And Now To The Future...

All,

With the business experiencing an extremely busy lead up to Christmas, all things rail have had to take a back seat.  I have however, kept the postal system busy with both Ebay sales going to new homes...and the receipt of some very interesting deliveries from overseas.

Around 25 years ago I first dabbled in OO9 following the purchase of a book that described the narrow gauge lines in Wales.  At that time, the availability of RTR rollingstock and locomotives to suit any venture were almost non existent and as much as I loved the building and detailing of kits from manufacturers such as Parkside- Dundas and the scratchbuilding of locomotives based on proprietary N scale chassis, the locomotives were never brilliant runners and  Peco OO9 track and points were agricultural to say the least and the joys of DCC were but a mere glint on the modelling horizon. 

Move forward to the late 90s and a call from a friend sealed the end of the rather extensive OO9 collection.  He duly arrived with a friend who was starting out in OO9 with a view to building an "empire" and upon viewing what I had, made a cash offer for the whole lot that was obscene in the extreme.  Me being me...I tried to temper his over exuberance and explain the pros and cons of purchasing at such a price and my perceived shortcomings of the scale...History shows that he did not quite accept the advice in the vein that it was offered,  and the chat resulted in an increased offer and all I could do was shrug my shoulders, pocket the cash and offer him my best wishes in his endeavours as they left.

Some years ago I read an article on the Lynton and Barnstaple, narrow gauge railway from the Devon region of England and promised myself that one day I would revisit this extremely interesting line and gather as much research material as I could.  As irony would have it, both with the demise and of the Fish River layout and my search for a new challenge, the L&B does provide a very attractive basis of a modelling proposition.

Over the last few months I have managed to track down some extremely interesting and hard to find books on this remarkable line.  With a relatively short working life of the line ( 1898-1935) and at only 19.5 miles in length...it is surprising that any meaningful volumes on it's history exist at all.  Indeed to the contrary this line appears to have an almost cult status, at least in the UK... and the reasoning for this becomes patently clear when one begins to read these books and the true wonder of the line, it's motive power, rollingstock, infrastructure and the landscape it traverses becomes clearer.  While discussing the historical and research books on offer...it would be remiss of me not to pay some very deserving compliments to the people I have contacted to purchase these offerings.  From the specialist bookshops, to the staff of the L&B Railway Trust...everyone has exhibited a desire to go out of their way to help me gather the books and other materials I went in search of.  Eight days, door to door seems to be the average turnaround time for most purchases.  I am not sure whether this level of service is across the board...but it sure beats dealing with historical bookshops and some hobby shops here in Australia who seem to think it is a privilege to deal with them.

 At this point I must also pay special tribute to one of the books that I have recently received.  "The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway...Measured and Drawn" is undoubtedly one of the finest books that I have had the privilege to peruse.  This offering by Stephen D Phillips crosses the bounds of any particular interest.  To clarify...it is a complete reference of every piece of rollingstock, locomotive, infrastructure, signalling and odds and ends that were ever associated with this line. Every item contained in this 252 page jaw dropper, has been painstakingly measured and drawn in absolute detailed brilliance.  Also littered throughout are photographs and information that in the end has produced a complete folio of this one line...but as said, this book would be appreciated by anyone with only a passing interest in railways in general.  The only way I could describe this book to Australian Modellers...is to imagine the whole collection of Greg Edward's Data Sheets,  hardbound and littered with information and photos of the prototype. The book suggests that this has been an almost lifelong project by Stephen Phillips...and with the quantity and quality of the finished article...I have little doubt about that.         

From a modelling perspective...the L&B certainly is engaging and the present seems to be a good time to make a start with many RTR items specific to this line now cropping up from PECO and with DCC ready L&B locos soon to be released from at least 2 well known manufacturers...it would appear that this often maligned scale/gauge is entering somewhat of a renaissance.  To cap things off PECO also has a relatively new range of OO9 track and live frog points...which would also complete the equation.

Anyway I will now spend Christmas mulling over the broad details of a proposed layout.  Apart from the books and reference materials, I have also purchased a cross section of RTR rollingstock and a few kits from Parkside Dundas  to tide me over for a couple of months....just to get the juices flowing.

Originally I had visualised that any planned OO9 layout would draw inspiration from the UK lines and then I would "Australianise" these ideas in practice.  My mindset has now been converted and to dilute examples such as the L&B would only serve to diminish the overall feel and of course the other major advantage in staying true to the prototype is the ability to utilise many fine examples of models ( road, rail and infrastructure) that are only available in 1:76 OO...

And so it is...that I have crossed over to the "Dark Side".....Just like Luke...it would seem I have a new father!!!

           



       

 

The End Is Nigh...But The Future Is Bright!

All,

With the slated closure of the Captains Flat branch imminent, the enthusiasts were out in force to capture the last workings on offer.  In just a couple of weeks the mainline will be truncated back at a town on the Sydney side of Fish River station and the once busy junction ( Fish River), the Captain's Flat branch and all downstream stations on the main, beyond Fish River... to the imaginary terminus, will be no more

It is a sad indictment of the layout's relatively short lifespan,  that the mythical location of Fish River, it's reason for being and it's location within the NSW network was never really explained.  Yes the actual place names that were used and or planned were real...but the context in which I used these names had no bearing on the prototype or location at all and due to the fact that the layout was "just evolving" meant that the relationships of all these locales and associated workings really had not been decided upon.

In the finest traditions of the NSWGR, passenger workings on the Captain's Flat branch were abruptly halted last Sunday, with little notice or regard for the travelling public...much less the staff assigned to the branch workings!.  For the record...the last regular passenger movement, returned to "town" at a little before 6:00pm with 4910 doing the honours and the usually single CCA ( normally more than adequate for the loading) supplemented with and FS car to cope with the expected influx of enthusiasts keen to take in the last opportunity to experience the branch.

The final nail for the branch occurred at around 3:00pm this afternoon,  with the last freight working arriving back into town with 4425 in charge.  The outward movement was scheduled to leave town before dawn this morning and spend the day clearing all locations and sidings of rollingstock...with the main task of returning stored concentrate wagons from the now closed Captains Flat loader.

With the closure of Fish River scheduled for later this week...all locos, rollingstock, infrastructure both in use and stored...will be offered up for disposal via tender ( in this context it will be by EBAY). and another chapter of government mismanagement and apathy will come to a close.

While the demise of the layout is sad in some respects...it is largely unavoidable (as explained in a previous post) and has certainly given me the opportunity to plan my next (albeit a tad smaller) journey into this great hobby.  My structure building will now quite possibly speed up and of course there are still posts to be written regarding the dismantling of the existing layout... and while the track and all "above track" infrastructure is to go...the control panels and electrics will be largely recycled and while not wanting to spill the beans just yet on my next project....I will leave you all with just one question...is it possible to DCCise a OO9 layout? 

I can hear my ever obliging and patient wife muttering these now famous or (infamous) words.....Oh The Humanity!

Not far to go now for the last passenger train on the branch!

   

With the Fish River bridge now crossed....4910 is shut off and begins to drift towards the junction...

   



The very last train arrives back off the branch towards the junction in the very capable hands of 4425

    

Deja Vu...With A Difference...

All...

The following post recently appeared on my Facebook Page...

Start Of A New Era...
As of Monday...Vanessa will commence and take over the reigns of our business!
It has taken a while to snaffle her...but as she has the BAs in Business and Management...It is only fitting ( and the right direction for the business) that she becomes the boss and I revert to "Piss Boy"...
...

Apart from having many more letters after her name than me...she has a vast wealth of abilities, supreme people skills and the right "touch" to take us to the next level...
I can't wait to see her shine, grow in confidence and steer Harlow into the next 20 years...

So what has this all got to do with the blog and indeed railway modelling?....Well plenty!.

Over the last few years our signage and engraving business ( AKA My Day Job)  has grown steadily and has now reached a point where my wife has been recruited to take the reigns and allow the business growth and associated pains to be shared.

Like any major decision...there are the up sides and also down sides.  The largest negative of all is that after many late night chats and considering the many options, is that the layout will have to go and the space turned over to the business.  The shed that presently houses the layout is around 12metes x 8metres in total and with the majority of it now insulated and lined...it is an obvious place to re-establish the signmaking/writing and sign construction part of the total business which in essence will physically separate the signs from the engraving arm...which for some time has logistically been a largely ignored requirement.

It must be said that the shed was originally built to house the business and the layout came about following a suggestion from my wife that in the interim it could be used for a layout.  In the back of my mind I knew this day would most likely come, albeit not so soon... and now here we are!.  Of course the suggestion was made that the area could be shared...but in reality, working within (and surrounded) by such a mouth watering distraction, is not conducive to me remaining productive on a day to day basis.  Like most, earning a living has to remain the priority in the medium term, and the reality is that I absolutely love my chosen career and still jump out of bed each morning inspired to do what I do...so the decision, while disappointing...does have some positives.

So what will this mean to my modelling?.  If the truth be known, I have for some time had inspirational issues with the actual layout, much preferring to construct buildings and mini dioramas.  For some reason ( maybe it happens to us all) my source of enjoyment from the hobby has gone through many phases and for now I would like to concentrate any spare time to the myriad of structures that bounce around my mind on a day to day basis.  Surprisingly, my foray into OO9 many years ago still has an unexplained attraction and I may well dabble in that as well. 

Possibly the main positive to come from all of this is that the Laser Rail Bits range will certainly have much more time and resources available and this part of the business has probably caused me the greatest internal angst, as the projects/kits just never seem to receive the focus they so richly deserve.  After nearly 10 years of production of present range of kits...we may have missed the boat to some degree as in the intervening years there has been a plethora of Laser Etched and Cut manufacturers that have entered the market.  For me I will just continue on the path of producing ( what we believe to be ) high fidelity kits that include premium raw materials and as close to scale as is humanly possible, rich in detail.   The Laser Rail Bits mantra has and always will be...NO MDF!!!, NO TONGUE AND SLOT COMPONENTS AND NO COMPROMISES!!!.  Whether this vision is past it's use by date...only time will tell....?

With regards to the Blog???  Well in all honesty, a review of the blog history has revealed, to me anyway, that my inspiration has certainly changed over the years and it is the structure, scenic, diorama and weathering aspects of the hobby that give me the most joy.  In reality I can't see my blog input changing all that much. I will continue to work on Australian "HO" structures of any variety and quite possibly will also look at some "O"  structures as well.

In the washup...the layout, even in it's far from complete state, has given me a great canvas to work with and in particular I have been able to hone my skills in scenery, wiring and DCC installation, to name but a couple of areas that only a few short years ago seemed far too challenging for this "little black duck" and have given me confidence to move on and attempt more challenges.

Now the real work begins and much of my HO stuff will be dissolved and or liquidated as the need to clear the area and minimise "stuff" that requires storage has commenced in earnest...  I am not sure just what to do with the completed river section of the layout and the related bridges...hopefully a method of detaching the associated benchwork in a painless fashion can be achieved and a new home for this section would also provide a living memory of  "what once was"...This may well form the basis of a future blog post...

And towards the future we go.......   

    

    

Just A Thought... Fuel Depots, Part 1

All,

The only upside of another week deprived of modelling time...is the thinking one can do.  As regular readers would be aware, the siting of the flour mill (on the outskirts of Fish River) has had me pondering for some time.  My doubts were not so much the general locale...but the aesthetics of placing the industry so close to the bridge that spans the river.  The sheer bulk of the building seemed to dwarf the bridge and to my mind detracted from the overall flavour of this area.  While the comments from readers that emanated from that post were invaluable and gave many options, I had mentally mothballed the decision and refocused on unrelated structure building.

Apart from the flour mill, Fish River will play host to a small number of varied industries and amongst these will undoubtedly be an oil depot or two.  While unearthing all of the "fuel depot" bits and pieces that I have amassed...the thought crossed my mind that the flour mill siding may well be a better candidate for a fuel depot while there may be a better option for the flour mill at the opposite end of town.

So...earlier this afternoon I set about placing the almost completed storage tanks in situ and while there is much more infrastructure to be added to a depot scene, at least I could get an idea as to whether the overall plan would fly.  As I fiddled around with this concept, it dawned on me just how ironic it was that after spending half of my working life in the petroleum industry...in and around refineries, terminals and depots...why it is that I have waited so long to concentrate on this type of industry for the layout?. 

Regional fuel depots, were a fairly simplistic affair and while there were many varied layouts in terms of physical appearances, the four main items of infrastructure that made up each depot were largely a constant.  Storage tanks, package store, truck loading gantry and some form of an office were the norm and in reality it was only the location and surrounding population the depot serviced that decided or dictated the overall size of each of these components.  In the early days ( and not unlike the railways approach to infrastructure) there were "types" of depots that each oil company had concept plans prepared for, and the intent was that these depots would all be built exactly the same at each location on a repetitive basis with the thought that it would ensure consistency and cost savings in terms of initial construction, basic equipment, operating procedures and maintenance.  Of course just like the railways...there were many changes to this "master plan" and depots took on a uniqueness based on land availability, plot size, rail and road access factors as well as particular client/location requirements.

A typical depot of yesteryear would have consisted of one or more leaded (standard) petrol tanks, one or more distillate (diesel) tanks, a fire water tank (in some instances), a package store for storing and decanting of drummed product, specialty products, oils and greases, a truck loading gantry and as already stated...an office or amenities block for the employees.  Other items that existed were elevated horizontal storage tanks for products such as home heating oil, winter diesel (in extremely cold areas) and in some cases kerosene.  A blend tank was sometimes included.

In terms of rail unloading operations...this varied on a case by case basis and could be an "in depot" operation with a dedicated siding within the confines of the depot...or a "remote unloading point" which was located beyond the depot fence line on a dedicated or shared siding.  There were of course depots that made use of a second or shared siding within the depot that also allowed easy transhipment of drummed and package product from rail wagon to package store and aided reloading empty drums to say 4 wheel S trucks.

Returning to the subject of the rail tank car unloading operation...Some depots utilised a dedicated unloading pipe for each product while some depots relied on a single multi-use line that entailed an unloading sequence where a diesel tank car maybe unloaded and then say petrol would follow up the same line and a depot operator would await the "interface" or changeover of the product to reach a predetermined location and then swing the valves to the correct tank.  Yes it was an inexact science...but a good operator would generate very little "slops".  It must be remembered that in the refineries it was common to put water slugs between products as separation...and water take off points in storage tanks were common...

I have included some photos of a rail car unloading point...and while they were taken in South Australia some years ago...the same theme was played out all over the country. It must be said that not many regional depots in NSW had a dedicated fire line secondary to the unloading line...

           

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the next instalment I will begin the Fuel Depot project for Fish River and post progress....in the meantime I have included one shot to show the proposed location...certainly a change from the flour mill...

 

 

 

Details, Details, Details...

All,

At a time when we are swamped with "real work", I have had very little time to indulge in the hobby over the last few weeks.  Of course having plenty of work is a good sign for any business...but I do miss my down time and the ability to bubble along with modelling projects.

I have however spent a few nights assembling some detail type items and having a quick flick thru the myriad of storage draws and cupboards just to reacquaint my ever diminishing memory regarding hobby items.  Most of these items were bought in bulk when putting in an order either to the UK or the USA.  They arrive and of course are labelled as " they will be useful someday".  In reality they are moderately thought out purchases intended to be package fillers and take full advantage of the importation postage costs.

The first item to look at is the humble forklift truck.  With the shed project almost complete, I am now searching for the final detail items and a forklift would be perfect to add some "movement" to the scene.  There are of course, plenty of examples of HO forklift trucks either in kit form or RTR...and the quality is quite varied as well.  It would have been easier to have chosen an out of the box truck with only weathering to be added before placing it in the scene.  Unfortunately the only one I could find that fitted my requirements ( proposed shed vintage and detail)  was in kit form...but as luck would have it I had purchased a few of these very kits some time back.

The chosen kit is manufactured by a mob called GHQ Models ( from the USA) and they are sold as part of their "Road Master" series.  They have a fair range of industrial type vehicles and I did manage to purchase examples of most of the range although I did probably buy too many...ah well!!!

The kit was almost entirely manufactured from "100% Britannia Pewter" with only one brass etching...that being the driver protection cage.  The parts are extremely well moulded with very little flash requiring removal and have more than satisfactory detail....Indeed it would appear to me that they have engineered the moulds to ensure that component removal is very well enhanced and well thought out!  The instructions are very well written with plenty of photos to aid construction... The mast can be assembled to simulate any height and in my case I decided to model the unit with forks lowered.

For anyone who is keen to tackle a pewter/white metal type kit, this would be a good start.  Admittedly it is a small sucker...but with little part preparation required, and not containing a heap of components...it is a good place to start.

Put it this way...upon completion of this kit...you should be able to postpone your next optometrists appointment!

An example of the GHQ range...

The main components with a first coat of paint and trial fit 

     

Almost finished and seeing if it enhances the scene...

A Touchy Subject...

All,

I have been formulating this post for some time and while the subject matter has the real possibility of polarising people...my recent blog trolling has certainly confirmed that the situation is indeed also alive and well at least in Britain.

I, like many thought that blogging may be like the "Yo-Yo" and just be another fad that came and went without trace.  How wrong I was...Blogging now is a very important facet of our hobby and also has the ability of spanning and cross fertilising on a global basis...and more importantly is free! ( for now ).  Inspiration, advice, kinship and just plain old enjoyment has allowed the blogosphere to go ahead in leaps and bounds.

While all of this is happening around us...I could not help but ask myself the question..."Where does this leave the humble model related magazines and periodicals?"...  Magazines, certainly were a very important facet of my earlier years in the hobby and before the internet, the only real way for modellers to be informed, entertained and inspired...apart from the exhibition and the club scene.  So where does the cyber advancements leave our paper based technology.

To my mind there are many factors that will influence where our magazines end up.  Firstly ( just like the daily tabloids ) online information exchange will govern the future of the printed word.  How long it takes for many day to day printed items to become extinct is anyone's guess...Newspapers, periodicals, magazines and indeed the humble phone book will all succumb to cyber space and with the advancements in computers, internet speeds, methodologies and just plain old economics...I think the transition will be swift.

The next logical question is...are magazines still relevant?.  That one comment will probably incur the wrath of many individuals in our hobby at least...but let us just examine where we find ourselves before any reader of this post is moved towards "taking out a contract" on my very existence.  Whether one will publicly concede this fact or not...every conceivable "bit" of information relating to our hobby can now be found online.  Even the very advertisers that fuel the salaries and running costs of the magazine are now to be found online, with some now having up to date (in some instances) blogs attached to the parent website and many even have links to a "demonic", to some,  facebook page.

Some time back, I made a conscious decision to reassess my magazine purchases and to concentrate only on magazines that are well written, have absorbing articles, have the content I am interested in and provide value for money.  I opted for the British magazines...as they have not yet succumbed to totally being absorbed with the "plonker" type of readership and still have many articles on "modelling" and the skills involved.  As I have stated in an earlier post dedicated to the subject...I have now trimmed costs even further by having my mags delivered electronically.  This all seems ironic given that I model NSW outline...but most of the modelling, weathering and landscape articles have a universal appeal and I still become absorbed with the fringe articles as well.

As for the local magazine scene...I have taken an annual "digital" subscription to our "leading" magazine...but in all honesty I cannot see this continuing as my interests cover ALL aspects of modelling and are not limited to "new releases" and a short hop around a layout...Have we really lost the appreciation of the true art and skills of modelling???. We also have to move away from the overtones that we are "privileged" to have the magazines that are available today...Any commodity that comes at a price is not a privilege. I certainly want more than 1/2 an hour of interest from any magazine that I purchase...digital or paper.  To be fair I still look forward to AJMR when a new issue appears and would love to see this magazine on a more regular basis.

I guess the reason why some British bloggers bemoan their local magazines is possibly due to that fact that there are a plethora of offerings and choice over there... and as I am a fairly recent convert to some of these mags...I still find the content quite interesting and valuable.

And this is where I see that blogs (for me) will sooner or later replace the printed word. A mind boggling variety of subject matter, differing writing styles and skills, evocative subjects, progress of specific projects,  superb photos and illustrations, inspiration...no matter what your taste...and last but not least...true "real time" interaction with the blog owner / writer.

And following a week where "real work" overtook my modelling time yet again!...a couple of shots of the shed progress.  Still much to do...but we are getting there, albeit slowly.  Internal asbestos sheeting is now complete, as well as the timber guardrails, and truck loading bay "buffer timbers"....all internals are almost complete and in readiness for the roof to be permanently  installed, barge cappings, gutters and downpipes can then be fitted...subtle changes...but time consuming

  

 



 
  

Laser Engravers...To Buy Or Not To Buy?

All,

PREAMBLE.

Well I have finally put finger to keyboard on this subject and as the title suggests this subject may well span over a couple of posts, depending on any queries raised along the way.  I would confidently offer that I get asked at least once per week about our experiences with laser engravers.  The enquiries are probably a 50/50 mix of people from inside the model railway or allied hobbies, and of course people looking to add this technology to an existing mainstream signage, graphics or engraving business or those who are looking to venture into these businesses from start up.

BACKGROUND.

Our business, Harlow Graphics Pty Ltd, commenced trading some 23 years ago and started off as a purely signwriting and sign-making business.  During those early years we outsourced our engraving requirements with patchy results to say the least.  I should add at this point that we have always been focused on industrial signage and engraving with a leaning towards the petroleum, electrical instrumentation and aircraft industries.  Of course these industries are understandably quite demanding in terms of materials, industry terminology, turnaround timeframes and correctness...and so it did not take long to work out, that to control all of these factors meant that we had to move quickly to equip ourselves with all the hardware and software to ensure we were in control of our own destiny...and so we embarked on an expensive "expansion program" to enable us to keep every facet of the business in-house. 

With regards to engraving...we purchased our first computerised, rotary engraving machine some 20 years ago and then moved on to the laser technology over 10 years ago.  While the graphics and digital print / sign making technology has evolved rapidly over those years...the basic principles of laser technology have moved ahead at a relatively steady pace...meaning that this years purchase is not redundant next year.

LASER ENGRAVING.

So...what is laser engraving?...well I always refer to it as "controlled cremation" and, as crass as that comment may seem...that is about all there is to it. While there are a two distinct classes or types of laser machines...we will stick to the traditional CO2 type of combination engrave and cut machines.   While a complete run down of the technology can be researched on the internet and videos can be viewed on YouTube...I will try and stick to the basics and how it relates to our hobby.  To explain the overall operation, I have borrowed a very nice little graphic from the internet and will try and keep it simple.

             


The laser engraver works something like a dot matrix printer but without direct contact with the material or workpiece.  There is an X and Y axis gantry with the laser "head" travelling backwards and forwards across the bed and the whole gantry can be moved up and down the table...this is all handled by the controller, software and driver and has no real direct "hand input".  The laser beam ( red in the graphic) is generated in a laser tube and is then transferred via a sequence of mirrors and then when above the workpiece...it travels through a lens assembly ( the blue component in the picture) to ensure focus is maintained throughout the process.

There are two main methods to achieve the process of engraving.  The first is what is called "raster" and refers to the actual marking of a material, which is achieved by the rapid backwards and forwards motion of the laser head.  This operation is again like a normal printer and as the laser head moves backwards and forwards the gantry moves incrementally ( again just like paper moving through a printer )...what portion is engraved is dictated by the graphics package you are using and the colour of the infill you have assigned in that drawing.  The second operation is called "vector" and is basically the cutting function of the machine...where the beam follows a computer generated outline or line and cuts through the material.  To reiterate...both of these functions are controlled by the software you are using...while the driver interface is used to control the power, speed and frequency of the machine depending on what material you are using and the desired outcome.

On the software front we tend to use either CorelDraw or Pagemaker  although many other drawing packages and add-ons can be used.


USES FOR OUR HOBBY.

There is quite literally a myriad of uses that a laser engraver can offer to our hobby.  There is also a large assortment of hobby type materials that can be lasered and while the listing is not exhaustive...these include: Acrylic, Styrene, Balsa, Basswood, Most Timbers, ABS Plastics***, Cardboard, Matt Board, Paper and many many others.  I included ABS plastic in this list and while I "dabble" in this material it does have some limitations due to the flammability and toxicity when heated.  I also certainly warn against any product that contains PVC for the same reasons as ABS.

Apart from the shear versatility of the materials that can be machined is the added intricacy and minute accuracy that can be achieved.  It all comes down to your imagination and drawing capability which in reality is no hard slog with the software packages on offer these days. If I had to nail it down to one factor that makes the laser a valuable tool is that it absolutely "eats" repetitious jobs with extremely little or no clean up of the parts required before assembly can take place.

I encourage any reader to take a look back through the older posts on this blog to see what can be achieved and I also invite you to take a look at our "Laser Rail Bits" Facebook page.

THE PROS AND CONS OF OWNERSHIP.

I often ask myself whether I would have purchased a laser engraver purely for my hobby pursuits...and the answer is a definite NO....That may come as a hammer blow to some who are either toying with the idea or are deep in the planning stages of buying.  If it were not for the fact that our laser units already have a very hectic "9 to 5" working life and are a registered business item that allows for them to be claimed as deductions under the local tax scheme, then I would be very hesitant to invest in one purely for hobby.  Now, that direct answer certainly has wriggle room for someone who is contemplating a commercial venture or is a professional model maker...but the second hand market is littered with examples of  someone's superannuation payout and the vision of a burgeoning empire forged on the back of a laser engraver purchase.  Certainly industrial engraving is an integral part of our business and so our equipment earn their keep extremely well...but I see many examples where even a well thought out business plan comes a cropper when the unsuspecting purchaser is talked into the Rolls Royce of laser technology, takes out a lease that would make Clive Palmer blush and then witness them attempting to dream up any form of laser produced "trinkets" just to make the lease payments.

And with the above in mind ( and if you are still in the game)...I will attempt to give you some details, tips and running costs that the local laser salespeople will not tell you...

Firstly...consider matching a machine with your requirements v's your hip pocket.  As I alluded to earlier in this essay,  one of the best features of the laser world is that while the features and power output of the machines have certainly improved...the overall philosophy of the laser engraver's basic function has not changed much at all...so this means that what you buy today will certainly see you through for about 10 years (all things being equal).

Therefore the two combinations that are of importance to any prospective buyer is the bed size (workspace) and the power, expressed in Watts. As an example...and part of our arsenal... we have a 10+ year old machine that has a bed size of 610mm x 450mm and has an output of 35 Watts...and when purchased was probably the flagship of engraving technology.  Move forward to today and 120 Watts with a table size of 1200mm x 600mm is fairly common.  The irony is that our old unit still plugs away each day providing admirable service and does everything we throw at it....It certainly is not redundant in today's world and will possibly give another 10 years of service with careful maintenance and a possibly overdue rebuild.  We are presently exploring the feasabilty of adding yet another unit to our "workforce" but the 35 Watt Epilog Helix will continue to be a handy utility machine and will most likely be our modelling unit for many years to come.

And so to the costs involved in the purchase and operation of a typical laser engraver.

Purchase Price: Anywhere between $45,000 - $150,000AUD ex GST

Service Costs: Somewhere around $500 to $700 ( Labour Only ) every 6 months for a preventative maintenance visit...Most manufacturers advise a 6 monthly inspection...but if housekeeping and user maintenance are kept up...annual service intervals should suffice. ( This is a personal observation...you must make your own decisions on frequency )

NB.  The main "consumable" parts that will require replacement are: Mirrors and Lenses ( Say $400 per set complete), Belts ( if fitted) $100.00.  The most expensive components that are a possibility are Main Control Board +/- $3000.00
And almost certainly at some point ( anywhere between 2 years and 10+ years ) will be the laser tube and indicative (present) costs to replace the existing tube in our 35 Watt unit and carry out a service...Around $8000.00 total 

Running Costs: Variable... but must factor in the extraction fan system as well as the host computer and software upgrades when applicable.

It must be taken into consideration that an extraction ( to atmosphere) will need to be installed and if in a built up area...the extracted fumes may also require filtration or water bath treatment prior to atmosphere...This is a major consideration...and on it's own could would require a separate post for discussion...

CONCLUSION

For anyone contemplating any purchase of this magnitude...research is gold.  I hate to say it but most sales staff from any of the major suppliers will offer performance and profit figures well out of kilter with actual in service use.  Of course this practice is not limited to any type of industry where sales are concerned.  While most of these guys are well intentioned and mostly reading from a well practiced sales script...The truth is that very few in the industry have had to stand over a machine in a business environment and make it pay for itself.

The local market is best served with Trotec, Epilog and Gravograph brand units and each of these outfits offers service and backup on the products that they sell.

While there is now a plethora of machines emanating from Asia ( and in particular China ) at very attractive up front costs...my personal opinion is to steer well clear of these " bargains" as the honeymoon will truly end if a major component was to expire and the owner was to look for replacements and at the very least a reputable and experienced, local company who would even consider repairing or servicing an "orphan" brand of machine... Like everything...you get what you pay for!

I must state here that everything contained within this post is MY OWN OPINION...and every prospective buyer should conduct their own research.  You may find that some businesses that utilise laser engravers will be reticent to openly chat about and offer advice regarding lasers...It is a fickle industry, with many a tad protective of their business.  On the other side of the coin...I am quite comfortable chatting to people should they wish to get an owner/operators version of the business or any other facet of the laser engraving "trade"

I hope that what I have written here has been of some use to those with an interest...and to those who are possibly now asleep over their cup of tea...you have my apologies.

Oh and please leave a comment if I have overlooked any issues that require discussion...and I will either answer via return comment...or email, phone...or god forbid...another post!

Regards,
Rod