Used Thunder Laser Inspection & Valuation

Overview

We still support quite a few MARS series and older Nova machines and they still perform just as well as current machines, minus some of the innovation (dual stage air, door interlock board, etc...). Thunder Laser still maintains many, if not all, OEM or equivalent parts and components for legacy machines, or can help find a source for the components in most cases.

Finding Information About Your Equipment

Overall Condition

The way it was (or was not) maintained will be a huge factor of the condition and performance of the machine. You should get a 'feel' of the level of care of the machine in short order, so trust your instincts.

Inspection Best Practices

Take Pics/Screenshots

Take lots of photos, videos, etc... of the tube label, machine label, controller (hmi & dsp), head, etc... and some overall pics for reference, as well as the areas, displays, information, and components discussed in this article.

Get the 'Odometers'

You can get the controller information from within LightBurn (and RDWorks... i think). Here is more on that:

Getting Controller Info From Within LightBurn

Here is an example screenshot:

Inspect the Following

General Condition

Check the condition of the frame, casters, feet, doors, glasses, etc... and gauge the cleanliness and PM of the equipment.

Optics

Check the condition of the focus lens, 3 steering mirrors, and beam combiner, etc...

Inspecting and Cleaning Nova Series Optics

Belts

Check the condition of the belts. Look for excessive belt residue (a little bit is normal) abnormal noises, belt 'slap' etc... It is highly atypical to have to adjust the x or y belt tension. Doing so could adversely affect operation. The x belt may 'look a bit loose' but that is usually normal.

Z Axis

Check the operation of the z axis bed and that the endstops/autofocus are functioning properly.

Checking The Blade System Before Using The Z Axis

Testing Z Axis Endstops

Gantry

Check the condition and fitment of the head, gantry, bearings, motors, etc... and manually jog the head around front to back and left to right. Listen, look, and feel for anything out of the ordinary.

Fire the Laser

Provided the previous steps don't reveal any serious red flags, you should fire the tube to see if the tube fluoresces a hot white-yellow or a cool pink-purple.

Open the upper rear laser tube bay door so you can visualize the tube when it fires, after bypassing the safety interlocks or otherwise defeating them. One way is to remove the 6 pin connector on the power supply and pressing the tiny red test button on the side of the laser power supply. Keep in mind this will fire the laser power supply at the highest ungoverned power that the supply can deliver.

Here is more on that: Laser Tube Will Not Fire - LPSU Test

The tube should look pink-purple in the center when excited:

If it looks white-yellow the tube has reached or is near its end of life:

Vector a Square

Draw and output a vector square (you can score/etch if you like, you don't have to cut through), then measure the resultant output in the x and y directions to see if they measure the same (minus the kerf) as it was drawn.

More on that: Calibrating Axes In LightBurn

Engrave Something

Engrave a simple design (switch the vector square above to a fill, if you like) and look for backlash. It's important to know if the scanning offsets (reverse comp settings in RDWorks) are entered, correct, and active when evaluating this.

More on that here: Thunder Laser Scanning Offset Adjustment

Equipment Valuation

Thunder machines are in high demand, even older units, and they hold their value very well. We don't have a good formula for coming up with a solid dollar amount, but looking at the current pricing of the machines and included peripherals can help define some parameters. Here are some resources that may help:

Thunder Laser USA Pricing

Preventative Maintenance Checklist

Software License and Settings

The LightBurn Software License is a non tangible item to transfer. You will need the previous owner to turn off the license and control in the LightBurn Software portal. Thunder will not email you their old license key; the previous owner must request it if they do not have it. Make sure the previous owner removes all their instances from the license portal and it would be good for them to also email LightBurn from the email they registered to the license to let LightBurn know that you are transferring the license to your email.

Offsets and Device Profile

Have the previous owner export the device profile and include it with the sale. You can then easily import the profile and have your scanning offsets and device configuration.

Warranty & Support Transfer

Please see how warranty transfer and support work here:

Thunder Laser USA Warranty & Transfer