Glass vs. Metal CO2 Laser Tubes: Which one to Choose?

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Glass vs. Metal CO2 Laser Tubes Which one to
Choose?
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When looking to buy a CO2 laser machine, it is
important to consider a number of primary
attributes. One of the primary attributes that
bifurcate the type of laser tube which machine
uses is its laser source. There are major two
options including water-cooled glass tubes and
air-cooled metal tubes. Lets look at the
differences between glass and metal laser
tubes. Metal Laser Tubes Metal laser tubes use
radio frequency to fire a fast pulsing laser
with quick repeatability. Most of the metal tubes
use air
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cooling system excluding higher wattages. They
perform the engraving process with ultra-fine
detail as they have a smaller laser spot size.
They have a longer life span of 10-12 years,
given they have premium parts like bystronic
parts or prima spare parts, before the need for
the refurbishing of gas arises. Its turnaround
time in some cases can be quite long. Glass
Laser Tubes Glass laser tubes come at a lower
cost. They produce laser with the direct
current. It produces good-quality beams which
work well for laser cutting. However, here are
some of its drawbacks. There are some safety
issues as it operates with a water-cooling
system. The DC power supply excite the CO2 gas
in a glass laser tube. It needs high voltages for
the operations. And combining such levels of
voltage with a water-cooling system, it might
create some safety hazards. Glass tubes need
water-cooled temperatures as it is a poor
thermal conductor. Hence, in order to remove the
heat from the system, it is important to keep
water circulating. If there is no water-cooling
system in place, a glass laser tube would
overheat and become inoperable. It might increase
your production cost. It also introduces other
points which can come as your maintenance cost.
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The DC process limits the rate at which the laser
tube can work. While the laser engraving process
is running in progress, it doesnt fire in one
continuous burst. Rather, it pulses while
moving and working across the material. When
DC-excited laser tubes work on the piece, they
tend to pulsate less. It significantly reduces
engraving speeds and lowers quality. Plus,
there will be concerns over the lifetime of
DC-excited glass tubes if they dont have
premium parts like bystronic parts or prima
spare parts. Glass is naturally a fragile
element. After a period of time, DC-excitation
process can bombard a tubes optics and
electrodes with ions. It increases the chance of
deterioration over time. Most of them come with a
6-month warranty. At the time of system
failures, you will have to purchase a brand-new
laser tube, which will increase your costs and
waste. Heres the one-on-one comparison between
two Cost DC laser tubes are cheaper than metal
tubes. This cost difference is a result of lower
technology and manufacturing cost. Cutting
Performance To be realistic, both laser tubes
are appropriate at their place. However, because
the RF lasers work on a pulse base, these
materials show a slightly rough
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edge. With that difference, the quality of the
final results is hardly noticeable to most of
the users. Performance Metal laser tubes
generate a smaller spot size out of the output
window of the laser. For high precision
engraving, this smaller spot size would make a
difference. There are various applications where
this advantage would be clearly
visible. Longevity RF lasers last 4-5 times
longer compared to DC lasers. Its longevity can
help offset the initial higher cost of the RF
laser. Due to its capacity of refilling, the
process can be more expensive than the
replacement cost of a new DC laser. Comparing the
overall results, both of these tubes are perfect
at their own place. Understand their use cases,
their making, their parts like bystronic parts,
and choose which is more perfect for your
business model.
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