A few questions setting up our new Shenhui lasers.

[Greg Facer]

I've been busy actually setting up the first of my 150w Reci lasers to do a proper "full run down" post to add to the knowledge pool, but I also have run into a couple of minor problems too.

Problem #1 is that the machine is partly set up for 110v and partly for 220. The circuit (in machine) that powers the motion control, ran fine on 110v, was labeled 110v on the machines outlet, but actually came with a 220v power cable and the internal power supplies were set to 220v (although they worked fine it seemed at 110v). I've slid the switches over to 110v to be safe.

The laser power supply has a 110v sticker on it so I assume it's OK, but I blew the fuse doing just a few squares for testing, and the fuse is 5a 250v, thinking I might need a 10a fuse for the lower voltage. Any thoughts ?

The chiller was also 220v, but bought a small transformer for that.

Problem #2 is the Corel plug in. I was able to get Corel running as administrator, allowing it to show the icons for the plugin. And it seems to work fine the first time. However any second try to move the graphic from Corel to Laserworks does nothing. Only I'd I shut down laser works will te script work again, inning a new instance of laser works and transferring the graphic.

Any ideas? I have not tried reinstalling Corel (x5 btw) in c:/ as has been suggested.

Thanks! Greg Facer

[Greg Facer]

Well, I tried a new 5A fuse, guy at the electrical place said that it will actually be higher rated at a lower voltage anyways, so maybe I am OK there (I got some 10a just in case). However, new fuse lasted about 2" of cutting at 100 percent, 15mm/s. I think I'll try a lower setting and lower speed, but beginning to think power supply might be at issue?

Any ideas would be welcome.

[Rich Harman]

When you install LaserWorks there will be a check box called "Plug LaserWorks" or something similar. If you have that checked, then whenever you click the button in Corel to export, it will automatically launch the full version of LaserWorks with your file already imported into it. I would reinstall in c:\ either way.

I don't know about a 5 amp fuse working differently at a lower voltage. Typically the fuse has an amperage rating and a voltage rating. The voltage rating has to do with the dielectric properties of the fuse. Five Amps at 12 Volts should blow a five amp fuse the same as it would blow at 5A/110 Volts.

My very gross approximation suggests that a 150 Watt laser would be drawing 6 amps at 110V when run at 100% power. This is based upon it being 20% efficient at converting the electrical energy into infrared heat. If it is supplied with 220V, then the Amperage required is halved and a 5A fuse seems appropriate. Again, these are gross estimates.

I would get in touch with Joy or Yarde before making any alterations though.

[Greg Facer]

When you install LaserWorks there will be a check box called "Plug LaserWorks" or something similar. If you have that checked, then whenever you click the button in Corel to export, it will automatically launch the full version of LaserWorks with your file already imported into it. I would reinstall in c:\ either way.

Yes, that is how I thought it should work, but only works the first time. After that, it does nothing until laserworks is not running. However, I might just make my own macro to do the work, in autohotkey.....might be easier than figuring this out, with bonus of being easy to modify for X6, X7, etc.

I would get in touch with Joy or Yarde before making any alterations though.

Can you message me with their contact info? I have nothing other than my salesperson's info.

Thanks, Greg

[john banks]

Do you find that when you run the macro again the old Laserwork window remains open but a new paste has occurred even though the Laserwork window that was already open hasn't been brought to focus?

You want Corel installed outside Program Files if you have Vista or Win 7 with UAC because otherwise the macro can't write to an area in this folder it needs to without administrator privileges.

You will have a PM shortly.

[Rodne Gold]

I think you need the 10amp fuse , 5a @220v = 1100 va power draw , the same power draw for 110v needs a 10A fuse.
We don't futz with trying to use the Corel macro , it's far easier , tho a step more, to just export out of corel as Ai8 and import into Laserworks.
We do the same for many other machines , my CnC TekCel router , my ISEL's and my digital printers etc all have their own stand alone "back ends" and Corel is merely the design package , only my GCC machines have direct drivers from Corel.

[Greg Facer]

Another issue.

I humbly admit I didn't at first realize what the clear plastic cap that comes with the RECI tubes was for, and had some arcing to the frame at first, while doing the mirror alignment. However, I did "get it" afterwards and took off the silicone "blob" the instructions for the cheaper tubes are supposed to get, rubbed off the silicone, and reattached the wire to work with the RECI cap and installed as shown. (No black burn marks then!)

I did a hour or two of engraving testing today and all was well, as well as the last run of 50% power cutting testing I did. Today I DID have the 10A fuse installed. As soon as I started cutting at 95%, or a few minutes into that cutting little test circles, I started with the arcing issues. I cleaned off the contacts and reattached, tried again at 50% power (that had proved fine with the older 5A fuse).....arced again. It seems to be arcing from the from the innermost metal ring, not where the wire attaches. The circles only run for 5-10 seconds, so not a lot of stress on the electrical.

I did get Joy's contact information at Shenhui, so hopefully they have some suggestions, but I thought I'd throw it up here too. Thanks all for any help.... I am really hoping that machine #2 is easier to set up than this one. This one seems a little like the "oh crap there was supposed to be 2?" model, a little rushed.

My thoughts are either to seal the cap in with silicone (messy if that doesn't work) or wrap the whole end with silicone tape.


photo.jpgphoto(1).JPG

[Greg Facer]

Emailed back and forth with Joy a bit, 10A fuse was OK, advice was pretty much to check the wires, both high voltage and low. I did so, wrapped the wires (after putting the cap on in the high voltage side) with silicone tape, now I have no laser at all. Need to get Joy a video tomorrow of the tube to send to Reci people, although I will check the connections one more time.

I didn't get a spare tube, but do still have the tube from the other identical machine i could try and swap out to trouble shoot (power supply I did get a spare).

[Rodne Gold]

Check the continuity of the RED HT wire , we found it had been joined somewhere and it was not a good join.

[Rich Harman]

It looks like it is arcing from the wire to the metal ring without going through the crimped connector. I would check it carefully and replace if it looks suspect.

[Greg Facer]

Hi Rodney, Rich

My Brother, who is using the second machine we ordered once it is set up, told me about that issue as a possibility, and perhaps I should still check it out, but 95% sure that is not the problem.

1 reason is that the crimped connection is well insulated and I think and fault in that area would show at the spot where the wire enters the cover over the crimped part. Second, the scorching starts in in the middle of that plastic cover on the side closest to the tube (and furthest from the point on the case it arcs to), with not hole or heavy scorching on the crimp cap itself.

The total effect looks like its coming from that point on the ring of the tube end itself, which would make the whole high voltage connection ok and the tube faulty, I guess....or at least needing some better insulation than the cap was giving it.

I'll send some other photos later when i'm back at my desktop and not my phone.

Greg

[Greg Facer]

Further update:

Changed out the power supply, making my own High Voltage junction box design in the process (I'll post pictures), and changed the high voltage wire connection to a new ring style, crimped on only. There was also a loose wire into the power supply that I redid in the crimped style. But, I tried the old power supply with those new connections and still nothing. So, changed out the power supply and started zapping again.

I'm going to set up my second machine in the meantime, leave testing this one and redoing the silicone tape over all the connections until later, and probably after Joy at Shenhui has gone over what I have done and gives a little feedback.

So far, decision to get spare power supply and no spare tube is still holding out.....and better to have the PS go as it's alot easier to ship a replacement. Figuring out what I need for replacements is also a good reason to work on Machine #2.

Greg

[ray hampton]

I may be wrong but all of the fuses that I buy and can remember [clip type ] are 250 volts

[Greg Facer]

I may be wrong but all of the fuses that I buy and can remember [clip type ] are 250 volts

Yes, rated up to 250V, so good for either 110 or 220V, but at the rated amps for either one. So, 5A at 220v was supplied, but what was needed was 10A for 110v operation. This was confirmed with factory. I had pretty much confirmed by more reading online, mostly of people going the other way, and warning NOT to use a amperage that worked at 110v if voltage changed to 220v. It was only the guy at the electrical counter that made me second guess for a while, but he was looking at the specification of when the fuse explodes at 110v, which was I think was 10,000 volts or something.

Greg

[Greg Facer]

Further update:

Changed out the power supply, making my own High Voltage junction box design in the process (I'll post pictures)

No pictures, the box didn't work at all! Good for any leaks on the water sensor, but that's it.

I'm going to set up my second machine in the meantime, leave testing this one and redoing the silicone tape over all the connections until later, and probably after Joy at Shenhui has gone over what I have done and gives a little feedback.

So far, decision to get spare power supply and no spare tube is still holding out.....and better to have the PS go as it's alot easier to ship a replacement. Figuring out what I need for replacements is also a good reason to work on Machine #2.

Greg

So, in setting up the second machine, I left the silicone tape at my shop. Fortunately, there was an electrical wholesaler next door and we got some 3M high voltage tape that was similar to the silicone tape but easier to use. Since my pvc conduit boxes didn't work for containing the voltage (arced through the gasket to the frame), I wrapped the heck out of the wires with this tape, and wrapped all the openings on the wires on the tubes too.

That *almost* solved my issues. I rearranged some bolts on the laser mounting, so I had to realign the laser. When hitting the laser button to mark tape, as I get further from the tube, I have to use the laser button a few times for a darker mark.....but if I hit 3 times in rapid succession, I would have a arc. I never could tell WHERE it arced, but I could here it and the LCD blanked out (although one time the sound seemed to come from inside the power supply). The other arcing seemed to be at the high voltage end of the tube, but none of the earlier external signs of arcing were present. I suspect that it might have been in the tube and might be an issue with the tube not quite getting rid of all the voltage from a short pulse (and arcing internally?)

Anyways, after I first emailed Joy at Shenhui about the issues, he emailed RECI..... and I heard back today that they will replace the tube if I email the back / front / and label together (ie distroyed or disassembled). Not sure if I want to go down that route as the laser has been fine in all the small test jobs I have done at various power levels. Except for the testing issues with the 3 rapid laser button pushs, changing the power supply seems to have done the trick.

So, looking for opinions. Naturally, I don't want to destroy my tube and the time taken to set it up, as well as possibly pay out for the new tube shipping or duty or whatever I might need too, if it's not necessary. However, I know that if I have a borderline tube then I might be better off taking the offer, and I might be biased towards keeping what is working now.


Thanks, Greg