A Little About Laser Engraving

          So sorry for not keeping up. I've had my hands full for the past week and haven't had the time to sit and type. I've gotten myself into another venture which needed some concentration on my part. Coincidentally, I've also been working with a new customer on a few corporate awards she's looking to have me prepare for her which leads me to this topic on Laser Engraving.

          As I mentioned in a previous post, I got into laser engraving while I was busy with a pet casket business I was operating a number of years ago. Many customers were asking me for unique cremation urns for their departed pets. They were comfortable displaying them on a shelf or mantle rather than burying them in the pet cemetery. My family had a few urns holding the remains of some of our pets with a small picture of them tucked into a frame affixed to the urn. With laser engraving technology I could scan a photo onto my computer, manipulate the image in the software programs geared for the technology and engrave the image right on to the front panel of my urns. Like any graveyard headstone I also included the years of birth and death of the family pets. As an added extra, a poem or thoughtful saying was engraved on the top of the urn.


          After researching and watching a few demonstrations, I selected the Epilog CO2 laser machine. Since I didn't want to remortgage my home, I settled on a small one; the table bed was 12" x 24" with a depth of 8". A 35 watt machine was fine for what I planned to do with it. I played with it for a few weeks to see what capabilities it had which opened many doors for increasing sales with the business. By word of mouth, the business went from cremation urns to holiday ornaments, jigsaw puzzles, family heirloom gift products, plaques, corporate and personal achievement awards. We hit the craft show circuit taking orders from customers lined up at our table looking at the samples on display. We engraved on all sorts of substrates; marble, wood, painted brass, aluminum and acrylic to name a few. This thing even cut paper! Great for arts and crafts.

          To further promote the business I set up a Facebook page loaded with pictures and details to get the word out. This eventually led to a website hosted on the internet which garnered even more customers around the country. Take a look at www.woodbincreations.com. The technology has advanced with bigger and better engraving machines but to this day, I'm satisfied with the original equipment I invested in originally. I still have repeat customers calling for more items and I'm continually establishing a new customer base. I'm forever on the website revamping pages and soon I will be rotating photographs of my projects as new ideas are always coming in.

          Before researching the laser technology, I had always been interested in the world of CNC machinery which stands for Computer Numerical Control. Back then CNC machines were primarily geared for fabricating industrial parts and mechanical engraving. A lot of numbers were punched into the programs to produce the desired outcome. It's become much easier with the ever advancing software programs available to engravers. When I personally did sign making, I would break out the router and pantograph spending hours tracing templates carving words into wood. A CNC machine would cut that production time down to minutes. Laser engraving, for me, proved to be more cost effective.


          Sign making became a snap with the laser technology. Mechanical engraving was noisy and left a mess as it did it's job. Laser engraving actually burns an image, word or design into the substrate. My engraver is equipped with servo motors which run on an XY axis. When rastering an image, the machine works like a dot matrix printer moving back and forth and up and down. The outcome is crisp and clean with little residue and mess. Cutting is fast and crisp down to the most intricate of details. It's all about the computer set up. A favorite saying among engravers is "crap in, crap out." Take the time to fine tune images in the software, ensure line widths are set to accurate tolerances and there's nothing that can't be produced utilizing the technology. The only advantage mechanical engravers have over laser engraving is the ability to engrave or etch into metals. Laser engravers use a different technique called laser marking. Metals can be coated with products such as Ceremark and when run through the process, the image is permanently burned onto the metal. If you ever look at the markings on a drill bit or a tap and die set, you'll see how this process works.

          So I'll sign off here since I have some engraving to take care of now. Until next time, please visit my site at www.woodbincreations.com and take a look around at some examples I've produced with this technology. And be sure to sign my guest book and let me know what you think and even better...if you're interested in ordering anything, just leave a note and I will contact you as soon as possible to work out your details!

Unifence vs.Biesemeyer

Good Morning,

          When I arrived at work this morning I was tasked with a repair project on a table top from one of our lecture halls. The students had done a number on it since it was made of flake board and a laminate top. No easy repair could be performed so I decided to fabricate a new one instead. Nothing extraordinary, a rectangular plywood top and some laminate hanging around the shop would complete the task. Panel saw, table saw and radial arm saw was all the equipment needed. As I was ripping my plywood on our shop table saw my thoughts turned to the fence we equipped the saw with; a Biesemeyer. I then thought about my own personal table saw and the fence I opted to purchase with it; a Unifence. Two great fences for doing this kind of work. I wondered what other wood workers thought about them. Pros and cons with each, so I guess it's just a matter of preference. I have the pleasure and opportunity to work with both in the work I do.
          My preference? I like them both. They accomplish the same tasks in different ways. I found the unifence easier to adjust alignment in keeping it parallel to the blade. It can also be adjusted vertically for the materials you're ripping. The fence can be dropped flush to the table, cutting laminates with ease. It's unique feature is it's rotating face, use the tall face for ripping heavy stock, unlock it and rotate the smaller face to control cutting thin stock. You can also slide the fence back along its T-head mount towards the infeed for use of a miter gauge without fear of kickback. The only drawback to this fence, which I find no problem with, is it's reference face. In order to rip on the left side of the blade, you need to remount the extruded fence section to the right side of the T-head. All in all the Unifence is much easier to install, it's lightweight and easier to adjust.
          The Biesemeyer fence is a little heavier and less prone to deflection. It has reference faces on both sides to rip on either side of the blade with out dismantling it to adapt to this operation. Both faces can be replaced with materials in the shop should they get damaged. When unlocked, unlike the Unifence, the Biesemeyer fence does not sit parallel with the blade when adjusting the width of your cut. Once locked however, it sits parallel. The one thing I didn't like about the rail system it uses, is the constant adjustments that need to be made as the parts are always being moved and screws tend to back out leaving it sitting sloppy on the rails. Overall I still find it top quality for ripping operations.
          Whether you're in a production shop or a hobbyist at home looking for a new fence system for your saw, I would recommend looking into both of these. Quality for your money.
         

A Little About Me

  Good Morning,      
          New to the blogging community, I felt it appropriate to tell you a little about myself with some self promotion from the start. My background has a long history spanning approximately thirty five years in the trade. As a teenager I always had that urge to tinker in my parent's garage or basement. I was building and fixing bicycles, go-carts and creating hand carved wood projects in my spare time.
          In my high school years I geared myself up for a career in drafting, putting my thoughts and designs on paper with an array of pencil leads and triangles. That led to college studies in the Civil Engineering curriculum. Unfortunately pencil and paper were quickly being replaced by huge computers and CAD programs. Help wanted ads looking for draftsmen disappeared from the local newspapers. Growing frustrated sitting in classes all day and working in a delicatessen at night, I needed to get away for a while. I was interested in physically creating all those lines I put to vellum in my studies. I dropped out against my parent's wishes, but felt a break was necessary.
          Wanting to serve my country, I found a group within the United States Navy called the Seabees and researched all they did. What a gig for a twenty year old! Travel around the world applying my skills in my chosen field and getting paid for all the fun. For the next five years as a US Navy Builder I honed those skills on interior rehab projects, ground up construction, concrete and masonry work. There was nothing in the construction trades I didn't try. I even got to fire automatic rifles, grenade launchers and learned to bathe out of a combat helmet. What a life! I actually enjoyed the work, the places I travelled to and most of all the friends I acquired along the way. After five years and an honorable discharge, it was time for my next adventure.
          After working a few jobs in home improvement and commercial construction, I found myself back working for the government with the US Department of Transportation with the title of Woodcrafter. I was assigned to the Carpenter Shop at an agency's Public Works Department filled with an array of wood shop machinery. I thought this was a dream come true. A place to fine tune my wood working skills for the benefit of the agency. Presently, after twenty-six years, I'm still working for the same agency. As with any job, restlessness sets in and I started thinking about venturing into ideas of creating something I could call my own. I took on many side projects after hours to enhance my income while servicing a growing list of clientele. The money was great but it was time away from home, late hours and busy weekends. After the birth of my daughter things changed.
          While speaking with my brother's boss at a local Pet Cemetery, I was asked if I would be interested in fabricating pet caskets for their clientele. I decided to give it a go. After all, I was a Woodcrafter and basically what they needed were decorative wooden boxes with a simple interior lining. Soon the family was involved in my business! I fabricated and finished the boxes, someone else made the linings and yet another made pillows for the dearly departed. As the income increased, I started to build my shop with the equipment I needed to make working comfortable for me. Soon people were more interested in cremating their pets and we added a line of cremation urns to our product list. And it doesn't stop there...
          Still fabricating pet caskets, I now wanted to offer something unique for our new product line. I stumbled across an advertisement in one of my many wood working magazines introducing new laser engraving technology. What doors could be opened with one of these? After a quick demonstration by the sales representative, I was hooked. The possibilities were endless. Instead of the run-of-the-mill cremation urns with a small picture frame affixed to them, I was now able to scan a picture of the beloved pet into my computer and laser engrave the image right on the urn itself, complete with dates and a poem engraved on the top. I lost count of how many urns we produced for clients with this technology. Life was good. The work was enjoyable and our clients overwhelmed. It was now time to incorporate the business coming up with the fitting name WoodBin Creations, Inc.
          The laser technology led to many other ventures growing our list of satisfied customers. We displayed at craft fairs, goods such as ornaments, plaques, photo albums, scrap books and engraved knick knacks. We got into the corporate awards and recognition aspect with the engraving and have many repeat customers satisfied with what we offer. Unfortunately with the closing of the Pet Cemetery, we no longer produce the amount of pet caskets we were accustomed to making. But without that start, I might not be where I am today. I even managed to go back to school during this time, finally obtaining my Bachelor of Science Degree in Construction Management and Engineering Technology. Another milestone I wanted to achieve!
           That's my story and I'm sticking to it! Please visit my website for a look at some of the things WoodBin creates at www.woodbincreations.com. Have a great day!

Welcome

Welcome to my woodworking blog. As a career woodworker, I wish to share with you my experience in the industry on techniques utilized in the trade, tool reviews, tips and shortcuts you can use to create unique wood crafted projects.