Falcon 10w clunking while engraving

[miscellaneous]

Hi all,
I had a look on here and Google but couldn’t find a straight answer to my problem. Hopefully someone knows something.

I’ve had the Falcon 10w for about 3 months now. Had no problems with it until LaserGRBL had an update. At least that is what I think is the cause. Still a newbie so I’m likely missing something.

I’ve got 2 problems.

1. Previously when engraving MDF and bamboo/pine I had used the first default engraving setting [never changed it] and it would burn really nicely and evenly, giving a dark burn. Now, I’ve found you can play around with the settings for engraving but I’ve yet to get as good as result as I was after the program updated. The only way I have gotten close to the proper burn on both MDF and Bamboo is to select that material and change the engraving speed from 20000mm/s down to either 9000 or 8000mm/s. Although that results in burn shadows and laser lines depending on the material. If I cover the wood with tape first I have to go over it 2-3 times to get a good burn.
   What settings - speed etc - would you recommend to get a good burn and without the lines?

2. That bring me to problem 2. I’ve found the faster the engraving speed, the worse the machine clunks. All the belts and bolts have been tightened. It moves smoothly when turned off and not engraving. So I’m really lost as to why it’s making such a noise. When I did leave the engraving settings on the original speed for MDF which was around the 20000mm/s mark, I found that the machine jumped lines as well. Slowing it down to 8000/9000mm/s reduced the amount it clunks and so far has stopped the line skipping but hasn’t solved the problem. I should be able to let the machine go and not stand there worrying every time it clunks if it’ll ruin the end product or not.
   Does anyone know what is going one? Google was of no help.

Thank you.

[Zolt]

Hi there.

First of all, I don’t think your issue has anything to do with the LaserGRBL.

That sounds to me more like a faulty “wheel” on the carriage holding the laser module.
We had some posts about this in this forum:

Falcon 10w laser misses the mark on second pass

I’ve had the laser for a couple of weeks now and have cut and engraved a few projects. Most of the pieces of each project fit on a 305mm x 305mm board (12in x 12in). When cutting, I found that 2 passes are needed to cut through the 3mm basswood plywood. In some cuts, the second pass is off by a millimeter or so. The error has happened in different places, and is not consistently in the same place, but always happens somewhere on the board. I believe that I am using the latest firmware. [1E149B…

…and…

Falcon 2 22W horizontal lines not straight

[20240215_172509] [Capture5] Non straight horizontal lines Vs perfectly straight vertical lines

For best engraving settings, try to create yourself a test grid - you can find plenty of these on the web and on YouTube.
Basically, it’s a grid where you mix speed and power to draw filled squares.
Based on these 2 variables, you’ll find the best values for your engraving.
Search the web for “laser engraving test grid”
Note that you should run these whenever you have new material so you know what to expect.
There are also the same type of grid for cutting - instead of using lower power to fill in a square, you have higher power and try to cut the square instead of filling it.

Cheers!