As part of your regular maintenance routine, you will need to clean your system's optics.
A great way to reduce fire risk and keep your laser system at peak performance, is by periodically cleaning your laser optics. If smoke, resin, or other contaminants are allowed to accumulate they will reduce the available laser power and may cause damage to the lens.
Featured in this lesson we’ll show you how to properly and thoroughly clean your Fusion Edge laser optics.
Cleaning the Focusing Lens Optics
The mirrors in the periscope housing are enclosed, and will likely require cleaning less often than the other components of the optics system.
Let’s start by jogging the laser assembly toward the front of the machine for access to the optics, then we’ll turn off the machine.
The focusing lens is mounted inside the lens tube, so we’ll need to remove the lens tube for access to clean the focusing lens.
To remove the lens tube, we’ll start by slightly loosening the captive screws holding the lens assembly face plate in place.
Then rotate the face place to the left until you can see the top section of the lens tube and optics mirror. Now tighten the upper left captive screw to hold the faceplate in a upward position. This will allow for better access to the lens tube and mirror during the cleaning process.
Using the tip of the focus gauge, place it into one of the holes in the ridged ring at the top of the lens tube and rotate it to the left to loosen the lens tube.
Unplug the air assist tube from the top of the lens assembly, then slide the lens tube forward toward the front of the machine and away from optics assembly.
With the lens tube removed, twist off the cone piece at the bottom of the tube to reveal the bottom side of the lens.
To clean the lens, use a high-quality cotton swab moistened with the optics cleaner supplied in the accessory kit, then use the dry side of the cotton swab to remove any excess moisture.
NOTE: Never use Isopropyl Alcohol or Hardware grade Acetone, they contain impurities which can damage the optics in your machine. If you run out of the cleaner supplied by Epilog, Reagent or laboratory grade Alcohol can be substituted. Also, if “Golden Grain” or “Everclear” are available in your area these are also good substitutes for the optical cleaning solution.
Once the optics have been cleaned allow the optics time to dry, then twist the cone piece securely back on to the bottom of the lens tube.
Slide the lens tube back into the lens assembly making sure the air assist port is facing the right side. Then connect the top of the air assist tube back to the port on the lens assembly.
Tighten the ridged ring at the top of the lens tube by rotating it to the right using the manual focus gauge.
Cleaning the Mirror
Now we’ll move on to cleaning the optics assembly mirror. The mirror is located on the front side of the assembly and is also simple to clean.
Start by twisting the knob on the top right side of the assembly counterclockwise to loosen the mirror.
Now remove the mirror from the assembly by sliding it out towards the front of the machine.
To clean the mirror, use a high-quality cotton swab moistened with the optics cleaner supplied in the accessory kit, and use the dry side of the cotton swab to remove any excess moisture.
After the mirror has been cleaned and is completely dry, place it back into the assembly with the mirror angled down towards the table. Tighten the knob that secures the mirror in place. Lastly, close the optics assembly face plate by sliding it back into position and tightening the captive screws.
As a final note, and again, never use Isopropyl Alcohol or Hardware grade Acetone, as they contain impurities which can damage the optics in your machine.
