Handheld Laser Welding Machine

Handheld Laser Welding Machines – The Complete FAQ Guide

Do you believe that robotic arm welders are better than handheld laser welding machines? That’s what we’ll be finding out in this guide!

Not only will you learn about these equipment, we’ll also educate you in terms of working with the best handheld laser welding machine manufacturers in the industry!

Without further ado – let’s get onto it!

What is a Handheld Laser Welding Machine?

FUN FACT: Laser is short for “Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation.”

Worker using handheld laser welder to weld on the workpiece

Its title pretty much tells you what it is.

Handheld laser welders are machines that can help you with laser welding and are portable. They’re light, and all electronics fit in just a single frame that’s easy to carry around.

Basics of Laser Welding

Understanding laser welding is as easy as how you understand general and basic welding.

Laser welding/cutting using an automatic welder

Firstly, laser welding is a process of joining or fusing two (2) or more pieces of metal.

The process involves a light laser beam that is highly focused and is applied to a workpiece. In the process, the heat that’s generated by the laser is what makes the welding possible.

You can make laser welding work in two (2) ways: keyhole welding and conduction limited welding; we’ll go deeper into that a bit later.

Laser Cutting vs. Laser Welding

While you’ll be able to achieve both processes using a single machine, they’re different processes.A laser welding machine cutting a piece of a workpiece

Laser cutting is when you want to achieve a cut or a slice through a conductive material. It can be any type of conductive material.

In laser cutting, the laser beam is meant to go at the deepest, slicing or cutting through the workpiece.

Laser welding, on the other hand, is a welding process in which its goal is to connect or link various workpieces together.

What Do You Use Laser Welding For?

Because the heat source from laser welding is stronger, it can help you create stronger and more reliable seams at higher speeds.

Laser cutting/welding a part of a car or an automotive vehicle

A lot of industries and sectors rely on it; the most common ones include:

• Automotive Industry
• Aerospace Industry
• Assembly and Fabrication Industry
• Engineering and IT Sectors
• Construction and Structural Industries
• And Many More

Different Types of Laser Welding

Remember conduction welding and keyhole welding? – They’re the types of laser welding you can perform to accomplish the welding and the cutting you need.

Keyhole Welding

This process involves the heating of the workpiece or the metal in a way that vaporization of the contact surface occurs.

Thus, creating a keyhole that has a plasma-like condition with temperatures that go upwards of 10,000 Kelvin.

You’ll be able to achieve keyhole welding if you utilize high-powered lasers that go upwards of 105 W per mm2.

Conduction Limited Welding  

Conduction welding is a procedure that involves heating the metal just above its melting point. As opposed to keyhole welding, you don’t need the contact surface to vaporize.

Outputs of conduction limited welding would lie between medium to moderate weld strength. A key benefit of this type of welding is the smoothness and the aesthetic appeal of the final weld.

How Do Laser Welders Work?

The principle of laser welders and welding torches is simple: the laser beam will be the agent used to heat the surface of the materials that you would fuse and join together.

Image of how a laser welds through objects and materials

Laser welders accomplish this by utilizing a pulse of light that has a small area of focus. The surface of the workpiece absorbs this, creating the heat.

How Strong Can Handheld Laser Welders Be?

Handheld laser welders deal with light, therefore, we calculate its strength via the speed of how the light travels.

Oftentimes, laser welding machines provide speeds that can be up to three (3) to five (5) times faster than MIG welding; this means five (5), even ten (10) times faster than traditional and regular TIG welding.

If it’s strength you’re worried about, you wouldn’t be dismayed with handheld laser welders.

What is Fiber Laser Welding?

Fiber laser welding is just one of the multiple laser processes.

A robotic arm performing fiber laser welding on a workpiece

It’s a welding process that utilizes solid-state lasers where optical fibers with decreased rare earth element levels are used as the medium.

You can understand it better as it’s the typical process you see in which laser welding is done.

How Do You Use a Handheld Laser Welder?

Using a handheld laser welder is not rocket science. It only requires you to know what you need to do, as well as the results you’ve been looking for.

1. The first step is to turn the engine on. Make sure that you connect it with the appropriate voltage required by the machine
2. Activate the emergency stop button, as well as the laser generator button. This will turn the screen or the interface on
3. Activate the laser source and the water cooler/chiller
4. Specify the power, mode, and the speed using the interface depending on the thickness of the material
5. Grab the laser welder and adjust the focal length of the nozzle
6. Test it using scrap materials to see if the specifications are right

That’s it! You now know how to use and operate a handheld laser welding machine.

What are Handheld Fiber Laser Welders?

It’s a type of welding machine that utilizes optical fibers.

Since it’s handheld, it’s not going to be a challenge for you to transport it from one location to another.

Is There a Laser Welding Machine for Stainless Steel?

Laser welding, in itself, is a type of procedure you can use for semi-conductive and conductive materials.

Handheld laser welder for stainless steel

Therefore, you’ll be able to use it to weld and cut mild and stainless steel.

Handheld Laser Welders for Sale

You will be able to purchase a wide variety of handheld laser welding machines in the market.

There are a lot of handheld laser welder manufacturers you can trust. The most popular ones that don’t have an expensive rate are:

• Leister Technologies
• STL Group
• Varibend

These handheld laser welder suppliers don’t have lucrative rates. However, they might not meet the expectations you have when it comes to features and functionality.

Since they offer entry-level laser welding equipment, you might not be able to receive some of the qualities you’re looking for.

Usual Handheld Laser Welding Machine Price

When you perform a search online, you’ll encounter a lot of varying prices about handheld laser welders.

Some machines are priced under $1,000 – but some that can go as high as $50,000.

You’ll confuse yourself when you look online. If you want real results and answers, it’s best to contact a manufacturer and ask about the rates of their equipment.

Different manufacturers offer different prices. There can’t be a median rate for them. To sketch up a rough idea on how much it costs, moderate machines would be about $8,000 to $15,000.

High-tech and advanced handheld laser welding machines would have rates upwards of $15,000 but lower than $25,000.

Parts of a Handheld Laser Welder

In order for you to fully understand a handheld laser welder, you need to know its parts.

Image of a completely set-up handheld laser welder

The components involved that make handheld laser welders function are:

• Main engine
• Water cooler or water cooling chiller
• Switch
• Screen or the control system
• Handheld laser head
• Optical fibers

The handheld laser head is comprised of the following:

• Main switch or button
• Focus mode
• Protection lens
• Focus adjustment nozzle
• Gas pipe protection

Before purchasing yours, make sure that they have all of these parts. Missing one of these can give you bad results; and can even disrupt or mess up your projects.

What are the Advantages of Laser Welding?

Laser welding can bring you a ton of advantages. The most common ones of the bunch include:

Ultimate and Supreme Accuracy and Precision

Probably the main advantage that you can get is the accuracy of the weld. Since you’ll be able to control it manually, it’s up to your movement on how the weld will go.

Even if you are to weld small parts and components, it wouldn’t be a problem with laser welding.

Consistency in the Welds

Since you set the speed, power, and mode manually, you can expect that your welds will be consistent – even if you need to weld large volumes of workpieces.

Add the fact that you can produce your welds faster, laser welding truly is something you need to consider.

Ability to Create and Produce Complex Welds

Some welding techniques such as MIG welding and TIG welding aren’t the best for complex welds; this is because of the limited electrodes available.

That’s when laser welding goes up a notch. No matter how complicated a certain weld seems, laser welders will be able to reach them.

Stronger and More Durable Welds

Last but most definitely not the least is the fact that you can have stronger welds.

You wouldn’t need filler materials to weld it, which can provide excellent strength and durability.

Those are just some of the most sought after benefits laser welding has.

Benefits of Using Handheld Laser Welders

Now that you know the advantages of laser welding, what benefits could handheld laser welders have?

Let’s go on and discuss the perks of utilizing handheld or manual laser welding machines.

Better Control

Control in terms of mode, speed, power, heat, etc., and control in the movement. You’ll be able to set it to the minimum, or the maximum depending on your preference.

Versatility of Welds

Another advantage of using handheld lasers is the fact that you can use it for a wide range of objects and materials.

In addition, you’ll be able to weld dissimilar objects and materials, too!

No Electrodes Needed

We also know that you don’t have to use any type of electrode for it. Therefore, you can expect less costs and damages on your outputs.  

Easy to Focus

The laser beam you’ll use for the weld or the cut is easy to set to focus.

You’ll have optical instruments as guides for alignment, and you’ll never have to think about quality.

Other benefits include:

• No protection required against vacuum or radiation
• Can be focused in a small area
• Can be operated at a small space

Many people choose automatic laser welding machines over handheld ones. While that’s fine, starting it manually is better since you’ll learn a lot from it, too.

Understanding Handheld Laser Welding Machines

Handheld laser welding machines is the mixture of both traditional and high-tech welding machinery.

Image of handheld laser welding machines in a manufacturing factory

It’s a type of equipment you can use to perform laser welding but is operated manually, thus the term “handheld.”

How does a Laser Welding Work?

Laser welding works just like conventional welding.

By using high density laser beam, laser welding machine sprays high temperature laser to the edges of joined metal.

The heat then creates a weld by melting the metals so they can stick to one another.

How Strong is Laser Welding?

Nowdays, laser welding machine with power ranging from hundreds of Watts to 60 kW are available on sale.

This range of power is strong enough to conduct welding process comparable to TIG and MIG Welding.

What Types of Laser are Used for Welding?

Fiber laser, YAG pulsed laser, and continuous wave laser are the three most common laser used for welding.

Fiber laser is used for variety of welding covering from electronics to automotive industry.

YAG pulsed laser is suitable for large spot weld like in transportation manufacturing.

And continuous wave laser is ideal for high speed and deep penetrating welding such as in small tool manufacturing.

What is the Difference between Laser Welding and Conventional Welding?

The difference is in the heat source.

Conventional welding, such as TIG (Tungsten Inert Gas) Welding and MIG (Metal Inert Gas) Welding, uses shielding gas to create an inert material that can heat up the metals.

Laser welding, on the other hand, uses high density laser beam to heat up the metal.

What is the Advatage of Laser Welding?

Laser welding has tons of advantages some of which include:

It can perform a welding process with high accuracy and precision.

It is capable of connecting complicated join in high speed.

There is no burr formation on the joining result.

It can perform repeatedly and consistently.

It can perform low heat application that that minimizes the distortion on the material used.

The welding result is relatively stronger.

What is the Disadvantage of Laser Welding?

The only disadvantage of laser welding is the cost.

Compared to conventional welding a laser welding machine is highly costly.

What is the Best Handheld Laser Welding Machine for Steel?

Any laser welding machine with enough power would be able to weld steel.

There is, however, one standard handheld laser welding machine which is common to use in simple manufacturing process.

You can look it up here.

Who Invented Laser Welding?

There is no clear record of who first used laser in wielding process.

Welding itself has been practiced by human since 2000 years ago with fire as the heat source.

After the invention of the high power laser, it is only natural that people would adopt it for welding.

The unique trait of laser is just so fit for manufacturing process especially welding.

Does a Laser Welding Use filler?

To strengthen the joint point between two metals, sometimes filler metal is used in the welding process.

The most common filler metal used is metal wire.

During the welding process, the metal wire is melted on the welding spot to add additional sticky element between the metals.

As a result, it would strengthen the bond of the metals.

Where is Laser Beam Welding Used?

Laser beam welding is commonly used in industrial areas that involves metal and plastic in the manufacturing process.

What is the Application of Laser Welding?

The application of laser welding is mainly in manufacturing industry related to metal and plastic.

Metal-based industry that applies laser welding in its manufacturing process includes shipbuilding, automobile, aerospace, fitness equipment, mechanical cabinets, elevator, kitchenware, sheet metal industry and so on.

And the plastic-based industry that applies laser welding in the manufacturing process includes toys, stationary, house tools, kitchenware industry and so on.

What is the Two Process of  Laser Welding?

The two process of laser welding are conduction limited welding and keyhole welding.

Conduction limited welding occurs when the power density is low so the beam only touches the surface of the material and do not penetrate it.

Keyhole welding is the common process conducted in laser welding.

In contrast with conduction limited welding, keyhole welding occurs when the power density is high so the beam can penetrate the material.

What is Laser Screw Welding?

Laser screw welding is a welding technique used mostly on automobile industry.

This technique is believed to be highly superior over the conventional resistance spot welding.

The high heat caused by the conventional resistance spot welding can cause the metal joint to deform or distort.

In order to avoid it, the laser has to stop at regular interval which is time consuming.

In contrast, laser screw welding technique uses the laser to weld the metal joint together in much faster speed.

It also generates so little heat.

As a result, the deformation and distortion issues together with the time consuming issues can be solved.

What is the Limitation of Laser Beam Welding?

Below are the limitations of laser beam welding:

The joints must be accurately positioned right under the beam.

Rapid cooling rate may cause cracking in some metal.

The maximum joint thickness that can be welded is limited. Welding penetration of thickness bigger than 19 mm is difficult.

High reflective and high thermal conductive materials like Al and Cu alloy may affect the stabilization of the welding spot.

Can You Purchase Handheld Laser Welding Machines in China?

Yes, there are tons of handheld laser welding machine manufacturers in China.

A handheld laser welding machine from China

As a matter of fact, you’ll be able to find many trustworthy suppliers and manufacturing companies there!

The main downside of working with Chinese handheld laser welder manufacturers would be their rates and prices.

How Much Do Welder Lasers Cost?

There are a lot of handheld laser welding machines in the market, but the most typical ones come in the range of $15,000 to $30,000.

You can purchase handheld laser welders from manufacturers in under $10,000, but your expectation mustn’t be too high.

There could be less functionality, fewer features, and more chances of it being damaged or broken easily.

Benefits and Drawbacks of Handheld Laser Welding Machines

Utilizing handheld laser welding machines has its pros and cons.

A worker having freedom on how he wants to weld – an advantage of handheld laser welders

Here’s a quick summary of the advantages of using handheld laser welding machines:

• You wouldn’t be required to use electrodes. Therefore, you’ll have no fear of electrode pollution and/or damage
• Even if it’s handheld, the laser beam is easy-to-focus. All your projects and workpieces will be precise and accurate
• You don’t have to work in an open area, you can use handheld laser welding machines even in small and enclosed areas
• You’ll be able to weld a lot of both similar and dissimilar materials
• The technical parameters of handheld laser welders can be controlled via a computer. This makes it easier and more convenient to program
• You will be able to reduce the heat input to the minimum amount

Those are some of the benefits of using handheld laser welders.

Does it have any disadvantages?

• The weld can quickly solidify, which might mean more work for you in terms of monitoring
• Both the workpiece and the laser beam must be at the closes and the most accurate range
• Unlike other types of welding, the thickness of weldability is limited. Workpieces that are 19mm and above might not be welded properly and appropriately
• Handheld laser welding machines are known to be one of the most expensive welding equipment

While these drawbacks seem too much, the pros clearly outweigh the cons.

Are There Handheld Laser Welding Machines for Stainless Steel?

Worker uses a handheld laser welder to weld stainless steel

As a part of its general use, you can use handheld laser welding machines for galvanized sheet metal, stainless steel sheets, aluminum sheets, and many more materials!

Are Chinese Handheld Laser Welding Machines Manufacturers Trustworthy?

A lot of people think that Chinese handheld laser welding machines are low quality.

An example of a Chinese-made handheld laser welder

As a matter of fact, they’re not – they’re even the other way around! There are a lot of high quality Chinese handheld laser welders from trusted manufacturers!

Industries That Use Handheld Laser Welding Machines

The wide complexity of handheld laser welding machines makes it useful in a number of sectors and industries.

Fiber handheld laser welding machine being used to create a part of an aircraft

Part of the most common industries that benefit well from the utilization of handheld laser welders include:

• Automotive and Aerospace Industry
• Electrical Industry
• Precision Machinery Industry
• Railroads and Railways Industries
• Communications Industry
• Shipbuilding and Maritime Industries
• And Many More!

What are the Technical Specifications of Handheld Laser Welding Machines?

Before purchasing a handheld laser welding machine, it is just right to know its technical parameters or specifications.

This will help you find the best machine for your needs.

The most relevant and the most impacting technical parameters of handheld laser welders are:

• Welding Thickness
• Laser Wavelength
• Welding Speed Range
• Welding Gap
• Water Cooling Feature
• Fiber Length
• Electromechanical Capabilities
• Total Power
• Total Weight

By knowing all of these, you’ll easily be able to find the handheld laser welding machine you need!

Which Handheld Laser Welding Machine Manufacturer Can You Trust?

There are a lot of handheld laser welding machine manufacturing companies worldwide.

Manufacturers and suppliers in the west might be the most attractive, but they’re not the most ideal.

Chinese handheld laser welder manufacturers are the best for many reasons including price, product and service inclusions, material, etc.

While you’ll find endless Chinese handheld laser welding machine manufacturers, you can never go wrong if you decide to work with us here at SOHO Cutting.

Why Should You Trust SOHO Cutting?

For over a decade, SOHO Cutting has been the best and the most trusted handheld laser welding machine manufacturers in the whole of China.

SOHO Cutting, the top and the most sought after handheld laser welder supplier in China

We here at SOHO Cutting have a complex and a versatile range of handheld laser welders. You can ask us here at SOHO Cutting for pre-made laser welding machines, CNC cutters, and other kinds of cutters.

SOHO Cutting has been standing as the most sought after handheld laser welding machine manufacturer by tons of companies including Copley Controls, Yaskawa, Hiwin, ABB, IPG Photonics, and many more!

• Our main markets are stretched across the globe! We cater to American, European, Middle-Eastern, Asian companies and more!
• We can offer excellent custom handheld laser welding machines, depending on your need!
• We’re equipped with globally accepted licenses and certificates!
• All your orders will arrive within 2 to 3 weeks!
• SOHO Cutting offers a clean 1-year warranty for all the machinery and the equipment you order

Fill out our online form and be given a free quotation for the handheld laser welding equipment you need.

Work with SOHO Cutting and experience working with the best and the most trusted handheld laser welding machine manufacturer in the industry!

Laser Welding Machine Best Guide | How to buy in 2021

Due to its most application than traditional welding, laser welding is most widely used in the industry. In the entertainment electronic market, medical equipment technology and the PV (photovoltaic) industry, the laser welding machines are in high demand.

Want to buy an affordable laser welding machine for custom made metal?

See the best buyer’s guide for CNC laser welders, operators and beginners in 2021. With professional customer support, we will provide you with the best laser welding machines in 2021 to meet your needs.

What is a Laser Welding Machine?

A laser welding machine is welding equipment that uses a fibre laser to connect sections of metal or thermoplastics. The laser beam fibre supplies a focused heating system used for the spot weld, edge of the cord, joint of the lap, seam, kissing welding button, deep welding, high levels narrower solders. In automation applications such as the automotive industry, the process is also used in high volumes. It is based on the socket or the pull model.

Moreover, fibre lasers can be applied for a range of applications from very small pieces to welding of thicker materials in the aerospace and automotive industries, widely used by manufacturers of engineering, medical and electronics industries. Fibre lasers are a multidimensional and affordable way of achieving spot welds of high quality.

Laser Welder and It’s Applications

The laser welding system has a wide variety of applications including fine welding in medical technology, high-precision spot welding, welding in equipment, mould manufacture and full vehicle bodies in auto construction.

Though, the laser soldering machine is used primarily to connect various components to be joined at high laser soldering rates, low thermal loss and thin and narrow welding edges.

In the modern manufacturing process, laser welding is a popular joining method with the opportunity to monitor the online performance, its excellent automation and its high laser soldering rates.

But, without all the benefits of laser, modern and effective methods are always unlikely. Thus, the different performance and thickness of sheet metal are transformed into personalized blanks via the welding resistance spot replaced with laser welding.

Laser Welder and It’s Features

Laser deposit welding

Redeveloped quality repair and upgrade.

Spot and seam welding

Through smaller welding spots to continuous sheets.

Scanner welding

No waste of time by moving workpieces or managing heads.

Laser welding of polymers

A balanced approach for maximum energy and ideal surface connections.

Tube and profile welding

Optimized tube and profile laser welding.

Laser Welding and It’s Benefits

Creating Complicated Joints

You can weld various materials and areas that would be too hard to reach using more conventional welding techniques with laser welding technology. Laser technology can handle difficult joints.

Precision

One of the key advantages of laser welding is that it provides high precision and power. Laser welder can be used without loss to weld the tiny pieces.

Low Heat

The low heat usage of the laser welding technology minimizes part loss. It is also the chosen laser welding procedure for those who manufacture luxury manufacture, such as custom-made jewellery. Laser beams use very local power such that contact-free application is possible, which ensures that the pieces are mounted with less heat expansion.

High Strength

Laser technology makes high strength welds possible for producers. Lasers offer excellent welding quality and clean processing, which makes manufacturers preferable, especially in the medical field where medical device and components are specifically safe.

Consistent

Manufacturers are selecting laser welders as their preferred welding tool number one because it enables reliable and continuous welding. It is a high-speed welding strategy and far more flexible than other traditional techniques. The laser welding devices allow excellent repeatability, making it flexible for companies to reduce unit costs significantly.

Laser Welding Machine – Which Laser to Choose?

Either of the following two types of lasers can be used as a laser welding system –

1. Pulsed laser
2. Continuous laser

The choice between one and the other depends on the thickness between the two. Consider the advantages of the two.

Advantages of Pulsed Laser

• The pulse-pulls are made of sheet metal, gold-pulse chains ties, titanium pacemakers and razor blades.
• Such a laser avoids melting or deformation of the metal.
• Appropriate for thin and light metals.

Advantages of Continuous Laser

• This is more expensive than the pulsed laser. It also decreases the cost of service.
• Most effective in highly resistant metals.
• Suitable for dense sections welding.
• If you use a metal or component that is too small, you will experience problems. The laser can damage, melt, or deform the portion in such cases.

Welding Machine – Which Configuration to Choose?

For welding machines, there are three types of configurations.

1. Manual
2. Semi-automatic and
3. Automatic

However, your configuration choice will depend on your demand, whether small or huge and your workstation’s setup.

Manual

This requires considerable ability and skill and ease of maintenance in comparison with semi-automatic and automatic devices. The operator has to control the sequence of parts for welding. Best suited for production in small levels.

Semi-Automatic Laser

In a semi-automatic laser welding machine, the controller manually loads the pieces in the welding fixture. They are bigger than hand welding machines and have turntables. Ideal for medium and large industries.

Automatic Laser

These are the biggest laser welders. There is no human interference in these devices and so the user is relieved. The existence of a loading and unloading station reduces time and makes efficiency profits. The devices are robotically placed and handle the part under the laser automatically. Best for large-scale industries. However, it’s costly.

Laser Welding Types

The following can be classified as various laser welding processes –

Plates

Four types of welding processes are available.

1. Butt welding
2. End welding
3. Central penetration melting welding
4. Central piercing melting welding

Butt welding requires high-quality butt joint and is normally used for automatic welding or manual welding.

Wire to Wire

There are four different methods of manufacturing, including –

1. Wire to wire butt welding
2. Cross welding
3. Parallel lap welding
4. T-shaped welding

Such welding is not usually suited for automatic welding, manual welding or semi-automatic welding.

Metal Wire and Block Component

Laser welding can efficiently attach metal wires with a block element and randomly size the block element. The geometric measurements of the wire components should be taken into consideration in the welding.

Assembly and Sealing of Different Blocks

The joints of parts, such as sensors, include the seal welding and assembly welding.

Repair of Block Objects

Laser welding wire has been melted and placed on the laser surface. Generally suited for mould repair and repair of other items.