Maintenance schedule?

[Josh Ledger]

Hey guys! I've had my "50w" china laser for a month and a half or so and I was wondering what kind of routine maintenance I should be conducting as well as good time intervals between maintenance.

For instance, how often should I change my water? Should I be greasing my rails and if so, how often? Etc.

I'm just looking for some guidance on the best way to maintain my machine for a long life.

Thanks guys!

[Bert Kemp]

I have a PDF file with Laser complete maintenance schedule but its to big a file to up load here . If anyone would like it pm me an email and I'll send it to you.

[David Somers]

Congrats on the new laser Josh!

The big item is your lens. You want to check and clean that before or after each day of use. If it gets dirty there is a big risk of the laser beam heating the glass as it passes through and cracking the lens. Hopefully your manual shows how to do this but just in case, you want to drop the table down until you have enough clearance. Then you release a friction ring on the lens tube and the bottom half of the tube will drop down and out of the upper half. Then you can unscrew the bottom half of that where it is near the cone and you will see the lens. The underside of the lens will be where dirt can accumulate, but check both sides while you are at it. A retaining ring is what usually holds it in place. A lint free lens paper works fine, and if you need a fluid isopropyl alcohol works well.

You do want to check your mirrors for dust and dirt as well. Those are generally easy to see with a pen light though.

For the rest of the machine, simply keep it clean of dust and dirt. If it is getting scrungy remove your honeycomb table and clean it with an appropriate solvent that wont corrode the honeycomb material. That will either be aluminum or steel. I found a stiff bottle brush that fits the honeycomb holes works great for general cleaning. If you have a steam cleaner or power washer that can make quick work of it. And obviously remove anything that falls through your honeycomb. A vac usually works fine there.

Your belts and rails should be kept clean. Wiping with a lint free rag works fine. And for lubricant you might try a spray bottle of white lithium grease, wiped down to a thin layer so it doesnt attract and hold debris and dust. I am also fond of BoShield T9 spray on lubricant since it doesnt attract or hold dust at all. I use it on my wood lathe for metal to metal parts like the bed and tail and headstock. I also use it to coat and prevent rust. I like it on the lathe especially since once it is dry it doesnt transfer to my hands and then to the wood later on. A thin layer of thin white lithium grease should work fine on your rails though. If you dont find that easily simply a thin layer of 3 in 1 oil would work well too.

Your table is probably raised and lowered with a bike chain driven mechanism. Treat that like a bike chain and you will be fine. There is little pressure on it so I don't think you have to worry about it stretching over time like you do on a bicycle.

Dave

[David Somers]

Hey Bert!

Thanks for the offer to email the PDF. I think your PM folders are full however. Just FYI.

Dave

[David Somers]

Josh,

A few other items occurred to me. You mentioned your coolant. Not sure if you are using a chiller or just a water pump and bucket. Either way though change the water as soon as there is any sign of algae. I use dark hosing so light doesnt reach the water in my tubes, and I have a Chiller so my water is not exposed there. I use distilled water so there is no algae in it to start, and no nutrients, but you still need to look at it frequently to be sure. Algae is amazing stuff. You also want to check frequently to be sure your pump is actually pumping water. And if you are using a bucket of water you want some sort of thermometer in it so you can see if its temp is rising. You can always add ice to it, but you want to keep an eye on that during warm days or long runs.

Check your blower fan and hoses for buildup. Many materials will deposit residue on the tubes and you want to keep them clean or your blower function is reduced.

Make sure the air pump feeding air to your lens tube is also free and running correctly as well.

They are pretty simple devices though. General cleaning is pretty easy, and less of a burden if you do it often rather than falling behind.

[Bert Kemp]

empty now thanks




hey bert!

Thanks for the offer to email the pdf. I think your pm folders are full however. Just fyi.

Dave

[Josh Ledger]

Thanks for all the tips guys! Bert, how do I PM you? I can't figure out how to do it on this forum. Thanks!

[Bert Kemp]

Josh Just click on my name a window will open up clic PM