Acrylic not cutting properly

[Grant Lomman]

I'm cutting some 3mm acrylic on my Epilog 40w but no matter what I try it doesn't cut consistently (see attached). Some sections cut perfectly but others don't cut at all and when trying to separate the cut section it tends to break. I've tried turning the job 90 degrees as well as trying different speed/power/Hz. I ran a piece of 6mm MDF and it worked absolutely perfectly. I have tried cleaning the lenses but it still seems to only cut parts of the outline. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Mike Lysov]

I would check two things first
1) an air assist cone alignment
2) a laser beam alignment

Basically these two problems are linked together. If your laser beam is not properly aligned then at some points on your table it can hit the cone inside. Usually it is reflected from an inside wall of the cone and it should still hit material but it depends on geometry of the cone inside.

Checking if it cuts other material will help only if you trying a different material but exactly the same thickness as acrylic and artwork is the same and placed exactly as the one with acrylic. It does not apply though to lasers with motorized beds, only to those that have a laser head that needs to move up/down for focusing.

[Frank Corker]

I agree with Mike. Laser beam alignment, go to the Epilog website and view the tutorial or check from the manual. That metal tray is not generally used for cutting on, you should use your vector grid underneath it. Air assist will help your cut. Check the distance from the lens to the cutting material using the manual triangular measurer. Check that the bed is the same distance down from the lens on left, right, front and back. Set the cutting frequency to 5000. Speed and power should be as per handbook.

[Grant Lomman]

Thanks guys, your replies are much appreciated. Turns out it was as simple as one of the mirrors not being cleaned properly! Spent all day with a headache trying to work this out and it's the most simple thing I could've imagine. I've just cut 3 pieces of acrylic and had no issues so I'm very thankful it was a simple fix.

I agree with not using the metal tray for cutting however my daughters buckled the mesh tray so I don't have much of a choice unfortunately lol. I do however raise the material by putting a few lengths of off-cut underneath to try and keep it off the metal as I found it left unsightly residue on the back of the acrylic.

Thanks again for your help

[Neil Pabia]

I was having the same problem last week, I also lost my red dot. It turned out that a mirror in the back left corner had a burned spot on it. I turned the mirror a little since it wasn't burned in the center and ordered a replacement. It is working fine now so I'll keep the replacement as a spare.