FRUSTRATED! Epilog changing home

[doug king]

Not sure what is going on, I have had my laser for over a month, made hundreds of items... Was in the middle of a project last night and I notice that on the second pass of rastering on a project that the whole artwork had shifted over about halfway down... I scratched my head, threw the bad piece out, checked home which is now exactly the same amount offset to the right as the artwork is, I reset it and scratched my head... It ran all day just fine...

Fast forward to tonight....

I have a large piece of granite that I am working on for our church, I am on the second pass and everything is looking FANTASTIC, I turned around and worked on the workbench... About 2 minutes later I turn around and guess what everthing has shifted to the right about and inch and a half and now the granite is screwed....

I will be calling Epilog in the morning, anyone have any ideas? I have searched but can't find anything on the net....

Doug

[Kim Vellore]

I have heard this often, The reasons
1) Dirty encoder strip or
2) Bad ribbon cable on the X axis

Kim

[doug king]

Well its definately not dirty, I clean it every other day... still looks brand new... Where is this encoder strip you speak of?

[Dan Hintz]

Well its definately not dirty, I clean it every other day... still looks brand new... Where is this encoder strip you speak of?

<chuckle> I assume if you don't know where it is, you've never cleaned it. I don't know how old your machine is, but if it's seen some dirty substrates (wood, plastic, etc.), it may be due for a good cleaning. Look under the top cap of the carriage rail... clear strip that goes across the entire rail.

[Frank Corker]

Doug the encoder strip where you may have dirt is located under the gantry head cover, just above the lens.

http://www.epiloglaser.com/tl_linearencoder.htm

for cleaning the encoder strip.

Get your manual from here and I suggest as Dan hinted you look to see what is required from you as the user
http://www.epiloglaser.com/laser_manuals.htm

[AL Ursich]

That is a nice link Frank !!!!

Thanks,


AL

[doug king]

<chuckle> I assume if you don't know where it is, you've never cleaned it. I don't know how old your machine is, but if it's seen some dirty substrates (wood, plastic, etc.), it may be due for a good cleaning. Look under the top cap of the carriage rail... clear strip that goes across the entire rail.

Your assumption is incorrect, just because I don't know the name of it doesn't mean that I didn't clean it. I followed the instructions on cleaning to a T... Do you know the actual technical name of everything on your car or do you just know how to clean it and use it?

Assumptions can often be very wrong.....

[Peck Sidara]

Doug,

Did you get a hold of technical support this morning and is everything back up and running? If not, are parts on their way?

[doug king]

Doug,

Did you get a hold of technical support this morning and is everything back up and running? If not, are parts on their way?

It has been in Intermittant issue over the past couple of days, I am going to clean it again in a few minutes...

One thing I know to be true out of this ordeal is that I have confirmation that I purchased the right product... I usually work all night ( a personal preference) and get to sleep about 5am for a few hours each morning then get up about 11am and get back to work again...

This morning I woke to a voicemail on my cell phone from Engraving Concepts who I purchased my laser from, I had an email too asking if I resolution on this problem that I posted... How refreshing it is to see a company that was so proactive to my needs. Someone there read the thread and contacted me! I know that we will get this irritating problem fixed but more importantly I will have support in the future if I need it...

THANK YOU Epilog and Engraving Concepts...

Doug

[Dan Hintz]

Doug,

I was joking, lighten up. Most people who dig deep enough into their machines to clean the encoder strip know what it is by that point... something went wrong and someone suggested cleaning the encoder strip, that's how people learn about it.



BTW, I do know what everything is called on my car, from the A-pillar to the A-arm, and the cam shaft to the cam follower. But I enjoy cars...

[doug king]

Doug,

I was joking, lighten up. Most people who dig deep enough into their machines to clean the encoder strip know what it is by that point... something went wrong and someone suggested cleaning the encoder strip, that's how people learn about it.



BTW, I do know what everything is called on my car, from the A-pillar to the A-arm, and the cam shaft to the cam follower. But I enjoy cars...

I'm pretty light, I know you were joking... it was a long night and I was tired when I typed the message.... Sorry if I came across wrong.. I have made a living always having the answers... This is the first "Job" I have ever had that I wasnt the Subject Matter Expert so I am not used to being dependent on others... I watched all the videos before I got my laser, had artwork, plans, all sorts of things like that then to be somewhat stuck at 3am was not in my schedule...

I did pull the cover off again and cleaned it again, nothing visible was on the Qtips so maybe there was just a small piece in the wrong place... We will see what happens over the next few days...

Thanks again all for offering the links and tips... I need all the help I can get, one day I will be able to offer something back to you...

Doug

[Dan Hintz]

Check the connection to the encoder strip sensor, too...a bad connection (or sensor) would have the same effect as a dirty strip.

[Bill Jermyn]

Also try reversing the ribbon cable.

[Jeanette Brewer]

THANK YOU Epilog and Engraving Concepts...

Doug,

That's why we're here to help when/if we can! Thank YOU for your business. We're looking forward to working with you for many years to come.

[Scott Shepherd]

How refreshing it is to see a company that was so proactive to my needs. Someone there read the thread and contacted me!

For the life of me, I will never understand why this forum isn't jam packed with reps and techs from companies. I also don't understand why laser manufactures don't advertise here either.

There are literally 100's and 100's of laser owners here and so many people that are looking for lasers go to google and Sawmill Creek comes up at the top of the list. It's one of the first places so many people looking for lasers come to see about machines and get educated.

Yet you can count on one hand, maybe going into the second hand, how many people like Jeanette and her company are actively using this forum to help customers and build relationships.

Great job Jeanette! That's what a company that takes $20,000 from you is supposed to act like! Well done!