Not sure exactly how to explain this best.
The laser was not firing a beam, then I noticed a small, bright glow halfway down the CO2 tube, as though the beam got diverted somehow and was hitting the inside of the tube, cutting its way out. I stopped the machine immediately and opened it, and smelled a burning smell, though nothing was on fire. Attached are pictures with the spot circled.
That’s strange.
Was it firing and burning material in a job and then stopped burning the material as the job was continuing?
Yes, it was cutting just fine then abruptly stopped, and that’s when it started, uh, shooting itself if you will.
Not sure but note the time and date and hang loose here until Support chimes in. Perhaps yo can get a flashlight and inspect the beam path. Judging from the description, it looks like it might be an issue before the beam even comes out.
Any clues from examining the tube and the behavior of the coolant? If there were a hole, coolant would definitely come out. But there may be a stress point in the tube now if the beam was deflected somehow. I don’t recall symptoms like this. Hope it is easily taken care of for you.
I’m sorry for the trouble with your Glowforge. Thank you for the detailed report and photos you’ve shared. I see that you emailed us about this, and I’ve sent you a response there with next steps, so I’m going to close this forum thread and we’ll continue to assist you via email.
