to taking phone calls after phone calls for tech support help.

Boss Laser will help you every step of the way during and after your warranty has expired..

[Steven Wayne]

Considering buying a BOSS LS-3655. Curious about any other feedback on Boss..

[Bill George]

what about after the boss warranty, after that are we supposed to fend for ourselves and fix all our problems without any assitance?

Any Chinese laser you will need to either fend for yourself either in or out of warranty. Even Rabbit and you will need to pay for labor and travel time. You would be much better buying a laser with USA factory service that can come to your school and keep it running.

Why do you need a 100 Watt machine? If your teaching basics they can learn on a 30 or 40 watt model.

I taught for 12 years in a community college and I know money is tight, but even worse is getting a machine no one can service. Maybe you can, or can learn but what about the next instructor??

[Ron Philman]

You get what you pay for and unless you are an experienced laser person and can repair machines then stick with USA based companies with support. You see them all the time posting on here after they have purchased cheap Chinese equipment. These machines are not plug and play like a inkjet printer they require time to learn. FSL has a poor reputation from customer service issues in the past.

Do some Searching and reading on here before purchasing. Many of those questions you have posted have been asked and answered, over and over again.


For reasons mentioned above, my own experience, as well as other Full Spectrum reviews on SawMill - I don't recommend FS or buying direct from China.
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?200734-Full-Spectrum-Hobby-Laser-5th-Gen-review/page2&p=2082655

[Jed Lawrie]

If I've learned anything in the endless world of the internet, it's to never buy something without reading a review. BOSS seems to be pretty conscious of their image. Here's a link to a bunch of customer reviews.

https://www.trustpilot.com/review/bosslaser.com

[Matt McCoy]

For reasons mentioned above, my own experience, as well as other Full Spectrum reviews on SawMill - I don't recommend FS or buying direct from China.
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?200734-Full-Spectrum-Hobby-Laser-5th-Gen-review/page2&p=2082655
I remember that thread. Almost four years old and its OP, as well as a few others, basically state that their experience was fine. FS has grown a lot in that time and did away with the K40 (Gen 4) machine, that caused so much trouble (Hey Bert!), in favor of the Gen 5+ that you might see at Rockler as well as its Weiki Pro models. The owner finally realized his shortcomings in CS/marketing and hired talented professionals to help grow the company into a much more mature business. Some will be satisfied and some will not -- like any company or product.

That said, if the OP is still tuning in, my humble vote would be for a Rabbit USA machine intended for a high school robotics team. You'll get the support and training to hit the ground running and any issues that a robotics team encounters will likely be solved easily and make a good learning experience with motion control, lasers, optics, etc. Parts are cheap and widely available. I suspect cutting will be what the machine is used for and you will get a lot of bang for the buck. It will also be gentle on a school's tight budget. FS and Boss will likely be fine too. :)

Good luck!

[John Buskirk]

I'm in process of purchasing a Boss 2436 150 watt unit. It's a little late in the game (but not too late) to do some comparison shopping. I'm looking for a 150 watt machine in order to cut metal and thought a simple google search would retrieve hundreds of hits....I was mistaken. I'm looking for a laser that will cut metal, as previously stated, included chiller, 110v, and a 24" x 36" cutting area or similar. I would also like it to made in the USA or at least North America for support reasons. I've gone the Chinese route in the past but never again. Does anyone have a suggestion on such a machine?

[Bill George]

A 150 watt will cut metal? You just posted this? I'm in process of purchasing a Boss 2436 150 watt unit. Do some more Searching on here and elsewhere there are USA made machines.....

[Tony Lenkic]

Did someone at Boss laser tell you their machine will cut metal with 150 watt tube?
For this type of application you should look at Kern laser but cost is a major factor.

BTW, Boss laser is Chinese made machine with local US support.

[Keith Downing]

A 150 watt will cut metal? You just posted this? I'm in process of purchasing a Boss 2436 150 watt unit. Do some more Searching on here and elsewhere there are USA made machines.....

I think it is using high pressure o2 assist. I've heard others mention 150w co2 cutting metal with high pressure oxygen or nitrogen as well. Never seen it myself though.