I’m hoping someone in the community might have some insight as I wait for GF support to get back to me. I have been trying for 3 days to get answers and it’s not going well. Someone is supposed to be getting back to me today but in the meantime…
My right side belt is not working properly. When the regular start up calibration starts, the right belt appears to be skipping/not pulling at the same rate as the left. It will eventually center the logo under the camera. Once that’s done and it travels back to home, the right side skips a ton and the gantry ends up getting pulled off the tracks on the right side. I tried to upload a video but it’s too large.
Here’s what I have already done to troubleshoot:
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Cleaned the machine thoroughly, including the tracks and the belts.
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inspected the belts for wear or tears. They appear to be fine.
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inspected the pulley wheels for cracks. They appear to be fine.
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re-tensioned the belts on both sides by loosening the back wheels and pushing them as far back as they will go while tightening the wheel.
I nearly ordered a belt just to try replacing it but it’s going to cost $64 just for shipping (to Canada… but this is still out of hand) and I’m not convinced the belt is the problem. Mine looks fine. No teeth missing. No tears.
Can anyone help?
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I have not experienced this problem, so I probably won’t be much help.
With the machine off, when you move the carriage arm forward and back do the two side belts seem to have the same tension and move with uniformity?
Did the problem start suddenly and does it now happen every time the machine starts up?
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Thanks for trying. When I move it with the machine off, they move together. They both have the same tension. The problem started suddenly during a print. I re-tensioned the belts and that worked for a while but then it started happening again and now happens every time the machine starts up.
I thought I would be able to find a) debris on the tracks, b) a cracked wheel/pulley or c) belt degradation but everything looks fine.
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Try turning the machine off, remove the belts from the pulleys, and then wiggling the pulleys to be sure they’re not loose or slipping where they connect to the motor.
Also see if they have uniform resistance. Maybe one is dragging a bit.
It’s a long shot but you’re at the strange where weird ideas are worth investigating.
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I saw the videos on Facebook and I am now looking at my machine to see if I can discern a difference. I am glad you are in touch with Wiregrass. He has seen lots of mechanical issues and can fix them.
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Thank goodness for Jonathan Cendi Stevens! I pulled the top right cover off. Even though the cable to the stepper motor seemed to be well seated on both ends, I pushed it in anyway. Things are running smoothly now! Hopefully it stays that way.
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He is the best! So glad you are back in business.
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Awesome, you were able to get it sorted. I’m having a very similar situation will try to open the cover and check for those cables. Can you please link me to the Facebook group? Thank you
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Unfortunately, my problem is not resolved. I’m pretty sure I need a new stepper motor cable. I was hoping Jonathan from Wiregrass Technologies would be able to sell me one but I seem to be having trouble contacting him. I messaged him through FB but I’m not sure if he’s getting them.
The group is the Friendliest Glowforge Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/154050392822866
If you take the right top cover off, you can access the cable. I tried pushing it in under the motor and then I took the cover off the motherboard and tried pushing it in there. Both ends seemed well seated. Just moving the cord around made it behave normally for one job but then it started doing the same thing again. I tried moving the cable around and it did the start up calibration smoothly but then started acting up again. So I’m pretty sure the cable is toast.
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They have a phone number too, scroll down here.
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Thanks for the link. I did see your video but couldn’t visually confirm. When you manually gently push the laser arm to the back, do you feel any difference in how far you can push? On mine, even with a gentle push the left side of the laser tube physically touches the black air duct/deflector but the right side is very hard to push about half inch away from the air duct. It doesn’t physically touch it and I don’t want to apply too much force.
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When my machine is off the arm moves easily backwards and forwards on both sides.
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This was entirely my fault. I misread and messaged on FB instead of Etsy. Got in contact and he has already shipped me a like new cable!
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I mistakenly messaged on FB instead of Etsy. All is good now and a cable is on the way. Thank you for your help.
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If you make a post in that group I linked, you will definitely get help. Alternately, you could try contacting WiregrassMade on Etsy, explain the issue and see if they think it’s the cable. I believe they can also sell you a motor if they thing it’s the motor, not the cable. https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/WiregrassMade?section_id=44104178
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will do thank you, please keep us posted if yours is resolved by changing the cable.
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Hey everyone. I got the replacement cable today and installed it. It seems to have solved the issue! I have only done a couple of test cuts but everything has been smooth so far.
Interestingly…I don’t know if this was just on the Canadian units that were initially produced from the crowd funding, but my button is hardwired to the cable. It makes it really awkward when I take that side top off as I can’t take it fully off the machine. I was scared I was going to pull one of the wires loose moving it around to get at the motherboard cover and the stepper motor.
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Glad you are operational again. Fingers crossed that the fix is permanent.
Thanks for the heads up on the button.
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