I’ve seen quite a bit of discussion about the laser module but I’ve actually been most excited about the cutting and drawing options - here’s my experience so far:
I created my design in Affinity Designer and then converted the type to curves before exporting as an SVG - this is an important step because Bambu Suite will not recognize embedded font references.
In Suite you can take a photo of the material and position the design on top of that photo. You must be physically present at the printer to start the job.
Even though this was a fairly large design, it only took about 2 minutes to cut.
Removing the excess vinyl from the backing took some time and patience. I’m not sure if the weeding tool was supposed to come with the device but I didn’t receive one. I ended up using another metal pick that might not have worked quite as well. I’m sure I’ll improve as I do this more.
I used a piece of parchment paper between the design and my iron & it seemed to adhere quite well.
Next, I ran a quick experiment cutting Cardstock. This was much easier to remove from the mat but did curl some as I peeled it off - it was easy enough to bend it the opposite way to fix this. I was happy with the accuracy in the small curves in these letters:
Drawing + Cutting (combined operations)
To test the workflow, I wanted to create a file with multiple tool changes:
As with the previous examples, I created my design in Affinity and then exported an SVG to import into Bambu Suite.
Then, I could assign an operation to each path or group of paths: draw line, draw fill or cut. Additionally, I could assign a color for the drawing portions.
You can preview the operation just like in Bambu Studio but the preview doesn’t seem to have an indication of tool changes. You can tell where a tool change will be because the you can see the toolhead home in the preview.
I like that all of these operations (and vectors) can be shared in a single file. I’m curious to learn what the @MakerWorld team have planned for posting these new types of project files.
The calibration process uses the blade - after it is completed you can swap in the pen.
I found it much easier to align and attach the pen to the fixture before placing it into the cutting module.
The process was kind of mesmerizing to watch - I used Pigma Micron pens which were a little low on ink - this led to a few lighter areas.
The process pauses automatically when there’s a tool change - including when there’s a change in ink color.
You will notice that the black ink in my example is slightly offset - this wasn’t intentional (look at the very bottom of the L). I may need to experiment with the pen changing process to prevent this.
Switching to the blade went well - I would recommend printing out the blade holder unloader because your fingers will be close to the sharp bit.
I’ll need to experiment with different pens and with the loading and unloading process but, to wrap it up, I’m a good target for this device. I have limited space but will now be able to occasionally use these new options for my projects. It won’t be the right fit for everyone but I’m excited about it!
And just because it’s related to these functions, here are a couple of examples of using the laser module to cut and mark cork and plywood. I don’t expect that I’ll use the laser often but it was easy to use didn’t make too much of a smell for these quick tests (although I was using the Smoke Purifier). It’ll be good to have the option when I need it!
A few quick updates that I’ll share here instead of posting a new topic. I worked on another small project to keep learning both the cutting and laser modules. Here’s the posted project for reference and here’s what I found:
Alignment in Bambu Suite proved to be a challenge for the aluminum cards - this may be due to the fact that they are black and blend in with the laser platform. I temporarily placed a sheet of paper under then to improve contrast for alignment and then removed the paper before processing. Here you can see a card that appeared centered in Bambu Suite before processing - I ended up solving this by having the image slightly bleed over the edge.
The brown leatherette cut flawlessly. I was also able to etch the surface using the laser and the color difference was subtle but I thought it looked quite nice:
I’m hoping that the laser grid is release soon because I think it’ll be a big help with holding materials in place. In this case, I used some magnets to hold the leatherette steady while being processed by the laser:
In Bambu Suite, I haven’t been able to figure out a way to rearrange material batches. For that reason, I’d recommend planning your batches and adding them in an order that requires minimal tool changes. For this project, I only used the cutting module once and the rest was laser - I needed to re-add the batches so that the cutting could be first and all laser processing second.
It’s nice to see that @Makers_Supply parts can be added to these projects as well - I used some small mounting stickers to secure the leatherette case.
All in all, it went well! I’m hoping to keep making some small projects to test out additional materials.
Bonus: many aerosolized particles are flammable. This includes smoke! Here’s a GIF of me getting my little fogger a bit too close to an open candle. It was just a quick flash - no harm done.
That looks amazing. Have you done anything large and square? Ive found that the fact that the camera is in the front of the machine and not the top, that I get the railroad effect when trying to place a square design onto a square object.
Did you have to stretch the top of the design? Or place the cards as close to the camera as possible? To get a more downward shot.
Yeah that sounds similar to what I saw. The only larger items I’ve complete were ones where I didn’t have to be super precise. Setting items close to the front did help.
I have tried to use the bambu heat transfer vinyl. But there seems to be a whole step missing from their instructions. After cutting, how do you get the design to the backing paper before ironing it??? It just isn’t shown or mentioned anywhere.
Excellent! Thanks for sharing your workflow!
Which pens do you use? I understand the best are Silhouette but they need an adapter to fit the plotter module?
The backing paper is already attached to the vinyl from the beginning so it shouldn’t need to be added later. On thing to check is to be sure you aren’t using the Removable Vinyl - that one doesn’t have a backing as it’s not intended for heat transfer - it just uses adhesive and also needs transfer tape.
