monkeysarefun

No actually, there really really is..... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmd1b2Lf6yU

I don't have anything to say, I was just trying out that little switch you were talking about..

If you are rich then Shapeways have something fairly similar, though I am in oz so not sure if these show up on the UK version.. https://www.shapeways.com/product/42MEC55NL/highway-cantilever-sign-1-87-ho-scale-2-pack?optionId=60876321 https://www.shapeways.com/product/CSP584FNV/highway-cantilever-sign-1-87-ho-scale-with-cctv?optionId=60188361 https://www.shapeways.com/product/ZUSBDAV6K/traffic-light-signal-pole-assembled-1-87-ho-scale?optionId=58940144

Personally, I'd choose something thicker, say 1.2 to 1.8mm to give depth to the stone tracery. This one is cheap 3mm ply, but the laser is still able to achieve fine detail in it. Actually, if you have drawings, I'm happy to give them a go and if you like the result, they're yours for the cost of postage from down here.

Reading the reviews posted here I kind of wish WE had Family Bathrooms on TV , , at least to to give me a break from half an hour every day of *($%*($@# 'Turtleman! `Come back to life, Steve Irwin the crocodile Hunter, all is forgiven! When I was little and Allan Downes had only built about a million things, we had only 4 TV channels, but there was always something to watch. Now I have around 30, plus my TV has Netflix and Amazon and stan (probably like your Dave?} and youtube and 3 terrabytes of things I accidentally downloaded from certain sites YARRRR , and I spend every evening searching through it all for something that interests me..

The big screen TV at work which we convinced management to buy us to run our IT system monitoring tools on is permanently tuned to a channel down here that is devoted to home building shows. Which almost entirely consist of US couples who have built a dubious celebityness on some cable channel network in Nebraska or somewhere by buying ex crack houses and similar, jerry building extra bits on to them and then flogging them off to unsuspecting simpletons who would presumably in the future watch that episode of the show about their new home and find out that it had until recently a swamp / Indian burial ground / asbestos dump in the basement, and that they'd paid 20 times what the cable channel dubious celebrity couple had invested in getting the house from 'murder house' to 'habitable until bits fall off' Apparently this is called 'flipping' and there's just so so many shows on about it. All day, every freaking day. Masters Of Flip. Flop or Flop. Flip this House . Flip That House, Texas Flippers... Desert House Flippers.....Zombie House Flippers.... . For a change its a relief when the work experience kid at the TV station accidentally puts the wrong tape in and we get to see a random episode of something else, such as "Doomsday Castle" which is about a US (of course) 'doomsday prepper' (that IS a thing apparently) who is convinced society is about to end and that when it does everything will break down into marauding bands of the similarly deluded with big guns who are going to be intent on roaming the back woods of the south and stealing all the tins of cream corn and peaches that this bloke has been stock-piling. So he builds a castle in a 'secret' location. (South Carolina hills, Coordinates: 34°58′41″N 82°43′38″W) The highlight this week was the construction of the 'drawbridge'. Which gave father and sons some quality time firing all their different guns at sheets of various gauge steel in an effort to find which would stop the bullets of the previously mentioned fellow post-apocalyptic deluded. Once they had shot every gun they had and none of the millions of rounds had bounced back off the sheets and hit father OR son, they were able to choose the right one. Which was the thickest one, as any one else would have naturally assumed without needing to lay down firepower. Weirdly though, they were able to mount the bullet proof steel sheet onto the outside of their mighty drawbridge by drilling through it with a 36V drill.... Also, although the drawbridge might stop the rain of bullets from the gun-toting fellow post-apocalyptic deluded, they didn't think about what to do about any spanner-toting fellow post apocalyptic deluded, who would have been able to just undo the 8 nuts holding the drawbridge hinges to the base of their castle wall (and thus getting to the 8 nuts inside the castle.. ) I think you should pitch a TV show where your family bathroom seeking couples are dropped into Doomsday Castle.

If you model Australian railways, those Twiggy like models just will not cut it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLrvy4ejQuA#t=89.647437 PS: Its an American news report, our sheeps DON'T hang around in "herds" and we DON'T "shave" our sheep, WHICH.. begs a serious question - do they even have sheep in the US? I've seen my fair share of old westerns and while theres plenty of cows and horses,I can't remember ANY sheep. I'm thinking that if they did have them then they surely would have popped up in popular culture - movies, Country and Western songs and so on. But while I've seen way too many cowboy movies, I cannot recall a single sheepboy one... Anyway, here's sheep in the main street of where I live, in a kind of lame "Running of the Sheep" event - get out of the way! .Its celebrating the fact that the Australian wool industry started in the early 1800's here at Camden with John Macarthur importing Spanish Marinos, I don't know if these are Marinos, but they are at least sheep competing in a world class event, which means they got their faces on the internet,

His blog is well worth a trawl through, the translate button doesn't do the best job though... http://emmanuelnouaillierartworks.blogspot.com.au/

Hi Simon, Pretty much as Jim said - the base of the Emblaser is fairly thin alloy which had a slight dip in the centre making accurate laser height adjustment difficult. I started with a sheet of 12mm MDF which I also lasered on a grid so I'd have an idea of where the origin was, but found it was getting charred very easily, and also gave off unfriendly fishy smells when I cut through whatever was on top of it. So I added a cheap plate of glass from a photo frame, held to the MDF with double sided tape. Also, I hold thinner material like card and veneer down using masking tape, and this seems to stick better to glass than it did to the MDF. Also like Jim said, the glass does get a deposit of charred bits, plus when doing plywood it also gets a greasy layer which assume is melted glue or whatever, but its easily cleaned with a scourer occasionally. Chris J

The ply took 3 passes at 100% power, 5m/sec. The same plywood took the Emblaser 1 needed 6 passes at 6mm/dec. I still see a use for my Emblaser 1 because there are a few things that the Emblaser 2 cannot do, mainly due to the shortfalls in Laserweb. For instance trying to load an .svg file into it that has a fair amount of rasterised brickwork takes so long that I just assume that Laserweb has hung - I've left one file for over an hour trying to load with no result. The same file takes about 3 seconds to load into Vector2d. Hopefully these little problems will be ironed out over the coming months as they are highlighted.

Still working my way around Laserweb and the Emblaser 2. So far, loving the hardware, still in two minds about the software. Probably because I've spent so long using cutlaser2D and really like some of its features, Laserweb still seems a little unfinished but I'm sure I'll get used to it. The Emblaser itself is a very polished thing. I'm finding its main strength for me over the original is its ability to cut thicker material, and with less passes so finer detail doesn't get burned away. Also its focus is set in the factory so you don't need to rely on trial and error. That said though, you still have to initially establish the lasers offset height by running a calibration file then judging which line is 'best cut' then entering that lines value into the Laserweb settings, so there is still room for human error which is nice. If you are cutting mainly material 2mm thick or less I'd say that the original Emblaser is very sufficient, especially when Darklylabs do the laser unit upgrade that they are promising. The extra niceties such as air assist, venting and so on are good to have but not essential. The Emblaser 2 also has removable silicon mats with cells to allow the air to move around under the job but for cutting fine detail parts this is actually an embuggerance since they drop into the mat, also its not possible to stick small work pieces down to it. When I get around to cutting small detail parts in card and so on with it, I'll probably remove the mats and use an MDF base with glass on top as I have been using successfully with the Emblaser original. The tight focus and extra power though, does make ridiculously detailed jobs possible. Just to make Giles jealous this is cheap 3mm plywood, some of the details are literally a hairs-breadth thick...

I do something similar using Gimp, but select the various greys from a palette. Here's a video of the process on a contour map. A gothic windows tracery in my mind at least is an identical kind of animal - differing depths separated by closed vector lines. The final product here is sent to a CNC cutter rather than a laser cutter,but the colouring technique would the same.

So..... I've finally been on a playdate with the Emblaser 2, and here are initial impressions: The painted orange metal finish and curved edges is a classy look, much better than the usual plastic, or slab sided computer peripherals. The air-assist is LOUD! Think air brush compressor loud. Furtunately there is a setting in Laserweb for turning it off when cutting things that don't require it It cuts thicker thing, which I guess you'd expect. . 4mm walnut in 2 passes at 6mm sec, 3mm MDF in 3 passes at 5mm/sec. The laser head sits a lot higher off the job than the Emblaser 1 – about 50mm instead of 1.5mm, which means that you can set the laser unit to lower by say 1mm between each pass to keep the focus, which definitely seems to help cutting multiple passes. The laser unit is precisely focussed before you get it, which means the cutting width is tiny, and also allows finer details to be cut. The big disappointment right now – and probably because I m still learning it – is the software. Laserweb lacks so much of what the Cut2D software had, and its not all that intuitive and is rather clunky and unfinished. I know its a beta release still under development but it does hamper my ability to use the Emblaser 2 in the same way I used the Emblaser 1. For instance its major annoyance is its order of cutting things out. When cutting out say a window frame in Cut2D, the software would cut out the internal panes first, before doing the window outline, which is excellent. Laserweb however, takes the same file and cuts the window outline first, which promptly flutters off, meaning the laser engraves the panes into a now blank rectangle. And yes, despite what darklylabs say – it IS possible to engrave through the silicone base mat! As a work around I have to create the outside cut of windows etc as a second layer in Inkscape, and make sure I cut that layer sfter the layer with the rest of the panes in. Its an added step and annoying. Also, the picengrave software that I'd been using tp produce relief images in timber as per 4 posts up the page does not work with the Emblaser 2 yet. Another disappointment. Other than that though, the hardware itself is brilliant, its just the software that needs a bit of a tickle. I have only been doing test cut outs to gauge cutting speeds and abilities, so I have nothing of interest to take pictures of yet.

Ha! She has her own house now! Thats why I can buy laser cutters and sony playstation VR headsets and stay up as late as I like.

After just 4 days travel from Melbourne to Sydney (I think it must have gone clockwise..) Its here!

Well I did drag the emblaser out, but I got side-tracked into using the picengraver software to try out some '3D' laser projects. This uses picsender to send gcode to the laser, rather than the vectric software. Its not really apparent in the pic, but the finished image has an engraved depth to it, not just burnt onto the top of the wood like it looks in the picture. (The picsender, picengrave and piclaser software applications are available via links from the darkklylabs website.) The software just uses a greyscale image to calculate the depth - the darker the grey at a given point of the image, the more laser power is applied and thus the deeper the image is engraved. so I'm thinking of trying it out on my gothic window files once I've worked out how to convert .pdf files to greyscale jpegs, I'm hoping to be able to combine all the individual layers that make up a gothic window file, and assign each layer an increasing greyscale value, and hopefuly the resulting output would be a gothic window with all the tracery at the right depth. Or a pile of soot. Anyway, thats my excuse for mentioning the picengrave software here.. This is the sort of thing that I'm hoping the emblaser 2 will improve on, mainly due to its air asist system helping to disperse the smoke and make it less sooty and easier to clean up. I did do this outside using natures own air assist - a full blown blustery southerly, but alas, that is not consistent enough to depend on in the long term. The wood is huon pine, I think darker fine grained ( but sadly un-Australian) hard wood like walnut or cherry might work even better.

I haven't had much of a go with it, other than a small test piece when I first installed the uggrade - .that seemed to go ok. Not sure if you have checked already but a few other users are reporting various issues with the new Vtransfer. There are a couple of threads about the problems on the darklylabs site, admittedly they don't quite match your particular issue but there are a few troubleshooting steps suggested, and a link to the older version of Vtransfer and an upated post-processor that might be worth trying https://darklylabs.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/community/posts/115005610027-VTransfer-stops-part-way-through-a-job- The tail-end of Cyclone Debbie still seems to be hanging around making today grey and miserable - grass cutting is out ( ) so I thought I'd drag out the laser and spend some serious time with it. I'll let you know if I have any issues.

So today I got the email saying that my Emblaser 2 is ready to ship...

She seems very familiar to me too, but it took all this time to remember who she reminded me of - its a character in a 2 Ronnies send up of Chas and Dave doing a Christmas special. Theres a scene of Ronnie Barker as a matronly lady marching down a road and I'm sure that Prieser have copied his gait perfectly. The still capture doesn't give the full effect unfortunately and its all black and white and low res, just like life was in the old days: Just for completeness, the clip is from a Chas and Dave doco on youtube (Chas and Dave - last orders) and its about the 42 minute mark...

Heh heh, I remember the airfix Grenadier brass band! My brother and I teamed them up in the sand box along side their mates the Early Britans, - up agiainst Robin Hoods Merry Men and the Afrika Corps. Many died via air rifle, the survivors then having to undergo horrible meltingy death by the giant magnifying glass, Figures are a hard thing to get right. If there is no one anywhere your layout can look like either the zombie apocalypse or that they've all buggered off to the rapture, but having people in frozen poses can be just as wierd. I do think that your Prieser guys though really do add to the scene. Have you ever thought about taking up this model making lark for a living? I reckon you'd go ok! Thanks again. Chris J

G'day Mr Downes! As a long time fan from back in the Railway Modeller days of budgie grit and woolly thatched roofs I've just been thinking that I can't recall figures playing a big part in your models much before? I no longer have the old Railway Modeller issues but as proof of how many times I read your bits, I seem to recall all these years later that you did a model of Constables 'The Haywain' which had a bloke in a cart (or am I just confusing it with the actual Constables The Haywain..?) but apart from that I can't recall any other times. Is that right or am I getting old and so therefore getting that thing where I forget stuff? I reckon that little plastic/whitemetal people have long been the low point in model accessories, but those Prieser ones you have are brilliant, the first I've seen that have a personality. I've not looked into Prieser before because down here we have very limited stock of everything, but I've spent a rainy afternoon checking out their range and I have to say that they are great fun. For instance I mean how happy would the bloke who built a model of a doll hospital feel realising that he could populate it! As a Sydney sider though, given that this is the Sydney Gay and ###### (hmmm,, I wrote the L word there and it gets automagicaly censored - try it yourself!) Mardi Gras weekend, I'm a bit sad that they don't cater for my planned upcoming model of Sydneys Oxford Street.. If its ok, , can I just chime in and mention that I don't read Stubby's comment as a criticism of your work in any way, instead I'm thinking that he has an image of a place prior to the railway coming, and wondering what existed there beforehand. Down here we don't have those thinky problems because like the US, the railway came first to many areas west of Sydney, and opened it up and the towns and villages followed - often springing up puirely to service the railway. I've been watching a few documentaries about the beginnings of the UK railways, and its a bit sobering to see how much was sacrificed to lay the rails. I think that is maybe what Stubby was alluding to. In YOUR defence though Allan, Stubbys avatar does come across as a grumpy old bloke who complains about everything so I can see your side of the argument too. Therefore if I was Judge Judy then my ruling would be: Stubby - get yourself a happier little picture and the problem is solved. Finally can I just say that I cannot believe the speed that you achieve such brilliant results in?

Those using Cut2DLaser may not be aware that there is an updated version now available, accessible via the 'Visit Vectric User Portal' option under the help menu. It installs as a separate programme to the existing version so you can run either. I've only had a quick look at it, the most obvious addition is the ability to select the kerf width, and where you want to cut - on the line, or at a selected distance either inside or outside it.

Thanks Giles, I did intially try a slow speed and one pass but that was white side up and was very sooty. But that was before I discovered the clear protective sheet that is on the white side, so maybe that was causing the problem. I'll retry your settings on the black side - At least if its still all sooty I won't see it!

Hi all. Hope you are all getting this lovely summer weather ( except today went and spoiled it by raining a little) I'm coming late to the plastic cutting party, but I've finally found the sheet of laser cutterable plastic or whatever its called here that I bought early last year and lost in the June floods. It was hard to track down here, and I'm wondering if its the same stuff that Giles and others use? Its black on one side and white on the other, about .6mm thick and has a peel-off protective clear layer on the white side that I only discovered after I'd laser cut it and was wondering what the weird melted tendrils were that were hanging off it. Anyway, following on from the posts a couple of weeks ago about darklylabs saying that the Emblaser 2 could cut styrene because some railway modellers (probably us) said it could I thought I'd try plastic out. It was A} very stinky and B) tricky to get the setings right. I finally managed this: After much experimenting this is 100% power, 17.5mm/sec and I did 2 passes. but rather than set the number of passes inside the cutlaser software, I set that to 1, then when it had finished the first pass I hit the 'cut now' button on the Ventric window and it did it all a second time. So, IS this stuff the mythical rowmark or whatever it is that everyone else talks of, and if so, what settings do you use.

We only have one station thats any kind of impressive in the central Sydney area, the others are underground so yes, that would have been Central.