Mount for J-Tech Photonics Laser on Stock MakerBot 2X

I wanted to add a a J-Tech Photonics laser ( http://jtechphotonics.com/?page_id=1702 ) to my MakerBot 2X without drilling a hole in the extruder block as another mount on Thingiverse requires. I just wanted to be able to snap the mount on my stock MakerBot and go.

This mount snaps on top of the extruder heatsinks and shoots the laser beam down between the heatsinks to the build plate. I had to rotate the fans to get their wires out of the way of the beam.

I lose a little bit of carriage motion in the Y-axis but it is easy to unsnap the laser mount when needed.

The mount is a little wobbly but holds the beam steady as long as you are not doing lots of high speed accelerations. I could probably add some wings in the Y-direction but so far I haven't needed it.

The laser is a great add-on for the MakerBot. I've had good results engraving wood with raster and vector graphics. The laser packs enough punch to do a good job of burning away etch masking for making PC boards. I used flat black Rustoleum spray paint for the mask.

Disclaimers - You've been warned:

1. Don't look in the laser (duh...), wear laser safety goggles and watch out for strays.

2. This probably will void your MakerBot warranty .

3. It's pretty easy to blow out your mightyboard, so be careful.

Enjoy!

I flopped the part so the large flat surface is on the build plate. Turned on supports. I used ABS because the laser can warm up and you don't want the mount to become taffy.