There are no labels or markings on the tube that would indicate one way or the other. Otherwise the design both inside and out seems to be consistent with a Basic.
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How would ya know unless you compared? Dan has stated that the tubes are not interchangeable between Basic and Pro. So there must be other differences surrounding that. Housing, connectorā¦ I dunno.
Wow. Talk about luck of the draw there. Bad tubes to Pro tubes.
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I was under the impression that there were differences in the power supply between the two, and that was why they werenāt interchangeable.
Could you discern between them by labeling on the PS?
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Canāt get to see much inside without taking the unit apart. Promised not to do that. I donāt see any labels or part numbers at all except on the fluid resevoir. Imagine itās the same on both units.
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How about comparing tube diameter (if you can get an estimate on it) with another pre-releaser?
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If it is even remotely possible, I should like to replace my basic tube with a pro -in 2-5 years- when that fateful day arrives that I need to either send it back or replace it myself.
I know that isnāt possible. YET.
If yāall are going to have to develop processes to self replace anywayā¦ may as well develop a conversion process, as well.
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Iām still waiting on the first conspiracy theorist to chime in. Something like, āDan just wants us to think it might be a Pro tube. If the Basic can cut through wood that thick then there is not much incentive to buy the Pro for higher power.ā
BTW: Iām keeping a list of all the members with trust issues and overtly negative personalities. Makes it easier to get through the forum if I can just ignore their posts.
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āHeās making a list and checking it twiceā¦ā
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I was born on Christmas Day and live near coal country. So will have an endless supply of gifts for certain members.
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Awesome! Would you mind terribly though taking a picture from directly in front of the cut out square, so that we can see the kerf angle? I.E. How much of this kind of an angle does it have? ____/
And Iād think it would be easy enough to calculate the amount of adjustment needed to cut the pieces larger, based on the thickness, so that the inside cut equals the correct final measurement, and then flip it over and cut away at the larger piece slowly, until it Is all perfectly square? Maybe use a disk sander / end mill, and a very steady hand / precise mill. End result: |___|
Sorry if that all sounds really confusingā¦a bit hard to explain in words.
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The cut depth here is way beyond what the GF was designed to achieve on a single pass. Certainly deeper than intended for a single material thickness measurement. The trash and burning debris at the bottom of the cut causes some waviness in the edge. The kerf is far wider than the beam alone would cause. Iām hesitant to quantify specific issues on a unit that is Pre-Release and operating well beyond the design specifications.
There is not a slant to the cut as much as it is an hourglass shape. Wider in the middle and less uniform at the bottom. You can see the noticeable curve in the original picture (back left edge). The curve was much, much less when cutting the Oak. Had to slow for Walnut to about half of what I used for Oak just to get through it. That caused far more charing and debris in the cut.
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Thatās great.
There are other differences for the Pro too though - things like operation time before it forces a pause (due to better cooling IIRC), the infamous pass-thru slot, improved optics (which if that includes mirrors/lens suggests that maybe .5" is doable on a Pro 
). Iām not downgrading my Pro just because you can do .43" on a Basic. In fact, neither was a factor in my decision to do the Pro - remember we all thought 1/2" was going to be done via flipping it over, not by doing it in one pass on one surface. That has historically been a 40W CO2 limit and I donāt recall GF ever saying they were going to do that one any better.
I know no oneās mentioned having it go into pause mode yet, but then again, no one is using it as their production machine so cycle time is still a distinction. Even if I never hit it, I like the extra capacity because it will mean my Pro isnāt running as near its limits as I might run a Basic.
I always looked at the improved optics as allowing me faster cuts with higher power so my throughput could be better than a Basic. Thatās what Iām really looking for - the rest is frosting on the cake.
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Iāve ran some multi-hour ops without any issues (cooling related). And Iāve done production parts (27 parts on a single sheet x6) back to back. I also know a couple of the other PRāers had also ran multi-hour ops without it stopping for a breather. The only issues I had with a stop op was unrelated to the cooling (in my case).
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I remember some posts about long runtimes without a pause. But I still donāt think weāve seen āProā unit scenarios - what happens on a Friday afternoon in August when the ambient is 95F and youāve been running the thing 12 or 14 hours a day for a week? 
Even if the Basic can do that well without stops, I would expect based on the GF claims about the Pro design that the Basic might be running up against say 90% of its duty cycle whereas the Pro might only be at 75% of its duty cycle. The user wouldnāt see any difference but the machine would be less stressed if it were a Pro.
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If improved optics somehow means that the beam spreads less as you go deeper then maybe material thicker than the original spec might provide an acceptable kerf. But a little more power isnāt going to do it alone. The cut through the very thick oak and walnut were ugly and wide in comparison to 1/4" material. I personally believe that had more to do with all the crap that was being vaporized so deep in the cut. It has to get out and is not kind to the edges in the process.
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I can not answer for any extreme performance testing. But for actual, firsthand performance I have not had any issues cooling wise. The only thing coming close to that was the fact I was able to fire up the glowforge after it was sitting in 36F weather without any thermal shock issues.
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Not going to post the Glowforge operatorās manual because it is evolving and not the final word. Probably OK to post this sentence about operating temperature.
Extreme temperature or humidity:
ā Usage: below 50 degrees Fahrenheit or over 85 degrees Fahrenheit
Wouldnāt tell the warranty folks if you intend to operate at 95F.
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Iāll have mine in the basement so it shouldnāt get that bad but it may be over 85F. No a/c down there.
I know lots of parts of the world where a/c isnāt going to be common. Iād bet there will be some pushing of the 85F operational limit. All the more reason for a Pro.
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Thatās an OK response. Was expecting someone to say āI live in Arizona. Inside of my house is 107 degrees and I bought the Pro to operate in that temperature.ā Ya know, Darwin award candidates.
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