Wanted to send a friend and shift mate off into retirement knowing how much we enjoyed working with him over the years so I made this plaque which hopefully adequately expresses our appreciation and gratitude. The overall design is our station patch with some alterations to the center. The dog in the middle is the MACK hood ornament on the tanker he drove for the last 7 years of his career. It is made with many different species of hardwood. As is probably obvious by looking at it, some parts are inset and others layered - trying to do kerf adjustments for all those pieces was a little more than I felt like taking on in the time I had. I kind of like the depth the layering added to the overall look anyway. The frame is made out of 1 1/4" cherry. I engraved the signatures of everyone on the shift around the perimeter. It’s a shame I had to pixelate those because they turned out really nicely and add significantly to the personalized/custom look of the piece, but, alas, this is the world we live in.
This was yet another project in which I experienced major “pass through” envy. Maybe someday I will finally upgrade to the Pro…
I actually used the laser indirectly for the frame as well. I lasered templates out of 1/4 plywood and used those in conjunction with a flush cut bit on the router table to make all the frame pieces. The laser even improves the accuracy of my conventional woodworking!!!
Indeed! The laser can do detail that even a CNC would have trouble. I in no way have the room for a decent wood shop but I am frequently thinking up ideas, especially for furniture, that a decent wood shop would be an excellent addition to my Glowforge.
I originally thought the Plus had the higher wattage too, but apparently that was just old marketing. Otherwise, I might have gotten the Pro. But that was a lot of money for something that I didn’t know if I would use at the time.
I think this limitation has turned into a design advantage. Someday you will have a Pro, but in the meantime you are creating amazing things with your “not-Pro”.
I bought my plus when it had the 45w laser and “upgraded optics” (whatever that means), so I do have that. What makes me so annoyed at “past me” is the inability to work with anything larger than 11x19.
That was the biggest thing I was thinking, though the ability to get a few precious degrees warmer and have the machine still work was a close second. I only wish “past me” had thought out my air fryer purchase as thoroughly. Not wanting to spend the extra money on a consumable may bring regret for a meal, but even when we are talking a lot more money for something you will live with for a long time the / $ = regret is much greater.
Astonishingly gorgeous! I bet your co-worker was blown away by such a thoughtful, personalized, and so beautifully finished a gift. Instant family heirloom piece – “This was from Great Grandad’s buddy for when he retired, and we shall never ever get rid of this beautiful piece of art!”
/ $ = regret is much greater.