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View Full Version : EpilogEXT 60w, The story so far



Barb Macdonald
03-03-2007, 12:45 PM
(This is about the thread re: slow warm-up) (I posted it in that old thread, btw, thanks for the leveling idea of the bed, I'm been working on that, the table isn't dead flat across the whole bed, but I still don't see why it would work/be level/flat, and then not?)
I have a July 2006 epilog ext, and it had the slow-warm-up problem, along with several others that I'm learning more about each day from these posts, (what a great forum!)which seems to have been fixed by service from my tech. Is it, or isn't it, normal for these machines? It's been just fine, since, with really cold mornings. I do let it "warm" up, like for the few minutes it takes to initialize, but before that I needed a scrap piece to warm up with. I think I'm more confused now:)
I'm getting several warranty parts from epilog regarding an x-axis shifting issue, as my latest problems showed up again, while working with laserable plastic from encore etc. I don't know if these machines are "robust" enough for full-speed full-bed size raster production work in this material? That said, the first work I had for my new machine was 4000 3"x 4" white/black valve tags, 3 lines 3/8" text/vector cut, all diff, with two holes in 'em , a rotary engravers' nightmare (suuuure, you can do multiple set-ups:) The machine had some weird issues like the air assist hose catching, and hanging up the x-axis cause it was flying around so much, yes, with the cover on.. The flatness of the material was a slight issue, but not too bad at all, and I was fair-paid for the work, thank goodness. I'm just wondering if the filthy-ness of the material causes me to have to over-clean the machine? Is that possible? Is this hard on the machine? I clean the encoder strip and the rails and the belts, and the auto-focus plunger of the crud build-up, exactly as per my service techs specs (I'm great at following specs!). Is this OK? Is that x-axis really tuff enough?http://www.sawmillcreek.org/images/icons/icon5.gif
An RF unit, and a periscope have already been replaced. (I was making lots of clear acrylic Christmas ornaments, and the raster text just kinda faded away.... to odd lines)
I clean the mirrors, too, but not TOO often, per my tech., each time she's come out, she's found I've left lens-cleaning residue on the mirrors, so I guess I'm using too much, and not drying enough. I do find it hard to see them! I did take them out for cleaning, once, per the manual, and was immediately told by the tech that that could screw up my alignment, not mentioned in the manual....
Currently, my raster text fades, if I try to do a larger size piece than the top left corner of the table, like 3x12 maybe, (otherwise, I have to autofocus to each piece) and after a service tech alignment, including the mirror at the bottom, and the red-dot, just to be helpful, (cause it was WAY off) and one sheet of test laserable,(45 minutes of rastering full width) the next test, after the service tech left, of course, did the shifting thing, big-time, and the fading thing in really weird places, to the point that I'm hoping for the best with this machine.
I cleaned the machine, ran the next test, same thing.
The x-axis has a "thunk", on boot-up.... BUt not everytime, of course. Service tech has heard it, didn't like it, it's been doing that for several weeks, anyway! I wonder if that shakes the alignment loose?
I guess I was hoping it wouldn't argue so much while doing material that I hate rotary engraving, and it is amazing, the detail you can achieve.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed!
It's been so great at vectoring acrylic, to the point that I wish my TRAX Sign System had some plastic in it somewhere!!
It doesn't seem to mark my black anodized aluminum TRAX white, my customer didn't like the lack of contrast, but I guess I should wait 'n see, once I have more parts.
I'm such a "newbie", I can't really add anything useful, except "Yes, I've had THAT problem!!"
And yes, I'm amazed by the capabilities of these machines, I just want to keep mine happy for many years to come!
Thanks for listening!
Barb
(working from home, on dial-up, stop chuckling,http://www.sawmillcreek.org/images/icons/icon10.gif you lucky high-speed people you!)

epilog legend ext, xenetech 13x13 & 16x25, corel x3, casmate! Still runnin', after all these years.... Mimaki plotter, too, ditto..

Rob Bosworth
03-03-2007, 3:35 PM
Barb, you said your machine "thunks" when it is initializing. Does it "thunk" when the Y axis moves to the back of the machine and before the X axis starts moving to the left? Is there a lengthy delay before the X axis "head" moves to the left?

If your Y axis moves to the back, then "thunks", then there is a long delay before the X axis starts moving, you have a "limit switch" problem with your machine. I have not seen a EXT, but on many other Epilog machines, they have a little sensor that sits under a circuit board that senses a magnet that sits on the end of a post, usually i the back left corner of the machine. If your "thunk" is being cuased because the sensor is not picking up the signal from the magnet, try cleaning the sensor on the bottom of the board. Use something gentle to clean that sensor on the end of a paper towel or Q-tip.

Dave Jones
03-03-2007, 4:51 PM
but I still don't see why it would work/be level/flat, and then not?

I don't have the same model, but my Epilog has two threaded rods at the sides of the bed that lift the bed up and down. There is a belt that goes from a motor, around a pully on one rod, over to the next rod, and then back to the motor. If something was jammed in the laser at some point that prevented one side of the bed from rising, then the belt might have slipped on the pully and now the bed is tilting to one side. By doing that the focus would be changing as you go across the bed. The bed needs to be perfectly level relative to the lens and X/Y arms.

Another posibility is that the steel vacuum plate or honeycomb grid (whichever you are using) is not sitting flat in the bed. Make sure those are seated correctly.

If you did that test I mentioned in the other thread and the focusing fixture is showing a difference in the distance from the lens to the bed as you move across (and it's not caused by seating the vacuum plate or honeycomb grid) then you may need to adjust one of the threaded rods on the bed. I don't know about your model, but on mine it is done by loosening the belt that goes around the pullys on those rods and then turning one of the pullys by hand to rais or lower that side of the bed. Then putting the belt back. If you call Epilog they can walk you through doing that, or if the tech returns to look at something else he could also look at that for you.

Barb Macdonald
03-03-2007, 5:49 PM
The thunk happens as the (sorry I meant the y, didn't I??) x-axis moves the engraving head to home, (even if it was already home) then the y-axis seems to slam itself to the back of the machine, before it comes forward again, is when it thunks. I KNEW thunks were not good! The y-axis also has a "bump" it seems to go over, at about 10" down, but no fault has been found, and it's not doing THAT regularly, either. Time to ask for a replacement?? Kinda expensive to return for a new one?? I wish I hadn't got such a darn big one, now.
They've sent me into the back left corner of the machine b4, to clean that very sensor mentioned, scared the heck out of me, because I was hoping for a service tech person to at least assist, but she couldn't come out that day. When she did come out for another alignment, that's when she flipped the (oh, jeepers, what's it called, the white computer) cable over too, because I insisted she show me how to do it, not sit on the phone long distance with a tech. I wanted help doing it, don't ask me why! I still don't quite remember what we did, I'm been finding it hard to focus (pun intended, I guess:) all my brains on the laser, as I have a few other things to do, through the working day! It doesn't help that we got a puppy (my first ever, I've always been a grown-dog person) in early January!!!
I'm going to wait for parts, before I fiddle with the leveling screws in the bed. One thing at a time, done very, very well??
Thanks for everything, I'll keep all posted, I hope, I'm new at threading!
BTW, I have a great little font called Dog Art, it's a TTF, can't remember where I got it, they're all vector graphics,(lotsa lines, but easy enough to pixelate!) I can't remember if there is a pom, but I think so? They laser great anyway. PM me, and I'll send it from work, can't here, this old 'puter is still (wait for it) windows 98se, nuthin' on it but pictures, everytime Corel 8 was loaded it went into la-la land. Dial-up is still our only option, we live pretty rural, 45 minutes from Toronto!
Does anybody here wish we were all on Macs? If only for those commercials?? Block or allow? The camera one? The virus one? I love 'em! I wish all operating systems, could just get along...
My pre-loaded McAfee is annoying, in my opinion...., and Vista, don't get me started!
Thanks again, all.

Rob Bosworth
03-04-2007, 8:49 AM
Wow. You said a mouthful. Or maybe it is too early and my brain isn't working. I'll come back and try again.