Proofgrade not cutting through - with tests

[chroni]

What I have done:
Cleaned laser
Cleaned crumb tray tracks
Cleaned crumb tray
Checked for levelness
Checked medium draftboard for warping

Held medium draftboard down by strong magnets

I thought I was doing things wrong. This problem started out of the box - I just haven’t dealt with issue. I have gotten around it by printing things in the middle, and doing a lot of sanding. This problem is not unique to the medium fiberboard and a lot of sanding. I have had similar issues with the plywoods.

In the below images I am showing the back side with the adhesive pulled off. Some of the squares came out easily. Some I punched out with reasonable pressure (there is slight fringing in the hole though). The non-punched out squares are not cut all the way through.

I am assuming that if all is good - I should lift the board and the squares should be left on the tray - or at least I should be able to pull of the adhesive and most of the squares would come off when I did.

I am also having alignment issues, but I haven’t done any test to show this (anecdotal at the point).

Not sure what to do next.

[geek2nurse]

Great writeup! It works so much better knowing what you’ve already tried.

One question: When you say you’ve cleaned the laser, have you found the multiple places that need cleaning besides just the laser lens itself? I’m thinking if this has been happening since your first print it may not be the issue, but since I missed the side mirror for the first few weeks and had problems as a result, I thought I’d ask. Here’s the guide, if you haven’t found it: https://glowforge.com/support/topic/cleaning-service-and-moving/cleaning#things-that-need-wiping

[Jules]

While you’re waiting to hear back from Support, you can make that cut through a little better by slowing down the speed by about 5 points. That’s almost cutting through, a slight adjustment will help it to finish the cut completely.

[pip]

Thanks for letting us know. I’m sorry that your print didn’t come out as expected!

Thanks to your excellent write-up, it’s clear you’ve already taken care of the following:

To cut successfully, there are three important things to check. First, your material must lie flat. This requires a clean, properly installed crumb tray and flat materials. Second, there must be no obstructions, dirt, or damage preventing the laser light from reaching your material. Third, your design must be set up properly - for example, with lines that are fully on the material and that are set to cut. It’s hard to know which issue might be affecting your print, but if you follow the instructions in the cut-through troubleshooter, we’ll be able to get to the bottom of it.

So the next step is:

We included an extra piece of Proofgrade Draftboard with your materials shipment for troubleshooting. Please print the Gift of Good Measure on that Proofgrade Draftboard and let me know the result. If it doesn’t print well, please let me know the date and time of your print and send photos of the front and back of the print.

[chroni]

I have probably used the extra draftboard.

Was it medium draftboard? If it is, I am sure I can find one with space left.

[PrintToLaser]

Yes, medium will tell them what they need. Noting the print time could be helpful I think.

[chroni]

As of right now, I can’t print the Gift of Good Measure. When I upload it, the browser client says that it’s doing it’s thing, but when it gets to the end of it’s rendering/calculating, the dialog window closes down and doesn’t let me hit “Print”. (see other help thread by me for details). Please don’t close this thread. I have to wait for the other issue to be resolved until I can get back to this issue.

[jaz]

I’m sorry you ran into another issue! The issue in that topic should be resolved now. Can you try printing the Gift of Good Measure on Medium Draftboard again?

[chroni]

On it.

[chroni]

I ran the Gift of Good Measure, and all turned out fine.

I will check out my honeycomb tray. I mentioned that there was an indent in a previous message, but never followed up. I am going to investigate. Feel free to close this thread.

[jaz]

I’m glad the Gift of Good Measure turned out well!

Please post a new topic if you have any other questions.