Focusing/Centering Issues

Hi! I am a new GF owner and I am still learning. I am noticing that my machine is always stuck on homing, centering or focusing? How can this be fixed? It takes a long to complete a simple project due to having to wait, unplug, or restart the Glowforge. Thanks!

Support/Troubleshooting/Stuck Calibrating

1 Like

Hi @cenatabrooks, thank you for reaching out to us, and letting us know about your calibration trouble.

I took a look at the logs for your unit and it looks like your Glowforge was able to connect successfully to your network, but it may be having trouble maintaining a stable connection. When this is the case, you won’t need to go through Wi-Fi setup again, but you may see an “Offline” message.

The most common solution to Wi-Fi challenges is to restart all the devices involved in connecting to the internet.

  1. Turn off the computer, phone, or tablet that you’re using
  2. Turn off your Glowforge
  3. Unplug your modem
  4. Unplug your Wi-Fi access point
  5. Wait one minute, then plug everything back in and turn them back on

If that doesn’t work, we have two more suggestions that often make a big difference:

  1. Improve the signal path between your Glowforge and your Wi-Fi access point
    Wi-Fi signals need a clear path. Remove physical barriers, and move devices closer together:
  • Move your Wi-Fi access point up high and make sure it’s in an open space. Avoid locating your Wi-Fi access point on the ground, under a desk, in a cabinet, or in a corner where its signal can be blocked.
  • Relocate your Wi-Fi access point closer to your Glowforge
  • Move your Glowforge closer to your Wi-Fi access point
  • Install a Wi-Fi range extender closer to your Glowforge
  • Run an ethernet cable and install a second Wi-Fi access point next to your Glowforge
  1. Reduce electronic and Wi-Fi interference
    If your unit is near other devices that use Wi-Fi or a large number of electronics, temporarily turn off other electronics and devices in the area.

I hope this helps. Please let us know how it goes.

Hi Morgan,
Thank you I will try your suggestions. I do have another problem with the Glowforge. On the computer at times the work will be centered according to the camera and then the print comes out way off centered it is messing up my material and having me to throw things away. Also the Glowforge will constantly say that there was a bump and there’s nothing there. I just got the Glowforge and it’s not acting as if it’s brand new.
Thanks

Hi @cenatabrooks - thanks for letting us know about this centering trouble as well as the bump messaging.

The behavior and bump alert suggests that you could be having trouble with a wheel on your carriage plate.

Could you please do the following?

  1. Turn off your Glowforge
  2. Remove the carriage plate from the laser arm
  3. Closely inspect the carriage plate wheels from the top for any cracks or other damage
  4. Closely inspect the sides of the wheels for any cracks or other damage
  5. If you notice anything damaged or out of place, please take a photo and attach it to your reply.

We’ll take a look and go from there, thanks!

1 Like

Thank you, I have done that and there are no cracks or damage that I can see. However, something isn’t quite right with the Glowforge. I was printing tonight and and the laser stopped moving (going back and forth) it just stayed in one spot and burned through the wood.


Also just for clarity this wasn’t my first print after putting the carriage plate back on. I had a successful print and this is something new that’s going on. After that happened I restarted the Glowforge and tried another print and the same thing happened it just stopped moving and the laser burned through another piece of wood. Thanks!

Hey @cenatabrooks - with where things stand currently it sounds like there’s a possibility we may need to ultimately replace your printer to resolve this issue in the future.

With that in mind, I’m going to go ahead and send a follow up email with some other steps I’d like to try before we cross that bridge, and go ahead and close this topic. Please keep an eye out for that email!