Laser engraver — xTool F2 Ultra (MOPA + diode)

Dual-laser engraver: 60 W infrared MOPA (metal marking, colour engraving) and 40 W blue diode (wood, leather, etc.). Settings are not interchangeable between the two lasers.

How to use

1. Power on the Redsail (starts the main ventilation).

2. Power on the xTool power strip on the wall behind the xTool lasers (starts the xTool ventilation).

3. Check the F2 Ultra is on — lit power button on the right side, or the remote display to the right of the machine.

4. Open xTool Studio. Start a new project, open one, or browse the xTool marketplace (lots of free designs).

5. Import SVG, DXF, PNG, JPG or BMP.

6. Place material on the ribbed square plate.

7. Close the cover and run.

8. Close the cover when finished.

Signing in with an xTool account is optional. New accounts get 200 credits (≈ 1 US cent each) for designs and AI features, and must watch a ~2 min safety video.

Share your designs in the laser designs folder on the network drive, with a descriptive name.

Settings

Cutting with the blue diode

Colour engraving on stainless steel

The laser forms coloured oxide layers; small changes in power, focus or energy change the colour a lot, and so do humidity and temperature. Run a test matrix on your material first and save the settings that work.

1. Select the material (top right, "Unknown material").

2. Import or create a vector fill or bitmap.

3. For an image, click Color Separation.

4. Click each part, choose C-engrave, set processing.

5. Use Preview processing results under One-click set.

6. Repeat for all parts, then process.

Bitmaps for colour engraving: solid colour blocks only — no gradients or tiny colour pixels (those can be deleted).

Colour engraving on brass

Test matrix starting range: power 30–75 %, speed 100–1000 mm/s, 5000 lines/cm, pulse 2 ns, 1950 kHz.

Holographic effect

Very fine lines act as a diffraction grating. Needs 304 mirror-finish stainless steel (brushed or matte won't work).

• Engraving mode. Auto Focus, then add 1–2 mm (defocus) — test for your setup.

• Set the fill angle before processing.

• MOPA, power 12 %, speed 240 mm/s, 2 passes, 220 lines/cm, pulse 60 ns, 115 kHz, engraving angle 75°, incremental mode.

Glass

Paint the surface with black tempera (fully opaque). Power 30 %, speed 190 mm/s, 160 lines/cm, 1–2 passes. For a black mark, use titanium dioxide instead of tempera.

Embossing metal

Embossing mode, 256 layers, power 100 %, speed 1500 mm/s, 1 pass, 300 lines, angle 137°, pulse 500 ns, 60 kHz. Z descends 0.03 mm every 10 layers.

Links

• xTool F2 Ultra user guide

• xTool product page

• Lasers — Open questions