I had the Ray5 10W laser and then I received the 30W longer head as an upgrade. I followed instructions to update the firmware, but I’m unsure if it worked and wondering if that is why my lines are all coming out shaky? It almost seems like the laser head is too heavy for the frame and there is play in it. I’ve tightened screws and belts, how can I confirm the firmware and support the frame better?
Almost positive like the laser head is too heavy. Adding angle plates to the legs and bolting it all down might help. That new module is massive compared to the old one.
Slow it down, a lot. Run the same program at maybe 1/4 the speed (and reduced power) to seee if there is an improvement
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If you grab onto the laser head are you able to flex the frame or move the laser head at all?
Is there really a significant difference in weight between the two?
Make sure also that your lens is in securely. A loose lens can cause all sorts of wobbly lines.
There is a difference in the weight. It pulls forward just enough that as it moves quickly it’s bouncy causing those lines. Slowing it way down helps but not completely fixed and defeats the purpose of a faster machine. How do I adjust the lens?
If you increase mass, you have to lower the acceleration for that axes. A head with more mass also increases the Y mass.
Is there a setting I should change? I’m a newbie
Usually you see a loss of steps when you attempt to accelerate something faster than the mechanical parts can move. It simply attempting to get to speed too fast.
Further examination of your output, I think you have a mechanical issue.
The red circles show where the Y axes should not be moving or at least a small amount and it is. I’d suggest you have an issue with the belts or other mechanical parts related to the Y axes.
What I’m looking at is the stability of the axes, if Y shouldn’t be moving and it is, then it’s suggested that you have something loose related to that axes.
Make sense?
As many have pointed out, there is a larger mass (by about 2/3) for the new head, but that usually relates to the output being skewed or miss aligned because of missed steps.
We know you know what the original looks like, we don’t have that original reference to make a good objective association.
There may be settings you can easily change such as starting with your layer settings.
Can you show us what your speeds are now?
What happens if reduce your line speed by 90%?
Set your laser power to a fairly low setting and run your project again at 10% of your original speed.
Then run again at 50%
Is there an improvement or difference between the two?
You could soften the start up jerk when accelerating. Maybe cut the GRBL controller $120 and $121 settings in half. This will impact your run time, but fast is no good if it is making bad parts.