Here you will find user manuals, FAQs, and helpful Tutorial Videos. For fast support with setup or laser settings or to get design ideas and inspiration, visit our online community.
If you are having an issue with one of our products, please file a support ticket.
PiBurn Grip Manual
Learn How To Use PiBurn 4.0
Guide on how to install new all metal magnetic feet upgrade
Please note that these are no longer updated:
PiBurn V3.0 Quick Assembly Guide
PiBurn V2.0 Quick Assembly Guide
We get this question very frequently. Before sending a support request please make yourself familiar with following illustration:
PiBurns and PiBurn Grips wired for Thunder laser cost more to produce than most other brands.
These three reasons significantly increase the cost of materials and labor to build the rotaries.
Some of the cost is passed on the customer.
We understand. We are working very hard on bringing down the costs associated with the Thunder laser rotaries. The premium has decreased in the past 12 months. We think that in the future, we will be able to reduce the premium further, but it will unlikely ever be zero.
We are always adding to our list of compatible brands.
Boss Laser, OMTech, Aeon Laser, Thunder Laser (+$100), Laguna, Koenig, Monport, TTP Sunray
Most Fiber Lasers (add the Fiber mount), Generic Chinese E-Bay lasers, Rabbit Laser, UV Lasers and CO2 Galvo Lasers
XTool, Diode lasers
Universal, Trotec, Epilog
Yes, we ship all over the world, BUT
Please be aware that we do ship to Canada, Australia, most European countries and most countries in Asia, you are completely and solely responsible for the duties and fees imposed by your country on the shipment. Once the package leaves the US, the package is completely your responsibility. Please do the research upfront, as we will not be able to refund any charges imposed by your customs.
We know. In some cases, these fees really add up to change the whole value for you and your business. We understand, but currently cannot do anything to help lower the expense.
All Plugs Matter!
When ordering a PiBurn or the PiBurn Grip you may be asked to choose the plug wiring unless you are ordering for a known laser brand.
All plugs provided with the PiBurn are “aviator type,” as seen on the image below.
The socket (on the left) is found on your laser machine. The plug (on the right) is what comes with PiBurn.
If we are unfamiliar with your laser brand, we may need your help in choosing the correct wiring option.
Here’s an explanation of the currently offered plug configurations that come Plug-n-Play compatible:
Plug Pinouts:
You can also request a wire without plug attached.
PiBurn uses Stepper Motors in Nema 23 sizes. These come in 2 phase and 3 phase types. Please don’t confuse these with electrical phases in your home, it has nothing to do with your home power or voltages.
It’s very important to know type your laser machine can use. This should be same type of stepper motor as one that drives your Y gantry.
If you own a Boss Laser machine, look at your machine model. All laser models LS-16xx and above use 3-phase motor. Anything below that (like LS-1420) is 2-phase.
For Aeon Nova Lasers always choose 2-phase motor!
Best part is that we KNOW what kind of motor is needed for many machine models. During ordering you will be asked to put your Laser Machine make and model. Even if you choose wrong type of motor we’ll know which one you need and will ship you correct type!
Now if you have different laser, easiest way to tell if by looking at your Y axis motor.
All motors sizes less than Nema 23 are 2 phase. Nema 23 motor’s front is 2.3″x2.3″ (or 57mm x 57mm). So if yours is smaller you have 2-phase motor. Otherwise continue identification process…
Check for any labels on the motor that might tell it’s model number. Then search online to see if you can find out motor specs and how many phases it is. No luck? Let’s take a look at
Trace cable that’s coming of your Y axis motor to the plug. Check plug or socket (you might have to look from inside of the machine) to see how many wires it has. 3-phase stepper motor usually have 3 wires, sometimes 6. 2-phase will have 4 wires. Still can’t tell?
Each stepper motor in your laser is connected to it’s own stepper driver. It should look something like on the picture above.
There are 2 ways to tell if it’s 2-phase driver or 3-phase. If you can clearly see model number, search online and read it’s description.
Alternatively take a look at “High Voltage” terminal block. If it has marking “U V W”, it’s a 3 phase driver and you’ll need 3-phase motor.
If it has markings like “A+ A- B+ B-“, it’s a 2-phase driver and you’ll need 2 phase motor!
We’ve been asked why our rotary requires different Circle Pulse (a.k.a. steps pre rotation) than other Rotaries and would if affect engraving speeds. Short answer is, every rotary is different, specifically circle pulse value depends on gear ratio used in Rotary. Ours require specific values due to the gear sizes we use. It could be different from another rotary you’ve used previously, but you do have to change settings to match what is suggested in the PiBurn User Manual.
Answer to the second part of the question is a no, speed of the engraving is not affected by rotary settings at all. It’s only affected by the image size, engraving speed and scan line interval.
You can read more about it in this quick explainer document.
The PiBurn currently comes in two sizes lengthwise. Standard is 566 mm (22.3 in), including motor, Short is 496 mm (19.5 in), including motor, Mini is 397 (15.7 in), including motor.
Great thing about PiBurn is that it can be easily cut to the required size because it’s base is made out of an aluminum extrusion beam that can be easily cut with any saw.
If you ordering for Boss Laser, the following lengths will be selected for you :
In most cases, you need to worry about height clearance from the bottom of the PiBurn rail to the top of the cup you are going to engrave. And then, add focal distance from your laser nozzle to the top of the cup. For example, if you are engraving a 20 oz Polar Camel tumbler, you will need about 5.72″ inches from the bottom of your laser to the top of the cup plus another 8mm (in this case, it’s the distance from the Aeon Mira nozzle to object for 2″ lens) so you will need to have at least 6.1 inches clearance. Many laser machines allow you to remove the honeycomb as well as blades/slats so you can place PiBurn on the laser floor/tray. This will give you maximum clearance.
Standard feet will provide maximum headroom, however if you opted for magnetic feet, that will add about 20.5 mm of height to the PiBurn. However magnetic feet can be completely folded up allowing you to have same clearance as standard feet!