PHR-803T based MDXL WIP

I am on hold until I can get another 10mf SMD cap from DrLava to replace the one that went bye bye when I cleared the solder bridge I made across my lavadrive's battery input leads BY FLICKING THE SOLDERING IRON. By the way, that technique does work. It's just that you really need to flick it the correct direction if you've heated the board enough to loosen the SMD device just downwind from your leads. In any case, I wanted to share the progress I have made on heat sink and host preparation. I have mounted my LD in an Aixisz housing, fit that to some scrap aluminum of various sizes and drilled them to accomodate the LD housing and to have a recess for my driver in the rear. Here it is:

JeffP

And another view:

Edited appropriately cropped pictures.

it's looking good, but if the capacitor you're missing is just a generic input filtering cap you could replace it with one from radioshack for like $0.99 and be done with it

MarioMaster Posted on: Today at 9:17am
> it's looking good, but if the capacitor you're missing is just a generic input filtering cap you could replace it with one from radioshack
> for like $0.99 and be done with it.

Frankly, I don't know what it does other than the fact that it used to be attached to the lavadrive2 at a certain point. I have no schematic for the driver and probably would not be qualified to interpret it if I had one. I certainly am not going to take a stab at it to see what will happen. If the good Doctor (Mr Lava to you) tells me I can get away with that I might give it a shot, but the clearances are pretty tight in this design and the surface mount devices keep things compact. I will keep you all informed, though.

JeffP

what collimator are you using for this and where can i get one? (assuming it costs less than the $35+ merideth glass lens collimator)

Looks like an AiXiZ..
Hightechdealz and StoneTek both have them...

Glaserfan said:

Looks like an AiXiZ..
Hightechdealz and StoneTek both have them...

Click to expand...

[link=http://www.hightechdealz.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=9] Blank Aixiz Laser Module [/link] for $4 shipped

or

[link=http://www.hightechdealz.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=35] 5mW Laser Module [/link] for $3.42 shipped

Re: PHR-803T based MDXL Working!

Whoo Hooo!

I finally got that replacement 10mf SMD cap soldered back in place (good golly. those things are TINY) and darned if we don't have a working blu-ray laser pointer! A big thank you to DrLava for sending me the replacement cap for no cost - only shipping charges!!! Thanks as well to IgorT for all the great advice! He really took a lot of time to explain some stuff that most folks here probably know by heart. That willingness to help and lack of flaming seems to characterize this group, and I am really pleased to have found what I hope to be a place I can contribute to in the long run.

This is my first DIY project that actually worked! I do not have a camera to shoot any beam shots, but will post those ASAP. Yes, that is an Aixiz laser module, 5mw red LD removed. Now to find some fluorescent materials...

JeffP

Oh and just for the sake of full disclosure, the total cost on this thing was pretty reasonable. The flashlight host is essentially free, since it died a natural death a few days after receipt from DX and it was too cheap to make it worth pursuing an RMA. The blu-ray diode from geeks.com harvested from an HD-DVD drive was $17 + 8 shipping. The driver was $25. The rest was just scrap laying around the garage. So a one of a kind 65mw blu-ray for $50 ain't too shabby. I am running it at a lightweight 75ma for now. Yes, I am a chicken.

JeffP

Yeah, these Blu-rays are really cheap! I cant understand why more of the laser companies havent started producing them. THey could make a kill on profits....

I'm guessing the diodes are still REALLY expensive, unless you are buying zillions of them. There was a post a while back that Dave found some and got a per piece price of over $800 each! Since we can salvage them out of HD-DVD drives, we have a jump on the pricing issue.

JeffP