Still expensive for internationals
1 Like
Most of this update was very good news. I am very excited about getting a Glowforge. However, the tube replacement issue will require me to re-evaluate the total cost of ownership.
I was excited to learn about the Glowforge in 2015 both because of the ease-of-use promises as well as the value proposition compared to other lasers on the market. With the current plan, the value proposition has changed although I’ll need to make some calculations to determine how much it has changed. The more I know about the current status of the tube replacement plans at the time Glowforges are ready to ship, the better able I’ll be to evaluate the value proposition and determine whether to keep my order.
Regional repair depots or traveling technicians seem to be a better solution where there will be enough Glowforges in the region. I would also consider participating in a certification program for owners to replace their own tubes or even being part of a regional team to assist those who are not comfortable doing it themselves.
10 Likes
Seeking clarity on tube replacement semantics.
- you are not providing instruction on tube replacement. Are you saying you will not sell a glowforge tube?
- will you supply source information to buy a tube from OEM tube vendor?
5 Likes
Yes, but at least it’s also an upgrade to latest/greatest. Perhaps worth it?
Unfortunately, this is unfeasible for huge swaths of us. 
Worth it if you’re rich, I guess. I surely can’t afford to buy whole new lasers every two years.
3 Likes
So the expectancy has changed from the previous determination?
The previous determination from an earlier thread from 2015 said it was two years of light use and less for heavy use
Pretty much amazed with this last updated. Quite shocked actually…
- tube replacement is a no go
- international orders ship last
- small chance we’ll even hit september based on the “water drop in the sea” wording of “to meet our schedule of shipping all units in July/August”. There was much parsing of the “between May and July” target over the last couple of weeks.
That flag on @bdm sucked, btw 
He didnt shoot any offending words, not even sense of humor or irony in his words. He pointed out A FACT for int’l makers! pretty amazed lack of “community” im sensing here…
18 Likes
So how does this affect overseas users? It would seem ludicrous and ridiculously expensive to ship a unit half way around the world to replace the tube!
5 Likes
I complain about this all the time; people tone police the forum and tend to look down on anyone critical.
6 Likes
It doesn’t only affect international customers. It must be a major feature loss for domestic customers as well. I think tubes usually gradually fade, rather than fail, so a user could order a new one and have no down time rather than having to wait for two way shipping. Also it means one has to store the large packaging in perpetuity.
I still haven’t seen an explanation of how Proofgrade settings will handle tube fade.
10 Likes
You’re talking about my thoughts. As a mechanical engineer I will not send the Glowforge for a tube change to overseas (the costs are insane and the time for the Change much longer than i would be able accept!). In my opinion, technically experienced people must be able to Change the tube by themselves!
For me it would be no Problem if the Change of the Tube takes it’s time and isn’t easy to handle, but in my opinion, it must be possible for technical educated People to Change the Tube.
5 Likes
It’s not tone policing to be extremely tired of people making “fixed that for you huehehehehehe” posts. Please don’t misuse that term.
2 Likes
@Dan throwing the tube news in at the end like it’s no big deal was disappointing. This whole liability thing I can understand but that’s why you have waivers and certification classes.
Shipping my unit off to one central location for tube replacement isn’t going to be ok. What if it gets damaged during shipping after the warranty is up?
What if the turn around time is 3 weeks and I have to shut down for a month due to shipping!
No, either have a tech come out and do it or offer a certification class for me so I can quickly service everyone’s machine in my state/area.
15 Likes
I’ll echo other people’s comments. You need to have local support for tube replacement.
I have two suggestions for this.
1: have field service engineers. It can be a firm you hire out or internal. This will be beneficial because if someone has other issues, a field service engineer can go out and check it out before they ship it back. Also, you can have service contracts. After the warranty is up, you could charge $X per year for full coverage on the Glowforge, including yearly PM (preventative maintenance) and tube replacement as needed.
And/Or
2: This is what everyone above has been suggesting. Have training available for people to be certified in tube replacement. Then sell replacement kits only to them. With this method, people could actually form a business around servicing Glowforge, especially in none US countries.
FYI, I’d also throw my hat in to help out in the Northeast, specifically NE. @mad_macs, we can share, right?
That being said, @ian, if I get certified, I’ll gladly change your laser tube free of charge. All I ask is a place to stay and a tour of Malta. 
15 Likes
Hey @bdm, let me be the first to say you can always cancel!
I think your post was flagged without reason. Different things are important to different people, and I agree that having $1k+ tube repair is pretty much a deal breaker.
4 Likes
But as @dan pointed out it’s a problem with a year’s runway to resolve.
Its not really a year to resolve. The design itself is what the issue is - It not resolvable without changing how things are designed to allow for serviceability. To me, it was a requirement that was not prioritized or even designed to make the tube a serviceable part.
No amount of time will change that - What it will do is give time to figure out how much will it cost to ship units back and forth.
4 Likes
Thanks Joe 
However, I manage most technical stuff myself after a little reading and a Youtube video or two, so I have no fear of replacing the tube myself.
By all means come over for Malta Lasercon 2018, which I may or may not organise!
8 Likes
Thanks for the update and all of the forum discussion. While the statement about the tube to not be user self-serviceable “tubectomy” I’m sure there will be a workable solution in the future either provided by Glowforge or the user community. There are so many options to handle this situation, I’m sure this can be solved. Sometimes we set our expectation on what we think is going to happen then when there is a change we are disappointed.
I was also concerned and disappointed when I first read the news about the tube not being owner self-serviceable. There are already several good suggestion on how this can be handled, which gives me confidence that in two plus years when I need to have the tube replaced there will be good options available.
I’m looking forward to seeing production units shipping in the near future.
3 Likes
@dan, There are loads of individuals on this forum and elsewhere that have done a simillar thing for other companies.
I myself have regularly provided PM and repair services to Torchmate, Messer, and Koike ATT plasma cutting tables and I’m a certified Lincoln Electric technician(all of these cost much more than a glowforge). All of my skills were learned by either certification or other classes and a strong tech suport.
Having regional support technicians is going to be the best way to solve this issue.
9 Likes
I don’t have anything new to add, but want to throw in another voice for the idea of having regional certified support technicians. I know it won’t solve the issue for everyone, but it would take care of a large number of owners.
4 Likes