Are you looking for laser engravers to start a laser engraving hobby or business? Read our Ortur Laser Master 15W review to find out whether this machine will fit your bill.
Since the Creality CP-01 3-in-1 printer with its 0.5W laser head, we’ve got a taste of what laser engravers can do. After the Creality CP-01, we also got to test the laser engraving capability of the Snapmaker 2.0 A350 3-in-1 printer.
These machines with lasers awakened the curiosity in our team, and some members have even started their own laser engraving side hustles. Imagine the custom presents you can make with a laser engraver for your relatives at special times of the year, such as Christmas!
And with that said, we recently got to test the Ortur Laser Master 15 W laser engraving machine. As the name suggests, this unit packs 15W of power.
AVAILABLE ON ORTUR
Let’s look more into the unit.
Ortur Laser Master 15W Review
What’s in the Box?
We begin our review with the scope of delivery and the assembly As is the case with most 3D printers, the package is packed in the Tetris style with a lot of foam around it.
Inside the package is the laser engraver and some of its unassembled parts. However, important items, such as the laser itself, the fan, the motors, and the V-belts on the axles come already assembled.
Basically, you only have to screw the two axes together with four screws and attach the laser to its place on one of the axes with two more screws and a cable tie (everything is included). 
After that, plug in 2-3 cables and that’s it.
The well-illustrated assembly manual shows these steps clearly and point by point.
The assembly is done in a few minutes. Unpacking the laser engraver takes almost longer than the actual assembly.
Ortur Laser Master 15W Specs
Here are the technical details of the Ortur Laser Engraver:
- Laser wavelength (nm): 445 ± 5nm
- Laser Power: 15W (Input: 12V 1.85A)
- Laser Reaching Range: 160 x 150mm
- Power adapter 12v 3A
- Weight: 1.7 kg
- 32-bit motherboard
After unpacking the laser engraver, download and install LaserGRBL software on a Windows computer. You can set LaserGRBL to different languages.
Capability of the Ortur Laser Master 15W
We were curious to see whether the device really delivers what the manufacturer says. In particular, we wanted to find out whether we can actually cut objects with the laser.
According to the manufacturer, Ortur, the Ortur Laser Master 15W laser can engrave wood, bamboo, carton, plastic, leather, PCB, aluminum, non-reflective galvanized metal, and blackened knife. The unit can also cut cardboard, fleece, thin wood chips, and thin plastic
To begin, you can set the power of the Ortur Engraver in steps S0-S1000. This enables deeper lasing or just engraving. Conventional cheaper or weaker lasers are made to laser a little deeper by changing the focus point or adjusting the height.
Most laser engraver manufacturers usually keep to themselves an extensive table or information about which settings are best used to print or laser which material. However, with the Ortur 15W laser, there is actually a table that provides at least a rough direction. The table makes it easier for you to know the correct settings to use for different materials.
There are some materials in the scope of delivery that can be tried out. These include a little thicker paper to slightly thicker plastic (foamy), a small metal tag, plexiglass, and much more.
The Ortur Laser Engraver has a motion sensor. The sensor deactivates the laser if the machine is tilted or jerked. This is a nice security feature that can help to prevent fires should the machine be moved during a laser engraving session.
What Materials Can be Engraved?
The Ortur Laser Master 15W can engrave and cut a wide range of materials. Check the video below for a sample of the materials.
Of course, I would like to show you my own results But I just unpacked the laser and tried it out briefly. Everything still worked without any problems.
However, I had an issue when I updated the firmware of the laser. After the update, one of the two axes can no longer be controlled via the app. Homing when switching on the laser does not work with both axes either. So something went wrong with the update.
I’m currently waiting for a downgrade file so that I can provide you with the results of my test. For now, you have to be satisfied with the video above.
So far, I have only tried lasing 3mm thick wood and even with a thickness of 250 (1000 are possible), it was already lasered 1mm deep. The wood should actually be cut through with full force.
Of course, I will provide you with further information as soon as the laser works completely again and I have been able to try out the various materials.
What else?
There are various glasses to protect the eyes when working with a laser. If you don’t already have safety glasses, you can find some on online. However, make sure that the protection of the glasses corresponds to the wavelength of the laser used.
Conclusion on the Ortur 15W Laser Engraver
The Ortur 15W Laser Engraver is currently available on Ortur official website. The laser engraver is definitely worth considering. However, just make sure that you don’t update the firmware at this time.
Of course, it is only worth buying if you have a suitable and well-ventilated craft room. This is because the material you will be working with will definitely produce some odor.
The Ortur 15W laser is a handy gadget for pretty much every hobbyist. Whether you want to paint a saying on a Vesper board, laser and glue the next Christmas cards made of paper and cardboard, or do any other types of engraving, this unit fits the bill.
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