Glowforge will not Center

I had already tried the router and computer reboot after finding a post you had made on another thread. None of this seems to help.

What you’re describing happens when the head gets “lost” and that usually results from either a bump while the machine was turned on, or by moving the head when it was on. Rebooting the various devices should clear the memory which is stuck, and let it re-establish it’s location.

Short of that, you might need to hear from Support since they can see the logs.

I’m just getting the audio on that…if you can load it to YouTube and then link to it we might be able to see it in action.

Uh-oh! Just saw that exact problem on another machine…that might indicate a bug. I’m going to flag Support with the link to the other thread so they know it’s happened again.

If you want to run through the testing on that other thread to eliminate a coincidence, it probably wouldn’t be a bad idea. I’m going to link to the other thread and tag the support person dealing with it so they know they have another case.

I think @Mike.D was handling that one:

I have had issues with one that got replaced so did do checks on the wheels and bands. Checked connections. Cleaned everything I can. Just hoping support has something as I have projects I need to start on.

Also ran fine last night.

Unfortunately bugs can sometimes take a while to track down, so I want to give them a head’s up to start looking as soon as possible for it. :slightly_smiling_face:

Thanks.

Hi there, thank you for the heads up @Jules. A behavior like this could have a number of explanations, so as you said we may have to we may have to narrow down some possibilities.

@woodlyncreations I’m sorry you’ve run into this hangup. Thank you for the video, it helps get our trouble shooting pointed in the right direction.

I’d like to start by checking the carriage and wheels that transport the head back and forth.

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.

Thanks

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There is no damage that I can see anywhere on the carriage or wheels

@woodlyncreations Thank you for checking on that, I apologize I’d completely overlooked you mentioning you’d checked on these earlier.

You’d mentioned you’d moved the head under the printer earlier. Just to check, when moving the head manually, with the printer turned off, do you feel either the laser arm or printer head sticking, or catching at all? Both parts here should move rather freely.

As an additional clarification, were you able to check the belt tension, as shown in the thread @Jules linked?

Yes I have checked belt tension. Both arms move freely with no problems.

Did you check the belt underneath the laser arm too?

Yes all three belts are tight and without flaws

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Any update

I apologize for my delay in response @woodlyncreations thank you for checking that and providing the update.

I’ve got a couple of other areas I’d like to check on.

First, there’s a cable connection I’d like to double check. You’ll find the circuit board pictured below at the back of your printer, you’ll need to pull the laser arm forward (with the printer turned off) to locate it. I’ve pointed an arrow at the cable in question. Could you check on this connection and snap a photo for me?

image

I extracted the logs from your Glowforge to dig a bit deeper as well, and one thing I did notice is it appears your Glowforge may be struggling to maintain a connection. While this might not fully explain the video you’d shared above, it could lead to behaviors where the printer seems to be taking a long time to center or home.

It sounds like you’ve done the basics of restarting networking equipment already, so I’d like to share a couple of other items that might help increase connection strength and stability.

To 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

Please let me know if you have any questions, I’ll follow up with next steps once we’ve checked on that cable connection.

Yes that did it. That was sightly out and putting it back it starts up perfectly. Thank you

Excellent news! Glad to hear you’re back up and running.

I’ll go ahead and close this topic. Please feel free to make another or email us at support@glowforge.com if you need any help in the future.