Proofgrade draftboard not cutting

Community Support
1

Hi, I just cut a whole sheet of pieces for a project on proofgrade draftboard and not one piece cut all the way through. It’s pretty dang expensive wood (proofgrade) to have a whole piece just wasted like that. what could be going on?

2

There are some things you can do if you are not getting complete cuts.

Make sure the material is flat against the tray, either by using shielded magnets or the Honeycomb Pins located here.

Make sure the lenses and windows on the head and under the left side are kept clean.

Test a cut before moving the material on the bed with a little rolled up piece of tape or a pick of some kind. If the cuts don’t lift out clean, you can send a second pass of the cut. If you do not let the material shift on the bed or try to realign the artwork on the screen, the second cut will land perfectly on top of the first one and finish it.

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3

what’s a shielded magnet?

also, I’m ashamed to admit, I didn’t know there was a lens on the left side until just now. LOL.

4

It’s a little round yellow window, and it appears underneath the left side, opposite the head. Get a flashlight to see it. It needs to be cleaned periodically, along with the window on the left side of the head and the lens.
(Link below.)

A shielded magnet has a metal casing on top of it to deflect the magnetic field away from the head. Old hard drive magnets are shielded.

I actually prefer to use the Honeycomb pins. Less chance of them interfering with the air assist fan.

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5

I make liberal use of the honeycomb pins,they are genius. I just would like the option of a magnet for things like fabric.

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6

if your magnet is NOT shielded will it hurt your glowforge?

7

also, found an cleaned the lens on the left. subsequent cut was good on first pass. the other two I already knew about and cleaned regularly. lol

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8

No,but they can sometimes mess with a print.

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9

and as always, jules and markevans save the day!

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10

In my use, I’ve found that material not being flat to be the number one culprit.

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11

Thanks for the answer @jules & @markevans36301 !

I’m going to close this thread - if you run into any more trouble, go ahead and post a new topic.