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My first thoughts are I'm in love. I only see one video though on YouTube. Any idea on pricing? It comes in 30-50watt so I'm guessing $50,000?
The video looks pretty awesome showing a few of the finished engraving. Being able to engrave in such a large area is awesome but I wonder if there are any drawbacks.
What are your initial thoughts?
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https://www.epiloglaser.com/home/pr/g2-release.htm
Ah, Price? That'd be only one I can see. :)
The way the salesperson explained it to me is it's not much more capable than the M2... except it's a Galvo. That and the price, got me looking elsewhere.
Tim, Are there any alternatives that you're aware of? I admittedly know little about galvo fibers, but it's the engraving space that makes me think an alternative is difficult to find. I wonder how close I am to my guess on pricing. I'd love to get my hands on one, but if it's anywhere near that, it will be a while.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tim Bateson
Very, very close, but your deal will vary a bit from region to region.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jacob John
Has anyone seen these in person yet?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uZ9q9_7BuY
Saw one at the show in Dallas in March. Didn't see it running. Guy on the Epi facebook in Texarkana got one about a month ago. Doing handguns. (been lasering for a while I think, just needed more and bigger!) Roughly $66k About 11 times what my cheapie cost me! And I bet I can do 80% of what he can! Just will take me a lot longer!
Had a huge galvo some time ago 1,600mm x 1,600mm scan area but it was made up of seperate *chunks* on a moving bed to get the scan size, no real benefit when I took into account how much the thing cost me !! 4 x small 300 x 300's do just as much work between them and cost pocket change to buy in comparrison
Dave, I THINK this is what this machine does. Difference is I think it is more automated. Guy on the epi fb only shows silencers and handguns being engraved. No difference in my opinion than a 50 watt std galvo. In fact, my 20 w will do those.
A few months ago I spoke to a guy who said he could take my current fiber, which I would mount the scanhead to one of my 28 year old New Hermes XT machines, and supply me some software that would work with EZcad to accomplish the simple process of having the XT move the scanhead in 4" increments to seamlessly join engraving within the 25x19" work area (which would become a 31"x25" work area when adding in the 6" galvo work area :) ) .. And all this for around 3 boat bucks. The XT's spindle mount has an adjustable 4" vertical Z travel, which means I could hard-mount the scanhead and still be able to focus to anything up to 4" tall...
This would nearly replicate anything the $66k Epy could do, and I'm giving serious thought to the idea. However, it would actually limit its use to me because about half of my fiber jobs are objects taller than 4"... so even the $66k Epy wouldn't do me any good ;)
I think you'd need to define what it's purpose would be. Having a 24" x 24" work area might sound nice until you need to deep engrave something 24" x 24". Like everything in this industry, there are ways to do things and there are ways to do things efficiently. If you had a 24" x 24" stainless panel and needed deep engraving, you'd be better off with chemical etching. People who do metal etching for a living have lots of photos of large panels, and they are done really, really well. A galvo fiber, in my opinion, has it's place, but large panels isn't it's place.
I'd invest in a chemical etching setup or sub it out if engraving large metal pieces was my market.
Just my opinion. What's the saying? When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Same with lasers. Just because you have a fiber, doesn't mean ever piece of metal you see should be fiber lasered :)
"Just my opinion. What's the saying? When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Same with lasers. Just because you have a fiber, doesn't mean ever piece of metal you see should be fiber lasered"
Don't let my wife know that, I used it as a selling point : )
Great point. I still prefer CO2 & Cermark on most Stainless Steel projects. Very few projects pay enough for the time it takes the Fiber to produce a good black marking. The Fiber mark looks better, bit way too slow to make money on most jobs.Quote:
Originally Posted by Neville Stewart
Hey guys, we are US manufacturer of measuring equipment, so accuracy and speed and very important to us (tolerance of .005). We are currently looking at the Epilog G2 for etching parts up to a size of 18” x 18” (aluminum anodized).
Is there a cheaper alternative to the G2 that can be made to accommodate an 18" part? We have heard about regular style Galvos that can be modified to do a larger work area?
We plan to run 100 - 200 parts a day, how do these hold up to 8 hour + days, what’s the maintenance like?
Any advice and experience appreciated, thanks!
Check with Jim Earman at Jimani - they are in Southern California. They have moving X Y tables that will give you all the working area you need. They are not cheap, like Chinese lasers, but they provide support and machines that are first rate (unlike Chinese manufacturers).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul Silva