CNC Magia Roja v3 – Motorized Z and 30W Optical Laser

Overview

CNC Magia Roja v3 is the current machine in a three-generation desktop CNC line that my father, Saul, and I design and build. It cuts and engraves with a Laser Tree K30 (30 W optical, 450 nm, integrated air assist) on a 500 × 500 mm nominal work area. For the first time in the line it also has a motorized Z axis and a frame designed for an interchangeable milling head.

The brand that sells the machine is VELO inc. The commercial landing is live at cnc.velasquezlopez.com. Earlier machines are documented here: v1 and v2.

My Contribution

I own electronics, electrical design, and control. Saul owns mechanical design and the physical build.

• Selected and integrated the Laser Tree K30 on its own 24 V / 5 A supply, separate from the 12 V / 10 A control rail.
• Kept the proven Arduino + CNC Shield + GRBL platform and moved the drivers to DRV8825 at 1/8 microstepping.
• Wired normally-closed limit switches on all three axes, including Z+ on D12, and brought $H homing online — Z first, then X/Y.
• Measured the real travel and locked soft limits at 505 × 490 × 80 mm (Z travel is 85 mm, with 5 mm of margin).
• Connected the K30 PWM/TTL signal, added interior LED lighting on the 12 V rail, and ran the first pine accuracy test at 3000 mm/min and 85% power.
• Built the commercial landing for VELO inc.

Process

v1 (2021–2024) started as a tutorial-inspired aluminum CNC and ended up running more than eight hours a day. v2 (2024–2026) replaced belts with a stiffer motion system and a cooled controller; we sold that machine in 2026. v3 exists because that sale validated the line and left the bench empty for a larger, more capable successor.

Saul finished the mechanics first: a larger black cabinet, aluminum gantry, linear guides, honeycomb bed, and the K30 already mounted. I started the electronics in July 2026. By 17 August 2026 the machine was no longer just a frame — homing, soft limits, the laser signal, and a clean accuracy pattern on pine were working.

Electronics is still the active phase. Cable drag chains, a dual-rail emergency stop, and the milling-motor pick are still open. The milling head is designed into the machine; the motor model is not selected yet, so I do not treat rotary cutting as a finished capability.

Technical Specifications

Only values measured on this machine or taken from the K30 datasheet are listed. Unknowns stay unmarked rather than guessed.

| Item | Value | | --- | --- | | Nominal work area | 500 × 500 mm | | Measured XY envelope (soft limits) | 505 × 490 mm | | Measured Z travel | 85 mm (soft limit 80 mm) | | Motion | X, Y, and motorized Z — NEMA 17 on every axis | | Laser | Laser Tree K30, 30 W optical, 450 nm, integrated air assist | | Laser supply | Dedicated 24 V / 5 A | | Control supply | 12 V / 10 A | | Controller | Arduino + CNC Shield, GRBL firmware | | Drivers | DRV8825, 1/8 microstepping | | Homing | X, Y, and Z — normally-closed switches; $H raises Z first | | Work surface | Honeycomb bed | | Enclosure | Black cabinet, red acrylic lid, interior LED strip, exhaust hose | | Software | GRBL senders: LightBurn, LaserGRBL | | External size / weight | > PENDING: height and mass have not been recorded |

The K30 manufacturer also publishes single-pass cutting depths (pine 20 mm, plywood 15 mm, acrylic 30 mm). Those are vendor figures, not cuts I have logged on this machine yet.

Architecture / Stack

• Mechanics: desktop cabinet with an aluminum gantry, linear guides, honeycomb bed, and a head mount designed to swap the laser for a rotary milling motor.
• Laser: Laser Tree K30 on its own 24 V rail, with the air-assist hose that ships on the module.
• Control: Arduino running GRBL on a CNC Shield; three DRV8825 drivers; PWM/TTL into the shield's spindle pin so laser mode ($32=1) can vary power.
• Limits: NC switches, Y− and Y+ in series on the same input, Z+ on D12 so hardware PWM stays free for the laser.
• Power: two rails on purpose — 12 V for motion, lighting, and control; 24 V only for the laser.
• Interface: USB to any GRBL sender. No closed cloud lock-in.

Results

• The third machine in a line that already produced daily work (v1) and sold to a customer (v2).
• A real work envelope around half a square meter, with motorized focus/depth instead of a fixed-height head.
• Optical laser power moved from ~10 W on v2 to 30 W on the K30.
• Control is past the first bring-up: three-axis homing, measured soft limits, and a pine accuracy test at 3000 mm/min / 85% that produced a clean pattern.
• A public product page is online at cnc.velasquezlopez.com, with a six-month maintenance plan of three included services.

PENDING: record external height and weight; confirm X/Y transmission type on the physical machine; pick and mount the milling motor; replace application renders with photographs of parts actually made on v3.

Thanks for reading! I am Nicolas Velasquez Lopez (@unmecaniko), passionate about knowledge and always giving my best in every project. If you have a big idea, a question, or just want to share something, feel free to reach out!