Poor engraving

[Pete Thomas(UK)]

I have an Epilog 24 TT which I use a lot for rotary work. It works well. Today a was trying out engraving photos on to acrylic. I noticed very quickly that the image was not being engraved on the left hand side of the table. It faded out to nothing. I have checked that the table is level. It hardly engraves at all using the same power settings on the front left of the machine. Any suggestions? I guess its likley to be mirror alignment. Is it possible to check the alignment without using the epilog gadget that plugs into the front of the laser?

[Joe Pelonio]

I never had that problem it was always the right front when there was a problem. Even if the table is level, have you checked for warped material, a bit of debris under the left side raising it up so it's out of focus, or worn out vector grid that's concave? The best way to test is machine off, so that the head moves freely, and run it around the table by hand with the focus tool on. If it looks OK, then I would try cleaning all mirrors and lenses, plus the
sensor strip, and try again before messing with the alignment. Yes, you can check alignment without the tool but it's a slow, hard process.