Have question for epilog owners

[Mike Christen]

Hello all

I have a two week old 75 watt helix and I'm having a problem i think with the air assist. Only have very small amount of air coming out the air assist. I have plenty of pressure and the valve opens but air coming out is just very minimal. I tried cutting acrylic for first time and it just seems to burn it, can only cut 1/2 way trough 1/4 inch acrylic on 100% power, 5 speed, 5000 frequency. Top of paper and plastic burns like it's out of focus.

I checked focus, cleaned lens, and everything seems fine. I'm thinkin the air assist is not putting out enough volume. So my question is how much air should blow out the tube.

I will contact epilog monday but was hoping someone might have an idea or two.

Thanks in advance for any help

[Joe Pelonio]

You should be able to feel it with your finger (running with the lid open!) and be able to see it blow away debris and blow out flame. How many lbs of pressure at the gauge on the pump? Also, how long is the hose from pump to
the laser air valve? Mine is 25lbs at the pump and under 6' of hose.

You could also check the internal hoses and fittings on the rail for leaks.

[Doug Griffith]

One thing I can say is low air volume shouldn't make a 75 watt machine cut 1/2 way through 1/4 inch acrylic at the settings you mention. It will help prevent flare ups and blow slag out of the kerf when cutting but thats about it. If the machine is putting out the wattage, it sounds like a focus issue to me. Try different out-of-focus settings and see if it makes a difference. Then look into mirror alignment issues that cause focus problems further up the the chain. There are threads on SMC that describe how to check this.

One thing you didn't mention: did it work fine before and is just now acting up?

Another thing... are you sure it's acrylic. Other plastics like PC will give the results you mention.

[Mike Christen]

You should be able to feel it with your finger (running with the lid open!) and be able to see it blow away debris and blow out flame. How many lbs of pressure at the gauge on the pump? Also, how long is the hose from pump to
the laser air valve? Mine is 25lbs at the pump and under 6' of hose.

You could also check the internal hoses and fittings on the rail for leaks.

Thanks for the reply Joe.
I do feel air blowing out the tube just not very much, it does blow the flame down during cutting. I have about 25lbs pressure also and maybe 6' of tube tops. I would think it would be a stronger more pin pointed stream to blow the debris out but i have no idea.

This is my first try at cutting acrylic and the samples i had cut was on a 60 watt 3/8 " thick. My 75 watt (tested at 89) does not come close to even half way through plus the burn on top is terrible. Really seems like a focus problem but I triple checked it.

Thanks again, happy 4th

[Mike Christen]

One thing I can say is low air volume shouldn't make a 75 watt machine cut 1/2 way through 1/4 inch acrylic at the settings you mention. It will help prevent flare ups and blow slag out of the kerf when cutting but thats about it. If the machine is putting out the wattage, it sounds like a focus issue to me. Try different out-of-focus settings and see if it makes a difference. Then look into mirror alignment issues that cause focus problems further up the the chain. There are threads on SMC that describe how to check this.

One thing you didn't mention: did it work fine before and is just now acting up?

Another thing... are you sure it's acrylic. Other plastics like PC will give the results you mention.

Hi Doug

I triple checked the focus and tried it a little high and a little low, same problem. This is my first try at cutting acrylic on my machine so i can't compare. It is acrylic to the best of my knowledge. I really hope the tube is not the issue already, its only 2 weeks old . I will continue to check what you mentioned. Wouldn't think I would have an alignment problem so soon but i will check it.

Thanks and happy 4th

[Frank Corker]

My air assist only puts out 25 to 30 psi.

[Joe Hayes]

Mike - I have two 75 watt Epilogs and I think your problem is something other than air assist. I am not at the shop currently but I am confident that my settings are less power and more speed that you are using. I would check with Epilog on Monday to make sure everything is correct on your machine, - lense, beam alignment, focus, mirrors ect. I would also lower the frequency. As a rule on cut acrylic with paper off on the top side but I keep it on to protect the bottom from scratching. One of the reasons for taking the protective cover off the top is quite often they are not always completely flat against the acrylic - ie: small wrinkels or bubbles. If that is true as it goes through the beam hits the open pocket and the beam widens, thus causing a burn. If the lense and focus is correct you should get a good clean line cut. What type of acrylic are you cutting?

[David Harvey]

Mike,
It sure sounds like you are trying to cut LEXAN, rather than Acrylic. It will make you think that the air assist is not working. On my 75w, I use 12% speed, 100% power and the freq. is at 5000 for acrylic and it does just fine.

Have you tried cutting through 1/4" thk. wood? If you can cut through this without problems, then I would suspect your material (Acrylic?) is something other than Acrylic.

[Larry Bratton]

Sounds like beam alignment to me. Alignment will dramatically effect your cutting ability. Check with Epilog tech support.

[Scott M Smith]

If it is an air issue, the solenoid might be installed backward or not working correctly.

[Mike Christen]

Hello to all

Thank you so much for all the advice and suggestions, the creek and its members are the greatest group of people around. I will try all recommendations, and if all fails I will be contacting Epilog Monday. I'm sure they will take care of whatever the problem is.

Thanks again

[Mike Christen]

wow, i feel sooooo stupid.

Looks like I had some pc or lexan or ????, that I thought was acrylic. Found some real acrylic and it cuts fine, 3/8" 5 speed, 100 power. So the winners of the diagnose this problem is David and Doug.

Thanks again for everyones input,

No one can fix my brain but thanks for tryin

[Doug Griffith]

No one can fix my brain but thanks for tryin

Ginkgo, good amounts of omega rich foods, and put it through it's paces everyday. That'll help!

[Mike Christen]

Ginkgo, good amounts of omega rich foods, and put it through it's paces everyday. That'll help!

OK Doug, i will try that and let u know the results of your suggestion