@junipertree glad to know you have interest in this stuff and would like to help! To echo what Danny said, when it comes to Red in particular we’re just ready to move on and pass it to someone else interested in tinkering with it. We’ve got so many other machine projects with a lot more promise that it just doesn’t make sense to keep investing in this one with such diminishing returns. Volunteer efforts are an important resource we want to be sure are invested wisely!
Be sure to connect with @EricP on other similar projects we can get you involved with. There are definitely a lot around the space!
Tried the breaker switch on the back - fans spin up but the breaker trips almost immediately. Aha - reset the e-stop to “up” and it’s working
Fwiw - Wiring at that back breaker looks dodgy as hell. There was a bare connection between two wires (ground?) so I put a cap on that connection. But there’s also a chassis ground wire just sticking out unconnected. (??)
EDIT - exhaust blower seems to be not working right. I noticed extra fumes so checked the blower and it was not running. I had to switch on the blower at the old Blue station
Hmm, I haven’t heard of this issue. The software licenses haven’t changed on these machines in ~2 yrs. The current license on Blue is the one we got when that computer was rebuilt during pre-pandemic times. I’m not aware of any software changes on Red. IIRC, anything other than the student edition for Corel was a significant increase in cost. Not sure if anyone has investigated nonprofit discounts for that since we transitioned. If someone wants to do that research and present the case for changing to the board, we can consider it.
@Bwarez can make that call. I would normally say Blue could be used for the class if needed but it’s already booked tonight during the class time. I’ll be up there using Blue at 8p and don’t mind sharing time a bit if the class ends up needing it.
We can still have classes as long as the plan remains to get a transfer class to use the new laser. We introduce a lot of information about lasers and materials. I wanted to swing by there today but I spent the day south at the Audiomaster
I’ll definitely look to see if there’s anything new I can think to do with Red. I do think its encoder on the X servo has gone bad, and it’s not a readily replaceable part, thus the emphasis on getting Tarkin online ASAP.
Red laser class was a success although the computer was a pain to turn on and it never connected to the internet. We rastered a few letters and most of one star so that we could get a head crash error. We discussed supplies and basic laser operations. Everyone who attended the class is ready to get cutting.
We did cut out a few pieces and vector etch a few things as well.
Pearl has a trial version of Corel on it so it’s fine.( a licensed version will be installed in a couple days)
Blue will be back up in a few days and the large laser will be up hopefully within 2weeks