[ML-General] Big Laser

Thu Dec 19 15:17:00 CST 2019

Thanks for the info and help!

I need to cut a smallish project today (17x10")
Will the laser be able to do this?
Thanks

Hunter Quinn
Structural Designer - International Paper

On Thu, Dec 19, 2019, 2:28 PM <smeeon at gmail.com> wrote:

> Next time I’m there I’ll put a sign warning people to not let cuts flame
> up. But yea... Fire is bad. But I guess that’s signs like these are
> important.
>
> - Dianna Valdez
>
> On Dec 19, 2019, at 2:25 PM, Ryan Coons <ryancoonsyhg at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> 
> 1) Fire.
>
> Actually, that's true off all shop equipment,  excluding the forge...
>
> On Thu, Dec 19, 2019, 2:23 PM Nick Kopp <nkopp2 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Can someone tape a checklist to the machine of the things we should be
>> watching for and stop use if seen?
>>
>> Nick
>>
>> On Thu, Dec 19, 2019 at 1:54 PM <smeeon at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Thank you for the correction Ryan, I typed out the wrong thing. Diluting
>>> it should be safer too from what I’ve read on the forums.
>>>
>>> - Dianna Valdez
>>>
>>> On Dec 19, 2019, at 1:18 PM, Ryan Coons <ryancoonsyhg at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> 
>>>
>>> Methanol is the go-to for cleaning optics. We should keep some on hand.
>>>
>>> Placing a crosshairs T alignment point will expedite the process, since
>>> an aligned beam will make a cloverleaf pattern, and a wonked up beam will
>>> signal which direction is needed.
>>>
>>> Tube lifetime seems good because the discharge is still purple, but tube
>>> replacement will become a thing someday, and we should start saving up.
>>>
>>> On Thu, Dec 19, 2019, 1:04 PM <smeeon at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> FYI I met with Norm the other night and we installed the new mirrors
>>>> and adjusted alignment some.
>>>>
>>>> It cuts okay-ish in the bottom right corner. However this big cut from
>>>> Norm has proven that most of the bed alignment is bad right now.
>>>>
>>>> What this means: the alignment is off, really off, when I got into the
>>>> mirrors I noticed that they had all been previously adjusted and the
>>>> locking nuts not screwed in tightly, so pretty much everything was loose.
>>>> This is bad. It means the alignment had likely drifted pretty far and we’re
>>>> just getting it “sorta right” in that one corner.
>>>>
>>>> It’s going to require a full 2-3 hours of alignment to really dial her
>>>> back in to cutting well. This isn’t an easy job, I’ve done it a few times
>>>> even with other laser techs and it’s tedious at best. I’ll try to find some
>>>> time this weekend to tinker with it and get it closer. If anyone wants to
>>>> drop $500 on a laser alignment sensor system that works too *nudge wink
>>>> nudge*
>>>>
>>>> The new mirrors are not *as good* as the ones that came with the laser.
>>>> That means they won’t last as long as the ones we tore through in about a
>>>> year? The old mirrors had been cleaned with isopropyl alcohol and the
>>>> protective coating had been mostly worn off. This diminishes the cutting
>>>> capabilities quite a bit. We really need a bottle of pure ethanol alcohol
>>>> to mix with some distilled water to dilute down enough to not be harsh on
>>>> the mirrors and focusing lens. For clarification, all parts of laser optic
>>>> chain (tube, mirrors, focusing lens, power supply) all wear out at an
>>>> almost uniform rate. Even the flyback transformers in the power supply wear
>>>> out even if you “dial the power back” some. This is just normal for
>>>> 100+watt Co2 laser systems with such heavy use.
>>>>
>>>> Heat is a problem for all of the the optics. Running the laser without
>>>> the air assist or with a damaged air assist caused quite a bit of damage,
>>>> the aluminum nozzle heated up, that heat transfers to the focusing lens and
>>>> the lens actually cracked from the heat. This is really not okay, please if
>>>> you see fire from your project, there is a problem, stop it and get help to
>>>> address the issue. the flame ups have damaged several proximity sensors and
>>>> now destroyed the factory tube for the air assist.
>>>>
>>>> The aluminum nozzle is already providing heat sink for the lens itself
>>>> as it naturally heats up from the focused infrared light passing through
>>>> it. It simply can’t handle all of that additional heat.
>>>>
>>>> So in closing, please take care with this very valuable shop asset and
>>>> help everyone to keep it functioning well after we patch her back together.
>>>> If these problems persist through these extensive repairs We need to
>>>> investigate a system for approving members to use the machine or a
>>>> lockout/user log system.
>>>>
>>>> - Dianna Valdez
>>>>
>>>> On Dec 19, 2019, at 9:09 AM, Joseph Absher <
>>>> joseph.ryan.absher at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> 
>>>> Will do. Thanks.
>>>>
>>>> On Thu, Dec 19, 2019, 09:07 Norm Marshall <normcooks at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Go ahead and move it
>>>>>
>>>>> Norm Marshall
>>>>>
>>>>> On Thu, Dec 19, 2019, 9:05 AM Joseph Absher <
>>>>> joseph.ryan.absher at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> When I got to the shop this morning there was what looked to be a
>>>>>> completed job on the laser. However, it looked like some of the pieces
>>>>>> didn't cut all the way through, so I didn't move it in case the owner
>>>>>> wanted to cut it again.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Does anyone know when that job will be finished?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Thanks,
>>>>>> Ryan Absher
>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>> This is the general mailing list.
>>>>>> This list is for public discussion about Makers Local and related
>>>>>> activities.
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>>>>>> general-leave at lists.makerslocal.org.
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> This is the general mailing list.
>>>>> This list is for public discussion about Makers Local and related
>>>>> activities.
>>>>> To stop receiving mail from this list, write to
>>>>> general-leave at lists.makerslocal.org.
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> This is the general mailing list.
>>>> This list is for public discussion about Makers Local and related
>>>> activities.
>>>> To stop receiving mail from this list, write to
>>>> general-leave at lists.makerslocal.org.
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> This is the general mailing list.
>>>> This list is for public discussion about Makers Local and related
>>>> activities.
>>>> To stop receiving mail from this list, write to
>>>> general-leave at lists.makerslocal.org.
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> This is the general mailing list.
>>> This list is for public discussion about Makers Local and related
>>> activities.
>>> To stop receiving mail from this list, write to
>>> general-leave at lists.makerslocal.org.
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> This is the general mailing list.
>>> This list is for public discussion about Makers Local and related
>>> activities.
>>> To stop receiving mail from this list, write to
>>> general-leave at lists.makerslocal.org.
>>
>> --
>> Nicholas Kopp
>> 630-536-6231
>> _______________________________________________
>> This is the general mailing list.
>> This list is for public discussion about Makers Local and related
>> activities.
>> To stop receiving mail from this list, write to
>> general-leave at lists.makerslocal.org.
>
> _______________________________________________
> This is the general mailing list.
> This list is for public discussion about Makers Local and related
> activities.
> To stop receiving mail from this list, write to
> general-leave at lists.makerslocal.org.
>
> _______________________________________________
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> This list is for public discussion about Makers Local and related
> activities.
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