There are some smudgy dirt/black marks (the “scratch” looks like the same thing). That’s not damage. Likely something a wipe with a lens wipe would remove.
The actual physical imperfections - the lid closure problem is a fail in both the build & QC. I expect that’s part of why it’s taking so long to roll these out - catching those things.
The tight fit/rubbing of some doors (like the front “garage door”) I believe are design decisions and not likely to be “corrected”. They’re balancing between easy open and tightly sealed so fumes don’t escape. For things that don’t often get opened, a tight fit that also prevents fumes is a good thing. For ones like the lid that do get opened & closed frequently either too tight or too loose/deformed is a bad thing - in this case they seemed to have agreed and replaced the unit.
Not sure how his description leads to “a lot” or “a bunch” of cosmetic issues. But that’s a personal view. My Pro (not yet shipping to me) is about $5K all in with filter & shipping and I’d be disappointed for about 30 seconds at the marks he showed until I cleaned them off and moved on. I wouldn’t give it a second thought. It’s stuff being built by humans. On the other hand, I always tell friends who buy shiny new motorcycles to park it in the garage, walk around it, stroke it a bit and then push it over. That gets the first scratches on and they can ride happily on not fretting about when it’s going to be that someone brushes their belt buckle against it or it drops of its own accord or it gets bumped in a parking lot.
I’m surprised GF offers folks the options to wait until they’ve got the manufacturing process tweaked to make this something they don’t think will happen. They’ve got more faith in Flex than I do
I wasn’t sure if we were allowed to link to posts in the fb group, but I was referencing this post:
and this one:
where he has something of a list (with photos) of various areas of cosmetic damage. There are several scuffs and dings, plus the crack (scratch? not sure, it looks like a crack) in the plastic on the side. Some of those aren’t just going to wipe off. That’s “a lot” more cosmetic damage than I would feel good about getting for my $4k.
I’m aware that these issues should not affect operation (other than his legit issue with the lid, and perhaps the one with the bent pins on the cable if you don’t happen to check it before plugging that in and accidentally bend them more), but at the same time, yeah, if I get a unit that looks like that one does I’ll be a little sad.
3 smudges (the scratch looks like a mark from a soft metal) and a few fit/alignment issues that caused GF to replace it.
Doesn’t seem like it’s a trend or common or particularly noteworthy and GF says you can wait until they tune the build or QA process so these don’t get out of the factory.
My machine also has dings and bonks. Whatever, it is cosmetic. The big issue I had was my gantry was loose on one side when I got it. I was given the go ahead to push it back in place and fire it up. The thing is a tank, and works well. Oh I also had the top alignment issue.
@jeremiah , more people will be able to see the cool things you are posting if you start a new topic on the Made on a Glowforge category for each creation.
I see them all, but the majority of folks probably only browse the MOAG category to look for ideas of things to make. You deserve to have these seen.
We’ll lose them over time if they’re not in the MOAG category, or the BTM category if you want to post settings.
So, the post will dissappear over time?? I am used to automotive forums, where you post your car, then all of the progress in the same thread. I like that format, because all of this machine’s history is in one place.
Unfortunately, they tend to migrate into obscurity with this kind of format.
We’ve only got a few categories as methods of trying to keep track of certain things. The MOAG category is kind of a gallery for people to show off their stuff. Same for the BTM category - that one is for us to share non-Proofgrade settings and techniques. And the Tutorials section is for tutorials.
Everything else is for general discussion, and it’s going to fill up with all kinds of extraneous things. Your stuff might get lost eventually. (And I like that bus. Don’t want it to go away.)
I too finally read the Email posted earlier that Jacob shared, I just wanted an idea of what to expect. My husband is a electrical tech engineer so he will definitely give it the once over and I will NOT complain or jump around like a 4 year old at the fair, lol.
I look forward to seeing your forge ( take pics for SURE ) and sharing your excitement in the receiving of it!
Just for fun, I made a living hinge test with the regular design method. I must say, the glowforge is so precise! I was amazed by the flexibility of the hinge, it is super cool!
