XTool F1 Ultra/en

ℹ️ New to Happylab?
If you are using the xTool F1 Ultra for the first time, please work through this page from top to bottom.

ℹ️ What can you laser?
The xTool F1 Ultra has two lasers:
🔵 Blue light for wood, cardboard, paper, vegetable-tanned leather, fabric and opaque acrylic
🔴 Infrared for metals such as stainless steel, brass or aluminium

The maximum working area of the F1 Ultra is 220 x 220 mm, the maximum material height is 145 mm.
Ideal for engraving small parts. For large cuts and thick sheets, our other laser cutters are the better choice.

🚨 Important
Use only after passing the online test or completing the training.
Never leave the laser cutter running unattended.
Only laser with the protective lid fully closed.
The laser cutter and the PC may only be operated by Happylab members.
Do not move or lift the machine.

🛡️ Safety

🔥 In case of emergency

Fire in the laser cutter

Press the emergency stop on the control terminal.
Keep the protective lid closed for a moment – small flames often go out on their own.
If it keeps burning: open the lid and smother the fire with the fire blanket. The fire blanket is located at the Speedy 400.
Inform the Happylab team – even if the fire is already out. Only release the emergency stop afterwards.

Pungent smell or irritated airways

Stop the job.
Get some fresh air and inform the Happylab team.

🔒 Safety features

⚠️ The protective lid protects your eyes
The F1 Ultra is a class 4 laser, and the infrared laser is invisible. That is why you only laser with the lid closed.

The laser pauses automatically if the lid is opened, the machine is moved or a flame is detected. If xTool Studio reports "Flame detected": check immediately!
Never disable these features. They do not replace your supervision.

⚠️ Before every start

✔ Is the material suitable for lasering? Check here: Unsuitable materials (German)
Caution: No PVC (often found in plastics and faux leather), only vegetable-tanned leather, no items with a rechargeable or regular battery!
✔ Is the machine damaged or dirty? If it is damaged, do not use it and inform the team.
✔ Is the emergency stop released?
✔ Is the protective lid fully closed?

🧹 After working

Wait until the extraction flap closes – only then open the lid
Careful: metal parts can be hot
Remove workpieces and leftover material, clean the work area
Put accessories back

✅ Your first laser job

Checklist

☐ Tap your membership card

☐ Check the machine for damage and dirt

☐ Place the material

☐ Measure the material height / set the focus – the light dots must be on the material

☐ Take a picture of the work area

☐ Prepare your file (your own software or xTool Studio)

☐ Select laser and material in xTool Studio

☐ Fully close the protective lid

☐ Do a test cut

☐ Start the job: "Start" in xTool Studio, then the Start/Stop button on the control terminal

🛠️ Step by step

🎬 Video tutorials coming soon – until then, you will find all the steps here.

1. Activate the machine

Hold your membership card to the card reader. The lid can stay open, and there is no homing run.
Quick check: Is the machine damaged or dirty? Is the emergency stop released?
Open xTool Studio and check that the F1 Ultra is connected.

2. Place the material

Lay the material flat in the working area and secure warped material.
For cutting, place the material on the cutting support – this reduces burn marks on the back.
Do not place reflective metals in the centre, but close to the fan. In the centre, the beam is reflected straight back into the laser source and can damage it.

3. Set the focus

Automatic: Place the material so that the red and blue light dots are on the material – otherwise the measurement will be wrong. Then close the lid and click Auto-Measure in xTool Studio.
Manual – for transparent, reflective, fluffy or very dark material: Use the control terminal to move the laser module up or down until the red and blue light dots overlap.

4. Take a picture of the work area

In xTool Studio, click Refresh background. The camera takes a photo of the work area, and you place your design on it.
⚠️ Always focus first, then take the picture – otherwise the position will be off.

5. Prepare your file

Import a file or draw directly in xTool Studio. SVG and DXF can be cut and engraved, PNG and JPG can only be engraved. Export AI, EPS and CDR files as SVG first.

6. Choose your settings

Processing type: cut, score or engrave
Laser: blue light for non-metals, infrared for metal
Select your material in the material list – xTool Studio suggests power and speed
Use Framing to check that the design fits on the material

7. Do a test cut

The material settings are only guidelines. First laser a small test object in a corner of the material.

Not cut through → reduce speed
Engraving too dark → reduce power or increase speed
Engraving too light → increase power or reduce speed
Result blurry → check the focus

8. Start the job

Fully close the protective lid.
Click Start in xTool Studio. As soon as the job is ready, press the Start/Stop button on the control terminal.
Stay with the machine. Pause with the Start/Stop button; in an emergency, use the emergency stop.

📚 The F1 Ultra in detail

📐 Technical data

Laser	20 W blue diode laser (455 nm) + 20 W infrared fibre laser (1064 nm)
Working area	220 x 220 mm
Max. material height	145 mm
Max. speed	10,000 mm/s
Cutting (manufacturer data)	Wood up to 15 mm, acrylic up to 12 mm, metal sheets 0.2–0.4 mm – usually several passes needed
Laser class	4
Dimensions / weight	273 x 373 x 492 mm / 14.7 kg
Software	xTool Studio

📂 File types

Vector files (cut, score, engrave): SVG, DXF
Image files (engrave only): PNG, JPG/JPEG, BMP, WEBP, TIF, GIF
Projects and other files: XCS/XS, PDF, PSD

❌ AI, EPS and CDR are not supported – export them as SVG.
💡 Convert text in SVG files to paths first, otherwise it will not be displayed.
💡 Problems with an SVG? Save it in Inkscape as Plain SVG.

🔦 Laser sources: Which laser for what?

	🔵 Blue light	🔴 Infrared
Materials	Wood, MDF, cardboard, paper, vegetable-tanned leather, fabric, cork, opaque acrylic, coated metal, stone and slate	Stainless steel, brass, copper, aluminium, gold, silver, ceramics, stone and slate
Good for	Dark engravings, scoring, cutting, relief in wood	Very fine engravings, deep engraving, colour engraving on stainless steel, relief in metal, cutting thin sheets
Caution	Transparent acrylic does not work – the blue light passes through it.	The beam is invisible. Focus reflective metals manually. Parts get hot. Forbidden: lead (e.g. solder), cadmium, beryllium, magnesium.

💡 Rule of thumb: Non-metal → blue light. Metal → infrared. Stone and slate work with both – do a test cut.
🏔️ Relief (embossing): The laser removes material in many layers. The template is a greyscale image: dark = deep, light = high.