It’s finally coming! *Squeeeel*

After years of saving and over a year of research I ordered my first laser cutter and it’s coming tomorrow. So excited.

I decided to wait till I had the money to buy it in full and I’m so glad I did. I finally decided on a Thunder Laser Nova 24. They offered a discount if you pay it in full so that took a few hundred dollars off the price. They didn’t offer to have people come in and set it up for me like Rabbit did but overall, I liked some of the features the Thunder had that the Rabbit didn’t

It was also easier to find “How to” resources for Thunder. I don’t have any technical skills or experience with laser cutters so basically, I need help with everything. It makes a big difference when you have someone show you how to do something on the same machine you’re using then if someone just gave you general directions and you have to figure out how to do those things on a machine you don’t fully understand how to use yet.

Just curious, for those who have had experience with their customer service, how are they? Everyone I talked to has been super helpful and I always hear good things about them but it’s always nice to hear firsthand experiences. Anyone had any warranty trouble or issues getting anything fixed down the road?

Hey congrats. Im curious as to what your going to make with your new laser.

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Originally Posted by Debby Heyler

After years of saving and over a year of research I ordered my first laser cutter and it’s coming tomorrow. So excited.

I decided to wait till I had the money to buy it in full and I’m so glad I did. I finally decided on a Thunder Laser Nova 24. They offered a discount if you pay it in full so that took a few hundred dollars off the price. They didn’t offer to have people come in and set it up for me like Rabbit did but overall, I liked some of the features the Thunder had that the Rabbit didn’t

It was also easier to find “How to” resources for Thunder. I don’t have any technical skills or experience with laser cutters so basically, I need help with everything. It makes a big difference when you have someone show you how to do something on the same machine you’re using then if someone just gave you general directions and you have to figure out how to do those things on a machine you don’t fully understand how to use yet.

Just curious, for those who have had experience with their customer service, how are they? Everyone I talked to has been super helpful and I always hear good things about them but it’s always nice to hear firsthand experiences. Anyone had any warranty trouble or issues getting anything fixed down the road?

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Congrats on the purchase. If I were buying that class of machine today, Thunder would definitely be at the top of my list. They have some nice features that nobody else seems to have for sure. I too have heard a lot of good about their support.

With the creation of LightBurn, which is included with Thunder machines, it's definitely changed the "Chinese" laser market. LightBurn is so much easier to use than other software, and has a lot of nice features in it which are always expanding.

I'd definitely check out the LightBurn YouTube channel. They have a lot of good videos there: https://www.youtube.com/c/LightBurnSoftware

This channel has some good info on LightBurn as well: https://www.youtube.com/c/GilPoznanski

Good luck!

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Originally Posted by Bert Kemp

Hey congrats. Im curious as to what your going to make with your new laser.

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This was a gift to me that I wanted for a long time and if I can make money with it, great. If not, then that’s ok too.

A friend of mine use to do weddings, jewelry, and craft shows. She was great with people and knew how to attract good paying customers. She wanted to get back into craft shows for a while. Covid delayed everything for a while but we finally started getting things together. I ordered my laser and then my friend passed away. We never thought we were going to start up a business and get rich but we enjoyed making stuff so why not try sell some of it? I’d still like to give shows a try in the future but for now I’m still feeing that sting thinking about the person that would have appreciated it the most isn’t around to see it anymore.

I absolutely love animals. They have a Humane Society Thrift Store near here. You can donate anything except clothes and food. They sell it in the store and all the money they make goes to the animals. I love that that’s a thing. I plan on making stuff to donate to them. So, I guess the Humane Society Thrift Store will be my first customer. They just don’t know it yet :)

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Originally Posted by Debby Heyler

This was a gift to me that I wanted for a long time and if I can make money with it, great. If not, then that’s ok too.

A friend of mine use to do weddings, jewelry, and craft shows. She was great with people and knew how to attract good paying customers. She wanted to get back into craft shows for a while. Covid delayed everything for a while but we finally started getting things together. I ordered my laser and then my friend passed away. We never thought we were going to start up a business and get rich but we enjoyed making stuff so why not try sell some of it? I’d still like to give shows a try in the future but for now I’m still feeing that sting thinking about the person that would have appreciated it the most isn’t around to see it anymore.

I absolutely love animals. They have a Humane Society Thrift Store near here. You can donate anything except clothes and food. They sell it in the store and all the money they make goes to the animals. I love that that’s a thing. I plan on making stuff to donate to them. So, I guess the Humane Society Thrift Store will be my first customer. They just don’t know it yet :)

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Sorry about your friend. I think theres a good portion of us here that do it for fun and dont care how much we lose along the way. I was selling cutting boards at a $10 profit because I like making them and on top of that I give 20% of them away.

How much do you like animals??? I have a 13 year old english bulldog with your name on her. Sure she wears a diaper and full body harness to keep it on, but she also doesn't like anyone and smells really bad.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Debby Heyler

This was a gift to me that I wanted for a long time and if I can make money with it, great. If not, then that’s ok too.

A friend of mine use to do weddings, jewelry, and craft shows. She was great with people and knew how to attract good paying customers. She wanted to get back into craft shows for a while. Covid delayed everything for a while but we finally started getting things together. I ordered my laser and then my friend passed away. We never thought we were going to start up a business and get rich but we enjoyed making stuff so why not try sell some of it? I’d still like to give shows a try in the future but for now I’m still feeing that sting thinking about the person that would have appreciated it the most isn’t around to see it anymore.

I absolutely love animals. They have a Humane Society Thrift Store near here. You can donate anything except clothes and food. They sell it in the store and all the money they make goes to the animals. I love that that’s a thing. I plan on making stuff to donate to them. So, I guess the Humane Society Thrift Store will be my first customer. They just don’t know it yet :)

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So sorry for the loss of your friend. I know you'll make her proud with the creations you make with your new laser. Your idea of creating for the Humane Society is awesome and a great cause. I have incorporated laserwork with leather work. I've designed a couple of Dog Collars in corel, then I cut the leather and engraved the collar with my laser. Then hand sew the buckle and keeper on and wa la a cool laser engrave Dog collar. Also Pet memorials are another item you could make. They have anodized dog tags in all kinds of shape that engrave beautifully.So many options that could work for you.
Hey Good luck and please keep us informed on how your doing.:)

Guess she's so busy she forgot to get back to us and let us know how the new machines going LOL

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Originally Posted by Bert Kemp

Guess she's so busy she forgot to get back to us and let us know how the new machines going LOL

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I swear I didn't forget lol
After getting it in the house and building a stand I ran out of free time. I got busy with classes but I finally have a few weeks off. Now for the fun stuff. I still need to do some work on better ventilation but at least I can use the machine now. I cut my first project out today! Whoo hoo.
I didn’t have time to make it quite like I wanted. I drew this “slightly” exaggerated doodle of my fat dachshund Buddy. I wanted the line work to be engraved and then I was planning on painting the wood but Illustrator had other plans.
I have such a love hate relationship with Illustrator. It’s like a dirtbag boyfriend you keep taking back cause you miss the good times and start to forget about how he just complicates everything whenever he’s there. I can’t believe I pay money for this level of frustration. Someday I’ll learn and by “learn” I mean learn how to use the program properly.
I ended up just cutting out a blank from some bass wood I had. Then I just printed the pic, cut it out, and used some old rubber cement to glue it on the wood. After that I hot glued some ribbon on the back to hang it up with. Certainly not the most polished project but done is better than perfect cause perfect never happens. All in all I’m happy and it’s done in time for Christmas.
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ok, so technically THIS was my first cut with the new laser. I wanted to cut it out cardboard to test it but I forgot to adjust the bed from it's starting position so it was just a tad too far away from the laser lol
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Hey not to shabby for a first project, glad your up and running. Keep us informed and don't forget we can help with all those little problems. Just ask.:)