LG 900 and LC 900 your opinions please

[Micheal Donnellan]

hello
Am thinking about buying either the LG 900 or the LC 900 from wklasers.
Has anyone here got one and what was your experience like with them.

[SkipW]

Hi Michael,

I have an 80w LC6090 coming from WK Laser. It's sitting in LA waiting for the paperwork to clear so I can get it delivered to me.

Jack Yin and WK Laser have been great to deal with so far.

Regards,
Skip

[wklaser]

Hi, skip, many thanks for your commendation..

[SRT Mike]

Hi Skip,

I have communicated with Jack and I think the machines look very good and the price is attractive. We're considering buying one in the not-too-distant future.

I understand that it's a different kind of laser tube that will not last as long as a machine from Epilog or Universal, and we are OK with that.

My questions are...

1) Did the machine arrive OK and work OK when installed?

2) If there are any issues, were they resolved quickly and reasonably?

3) What is the real-world life span of the laser tube? I know they rate them at 1000+ hours, but others have said that the tube will be worn out just from sitting for 3 months.

4) What was the total price you paid, above the cost of the machine for shipping and customs/import duties?

5) Overall how happy are you with the machine and would you buy it again given what you know now?


It appears Jack is trying to break into the market with a good product and if the after-sale service and the product is as good as the before-sale service then we're sold

[SkipW]

Hi Mike,

Yes, the CO2 tubes used in these lasers are the long glass tubes as opposed to the smaller metal RF tubes used in ULS, Synrad, Epilog, etc. I can't tell you about the longevity because my machine hasn't been delivered yet.

But, I do know that Photovac Laser in Ohio has had good luck refilling expended Chinese tubes. They also add some type of gold compound to the tube to increase its life. They guarantee them for 1 year but said they should last a couple of years. They charge $1200.00 to refurbish one. That sounds expensive unless you go through 3 or 4 imported tubes per year, then it's not too bad of a price.

I'll know more about the machine in a week or so, I hope. I'm also still waiting to hear what the customs fees and taxes are going to be.

Jack Yin at wklaser has been good to work with so far. I think the after sale service will be there too.

Take care,
Skip

[SRT Mike]

Originally Posted by SkipW Hi Mike, Yes, the CO2 tubes used in these lasers are the long glass tubes as opposed to the smaller metal RF tubes used in ULS, Synrad, Epilog, etc. I can't tell you about the longevity because my machine hasn't been delivered yet. But, I do know that Photovac Laser in Ohio has had good luck refilling expended Chinese tubes. They also add some type of gold compound to the tube to increase its life. They guarantee them for 1 year but said they should last a couple of years. They charge $1200.00 to refurbish one. That sounds expensive unless you go through 3 or 4 imported tubes per year, then it's not too bad of a price. I'll know more about the machine in a week or so, I hope. I'm also still waiting to hear what the customs fees and taxes are going to be. Jack Yin at wklaser has been good to work with so far. I think the after sale service will be there too. Take care, Skip

Good deal Skip, thanks for the info. My purchase timeframe is probably "this year" so I will wait to see how things work out for you before I commit. Please keep us posted!

I dont mind some quirks (I've built CNC machines and I am comfortable tweaking to get them right), just so long as the basic machine is sound and does what it says.

My only concern is the laser tube life. I would not be using it very frequently (maybe once per week for a half day per use). I would not want the tube to be useless after 3-4 months with that light of a use. If the tube life depends on the laser on-time, then I expect I will get a long time out of it. If it depends on the total time including time it's sitting there turned off, then it would be excessively expensive to replace the tube for every 10 times I use the machine

[Micheal Donnellan]

hello
Whats the duty and VAT like over wherever you are, robbery here.

CIF to port price + 26% DUTY + 21% VAT = 52.46% in fees

robbery here and I thought the huge charges were only on the Cars here
car+Duty+VRT+VAT

VRT is basically illegal to charge since we joined EU, but goverment pays fines as they are way less than profits made bythe tax.

Irelard is an annoying ripoff to live in.

[SRT Mike]

Originally Posted by Micheal Donnellan hello Whats the duty and VAT like over wherever you are, robbery here. CIF to port price + 26% DUTY + 21% VAT = 52.46% in fees robbery here and I thought the huge charges were only on the Cars here car+Duty+VRT+VAT VRT is basically illegal to charge since we joined EU, but goverment pays fines as they are way less than profits made bythe tax. Irelard is an annoying ripoff to live in.

Import duty is 26%??? Wow! I have family living in Estonia (part of the EU) and the stuff I send all gets taxed differently. I believe there is no import duty on electronics (I sent a laptop, iPOD and stuff for Christmas with no problem). Clothes get hit with 12% import duty, plus the 21% VAT and you're looking at adding 1/3rd to the cost.

Are you sure its 26% import duty? I'm sorry to hear about the high taxes...

Here in the USA we dont pay sales tax on items we import. Most stuff from China is tax exempt because of the free trade agreements. I purchased some wire in China that was 380kg in weight. I drove to the port to pick it up, went to the customs house and they told me it was from China so no import taxes due. I paid $300 in fees to the import company (documentation fees, customs inspection fees, etc). And I paid $110 to the company that held it in the warehouse for a few days, and I had paid $80 to the shipping company to ship from China to Boston. Thats pretty much independent of weight, so if I bought a $4k laser machine, it would be about the same, maybe $400 in fees to get it.

Still quite high, but a lot less than 56%!

[SkipW]

I just got my invoice from the freight forwarder.

Entry: 85.00
Handling Charge: 65.00
Duty: 179.88
Bond Fee: 50.00
Warehouse Fee: 65.00

Total: 444.88

I'm in PA and couldn't get to LA to clear it through customs myself, so they did it for me.

Micheal, what you have to pay, if that's correct, really is robbery. I thought that the USA was the only country that had crooks in government. Silly me... LOL

[Cutting foam]

Micheal,

I have you any contacts or relations in the North it maybe cheaper to get it into N. Ireland ??

[Micheal Donnellan]

I am getting conflicting information on how much duty is to be paid and In what way. one says 26+21% as above, others have said 26% is duty and VAT together. Duty thing is bugguing me as we are supposly part of the EU with standard duty rates, not so it seems.

the TARIC description I am using is
8456 Machine tools for working any material by removal of material, by laser or other light or photon beam, ultrasonic, electrodischarge, electrochemical, electron beam, ionic-beam or plasma arc processes
8456 10 Operated by laser or other light or photon beam processes
8456 10 00 10 Machine-tool operating by laser beam, for the cutting of slots on the surface of a cylindrical tube for use in the manufacture of endo-vascular prosthesis (so-called "stents")
- - 8456 10 00 90 Other this one
a machine cutting by laser for other purpose non medical

Third country duty : 4.50 %
http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs...h=09&Year=2007

Need to get proper information, will try customs crown direct if they ever reply to email.

northern Ireland is seperate country same as importing to england and the getting hit for VAT twice.

[jinweike]

Dear Michael:
LG 900 is CO2 laser engraving machine, it is 60w laser power and better for engraving. It will have a more accurate resolution for engraving.
LC 6090 is CO2 laser cutting machine, it is 80w laser power and better for cutting. The mechanical design is different from LG900. You will have fast speed when cutting.
So you can choose the machine according to the usage of the machine.
Linda
Jinan G.Weike Science&Technology Co.,LTd
wanmeisuccess@hotmail.com