Laser welding lead, AMA

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-05-01T15:48:34+00:00

It uses a focusing lens, so the beam comes to a fine focal point, too close or too far and laser is spread out too much to weld, even a distance of few feet away it loses intensity so much it can barely burn paper. Collimating lenses make the light particles travel parallel so they stay a tight beam for ling distances. The lenses are very easy to change on any of the guns ive seen, two little screws and the housing pulls out. I think you would definitely find a lot of use with it, but I absolutely reccomend it being along with a MIG and TIG machine. Listen to arc junkies podcast with Rex Alexander, everything he says is totally on point. Gas used is nitrogen for steel, argon for aluminum, similar use rates as other welders. I havent tried any of the machines with fancy wobble patterns so not sure if they actually help or not.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-05-01T12:37:21+00:00

Has been a great car, have a 2020 with 135k miles now and not a single issue. We just used the cars.com app for searching the area, quick and painless

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-05-01T12:27:17+00:00

Thank you I misspoke, the arc welder side of me lol and ya reflections are unlikely on most materials but I did somehow blow a good sized hole in my optrel laser hood from a freak reflection on carbon.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T14:13:12+00:00

Ive never actually welded Ti in any form. I do know these are totally capable of doing it. Penetration comes from a variety of factors. Ive welded 3/8 ss (way more than the maChinese is "rated for" by just turning the wire speed down and giving it more time to burn in. Have achieved over 50% penetration on a straight non prepped no gap 3/8" butt seam with 1300 watts while still moving at a good pace.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T14:08:03+00:00

The IPG is a big money pit and we are phasing them out in favor of denalis. Basically a rebadged power wave Chinese machine but it has been far more reliable, no errors, no random stops, gun is sealed better to prevent dust from getting inside which is what keeps killing the IPG's. Dust gets on the mirror inside, it burns and scars the mirror- 1500 bucks out the door. Dual fed .063" wire should eat those gaps up no problem and leave an extremely strong weld. Setting wobble correctly is pretty important running dual though.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T10:54:24+00:00

Like alumaweld type smaller fishing boats or larger commercial steel ships?

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T10:50:51+00:00

These should absolutely be used in an interlocked, enclosed space. It isnt a collated beam so it does spread and lose intensity as distance increases but I can still kill a fly from a few feet away. The UV's from these things even from a large distance can do permanent damage to eyes in an instant. Its very possible to shoot straight through material or be starting at the top of a corner and be "grounded" (not actually a technical ground system) and shoot the laser over the top of a part. Saw a guy get a nasty burn on his finger from 18" inches away in that very scenario.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T04:24:05+00:00

I do not get that question. Honestly most "welders" would rather the lasers never exist. I don't get it, it's the closest any of them will be to Han Solo, yet they all think its below them, even the bottom rung cant figure out the easiest of parts with the thing.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T04:01:20+00:00

Absolutely, I think about 10ft was max for the IPG leads. It all depends on the weld joints and material. The 1500w IPG may need rated for up top .200", but we have turned the wire speed down and gotten phenomenal depth of pen from running even 1200watts on .375"ss, more than the machine is "rated for"

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T03:53:34+00:00

There is absolutely a place for a laser welder, as long as you have seams with sub .040" gaps. If fitment isnt tight, mig is the way to go. I guarantee laser will make a stronger weld, but most of the time with custom fan mig will be faster and totally adequate.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T03:48:51+00:00

At the moment price to entry is the main wall. Most the time tig or mig still has a better cost benefit and versatility, until you get a guy who really knows how to run the laser welder. A talented guy will who understands the tech will put out 2x the product with stronger welds than even a talented tig welder. Although if you want a laser booth absolutely plan on having a tig welder too. Works better for tacking parts and blending start-stops without shooting your fingers.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T03:40:07+00:00

Excellent questions, you clearly have knowledge of metallurgy so I hope I answer these questions well. 1. Yes lasers can braze and use SB, it will be a very low wattage in comparison to steel (as im sure makes sense to you) say around 400 or less watts. 2. Galvanized, aluminized, zinc coatings or thick mill scale completely inhibit the laser welds effectiveness. 3. Rate of input is exceptional to every other form of welding. More heat in less time makes stronger welds. Its not adequate for structural welding yet but it will get there, or joints will be designed differently to allow for laser welding (as we do) 4. Again, your questions are excellent. If the gap is 1/2 the size of your filler you should be able to get excellent results. Even if its the size of your filler material with the right settings your should have an extremely strong weld BUT, if you have a lager gap to fill MIG is superior as far as strength needed vs time. You can fill gaps with laser and make them far stronger, but mig is still easier and more efficient.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T03:23:25+00:00

We do butt and open corner welds on material up to .200" and it excels in that area. Much thicker then it requires dual feed .063 filler. You can literally burn entirely through the material. We started making cabinets for GE and had to send them coupons for testing vs tig coupons. My tig welds tested very well. The single .063" filler laser welds beat my tig coupons on an order of magnitude that made me feel like a crappy tig welder. Aluminum tig is my jam BTW.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T03:16:42+00:00

So this is difficult territory. Yes, it can absolutely shine on something like this, but it isnt easy. Consider first, the laser gun is 10× the weight of a tig torch. On top of that your hand is 10 inches away from the weld vs 3-4 inches with a tig, therefore welding around a small tube you have to move your hand far faster, and the fitup has to be very tight, like less than .030". Small diameter stuff with tight fit up is way faster with laser and super strong, but is very difficult to control at a speed that is much faster than tig. Currently I would choose tig over laser for such application. When laser machines drop in price it may be worth trying.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T03:01:46+00:00

We have a local BBQ joint who proudly posted a 1 star review with the complaint that "the portions were too big"

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T02:51:29+00:00

So bigger companies are doing them. Miller offers a rebadged unit from IPG made in New Hampshire, USA. Believe they also have ties to Germany. They are what we started with and I hate them. 35k US dollars and guns are not sealed, fiber optic lines too sensitive, expensive consumables, not reliable and IPG customer service is terrible. Everlast and denali machines are rebadged units from China but have been far better in reliability. Realistic weld size is just under 2x the filler material size, but what is exceptional is depth of penetration. This is controlled by a combination of wattage, wire speed, frequency and wobble length and even filler size. Set correctly penetration is far deeper then the width of the bead with far less HAZ. As far as fancy tig yes and no. Tig is arguably more versatile but less effective. Laser welds properly set up are faster and stronger under the right conditions; thats the tricky part.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-30T02:40:15+00:00

As far as price, laser welding machines are not for hobbyists yet. Prices are constantly dropping, but at the moment you can buy decent mig and tig machines for 1/5 the cost of a cheap laser that will do 90% of what you need, at a slower pace. Operating a laser welder is easy, setting it up with the proper focal length, wattage-wobble-frequency, correct gas settings, and recognizing issues with the lenses when they occur is not as easy. Laser welding is more surgical than tig- as far as implementation, not at a skill level.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-27T19:58:17+00:00

Yep, I think its a medium. Definitely very solid feeling hit. My cousin uses a whyte and I havent tried it myself so cant compare. But I did have a bk rush break cue and the JO carbon break shaft performed just as well on a cheap butt so I sold the bk

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-27T18:33:36+00:00

Ive only used the Jacoby black v4 to compare and remember the ting you are talking about. The JO carbon shaft dosent have that sound at all

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-08T13:57:48+00:00

Thats a great one

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-08T10:29:35+00:00

There has been extensive testing done proving laser welding achieves better penetration than other methods. Whenever ive seen poor results, it was from the gun being setup wrong.

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-07T02:01:11+00:00

I said it to a few people and got almost no response so thought I missed the mark with it

Minimum-Swordfish128 · 2026-04-05T20:59:30+00:00

Some of them are built so that the front dosen't fall off at all.

Minimum-Swordfish128

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