Damn, I jumped down a rabbit hole with the laser. I can't stop cutting boxes.  This box is small, but the detail on that logo is amazing in its clarity. 

But....

There's a new kid in town... well, new to us, at least!

A huge thank you to the Lazer Ladies, who donated this amazing Epilog laser engraver to the school. If you're not familiar with what they do, you really should click on that link and check out their site. 

They're amazing entrepreneurs, and their story is truly an interesting feat in assessing their market and starting a very successful business. 

MaryLou and Cindy warned me that the machine might need some maintenance and TLC to coax it out of retirement, as it had sat idle for a while.

But - when Cutting Edge Systemsfrom Costa Mesa, California offered to service our machine while they were in town servicing another customer - well, you couldn't ask for a better offer from both companies. 

Their technician ran us through hours of demos on maintenance, cleaning, and more, and within a few hours, we were up and running. As a sample, Dave printed this photo on a piece of aluminum - and this picture doesn't do it any justice. This looks better than a photograph, with perfect precision. Amazing clarity at 600 dots per inch. 

We tackled a few simple cuts, including this sign for the shop. We cut this design in a few different pieces of wood, experimenting with wood thicknesses and species.

Baltic Birch plywood here.  

Here's a piece of mahogany plywood. It's pretty interesting to watch the laser do its magic.

Seriously, this machine is nothing short of amazing. 

This opens up so many new avenues to explore - and in fact, we've just accepted a commission for which this machine will play an integral part. 

I'm ready to throw away my jigsaw....

Thanks MaryLou and Cindy for the donation - our work has just begun!