TwoTrees TS3 laser engraver test: Perfect for desktop or lacking power?

Laser cutters are a handy tool for a maker. I have a powerful Chinese Co2 laser that would be too big and expensive for most people, so how does this desktop diode laser compare? That depends on what you intend to use it for. If you want to engrave, you’ll be happy. If you want to cut, not so much. Hopefully some improvements will be made for the production version.

When testing the cutting, I started with the settings from the manual and altered as necessary. This included changing feedrate, laser power and quantity of passes. I also experimented with changing the focal length and found a little closer than recommended gave best performance. At the request of TwoTrees I also cleaned the laser with a lens cleaning kit which made no difference.

This machine was provided free of charge for testing by TwoTrees so seek feedback. All opinions expressed are my own.