Cut settings not working!

I’m having the same issue it seems like other people are having. I was cutting out 1/8" acrylic 3-ply (black/white/black) and had found what I considered the perfect settings. That was a 4-6 weeks ago, today I went to try it again and it’s not cutting it out. I have to make 4 passes and still kind of break it out. Also, the cuts are super sloppy now, the black is bleeding onto the white edges. I am using the same settings as before and even playing around with them to no avail. I cleaned the entire machine hoping that would help, but no. Please help! and Thanks!

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I thought maybe it was just me…

Since you are not using proofgrade material, Glowforge support will not be able to offer assistance. Maybe you could try cutting Proofgrade acrylic and see if the problem is the same. What are your speed and power settings?

Literally doing that as we speak. Hold tight!

It’s always good to know exactly what was cleaned:

There is a window on the left side of the gantry that’s somewhat hidden. A window on the left side of the head. A mirror under the lid of the head. And the lens on the bottom of the head.

It’s also imperative to install the lens back correctly, according to the instructions.

Flat material is also imperative.

If it’s black, that can cause trouble with the auto-focusing. Is the material masked?

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So using Proofgrade worked perfectly. Unfortunately I need the 3-ply material for my business. I’ve heard that acrylic is pretty uniform from batch to batch so it’s hard to believe it’s the material. Did GF change their settings recently? The latest updates page doesn’t have the date of posting so I have no idea if I’m reading an article from Dec '17 or yesterday. It’s a little frustrating. I’m trying to stay positive, after all I am playing with a laser machine!

I cleaned all of the things you mentioned. Fairly certain both the lens and the mirror were installed correctly and nothing had any scratches/distortions on them.

The material is flat and black. Again, 4 weeks ago it was perfect.

Are you telling it you have Proofgrade in the machine? Either way, the settings haven’t been changed. You can test if it’s an auto-focus problem by putting the material height at the actual material height, but then changing the focal height in the job operation to something a hair less (ex. Material height of .200” and focal height of .199”). That will override the autofocus.

Well poppycock! I figured it out. Turns out I made a mistake on my last order from Johnson Plastics and ordered the Satin Black/White/Black and not the LaserMax. I feel foolish, but elated that the problem is solved! I tried my old settings on the original LM and it worked beautifully. Thank you so much for all of your help. This is seriously a grand community!

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Been there, done that, lasered the t-shirt. Glad you got it fixed.

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Glad you figured this out, and happy it is not a problem with the machine.

I’m glad you resolved it! I’m going to close this thread. If you run into any other trouble, please start a new topic, or email us at support@glowforge.com. We’re here to help!