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Optotronics 225mw question

hillbh

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Hi guys, i am new to laser world, and after research the forum i bought an 200mw RPL from optotronics, when i unpacked it i was surprise! They sent me an 225mw! But there´s one question: When the laser is cool down and i turn it on, it light an match in less then one second, and after its on for more then 40 seconds it starts to lose power and it doesnt even light an matche, so i need to let it cool down for about 3 - 5 minutes, to have it maximum power again, is this right? is my device with problem? Thank you.
 





Emc2

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Oct 16, 2007
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Hi guys, i am new to laser world, and after research the forum i bought an 200mw RPL from optotronics, when i unpacked it i was surprise! They sent me an 225mw! But there´s one question: When the laser is cool down and i turn it on, it light an match in less then one second, and after its on for more then 40 seconds it starts to lose power and it doesnt even light an matche, so i need to let it cool down for about 3 - 5 minutes, to have it maximum power again, is this right? is my device with problem? Thank you.

I have the RPL 425 and it does the same in a similar way, you have to use these lasers cold or cool. Mine works well arount 68º~75º and keeps its power for five minutes or more. I have the adjustable tail cap, do you have this one also? If so put it on #7 and see how it works. It has a sweet spot as all lasers do, you just have to find it. Remember the pump laser is at least 1.5~2.0 watts and it gets warm pretty quick.

-T
 
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hillbh

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Thanks for the very fast answer, my adjustable tail cap is set to #7 and i found that it can maintein power for about 2 minutes, after that it starts to takes more then 10 seconds to light an match and after 4 minutes it becomes very weark... i dont like the idea of put my new laser (less then 1 day old) in the freezer, i prefer let it cool down in the window =] i didnt got what you mean about sweet point?
 
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lol ...

im sorry i just couldnt help it..



What he means is that there is a temperature that the laser likes best for optimal operation.
 

Emc2

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Thanks for the very fast answer, my adjustable tail cap is set to #7 and i found that it can maintein power for about 2 minutes, after that it starts to takes more then 10 seconds to light an match and after 4 minutes it becomes very weark... i dont like the idea of put my new laser (less then 1 day old) in the freezer, i prefer let it cool down in the window =] i didnt got what you mean about sweet point?

Well the sweet spot of the laser is finding the temperature that it preforms best in. Like mine does really well at 65º and the cool body of the laser takes a while for it to warm up therefore it stays bright for several minutes. I bet after 4 minutes the body of your laser is pretty warm. if you hold it in front of the A/C vent in 70º temps it will do quite well. Let me know if it does better cold. Do you have the black or silver body? This is mine:

-Todd

original.jpg


original.jpg
 
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Wait do not put it in the freezer thats very very bad
soiunds like your batts are low please don't put it in the freezer !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

hillbh

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Hmmm, it takes a while to find the better temperature i bet. Here its about 21ºC and yes, after 4 minutes the body of my laser is very warm, i think thats why it loses power, so i need to let cool down to have the burner power again. My body is black, yours looks pretyyyyy cool, but i didnt know there was 2 models of RPL´s , if i knew that i would have asked the silver body (when i upgrade i will do that) =P. So there s no trick to make the laser stays cool down for a longer period? like for 5 minutes? because yours is 425mw, that means that even when its very hot it outputs a lot more then mine. My laser when its warm i think it outputs lower then 150mw =[ sad!
 
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Hmmm, it takes a while to find the better temperature i bet. Here its about 21ºC and yes, after 4 minutes the body of my laser is very warm, i think thats why it loses power, so i need to let cool down to have the burner power again. My body is black, yours looks pretyyyyy cool, but i didnt know there was 2 models of RPL´s , if i knew that i would have asked the silver body (when i upgrade i will do that) =P. So there s no trick to make the laser stays cool down for a longer period? like for 5 minutes? because yours is 425mw, that means that even when its very hot it outputs a lot more then mine. My laser when its warm i think it outputs lower then 150mw =[ sad!
Hi hillbh,
I just sent a reply to your email discussing this.
More importantly, I want to let everyone know that the pen pointers or RPL lasers should never be put into a freezer or refrigerator at all, not even for a few minutes.
There are a couple of reasons.
1. If the diode's impedance changes a great deal with temperature and if it's actually cold, way too much current can flow and actually fry the diode if the diode temperature gets down below the operating temperature spec.
2. If the laser body itself gets cold (before the internal can even get cooled down)and it gets below the dew point moisture will form on the lens surfaces (both sides) and really muck up the lens and screw up the beam shape. If it gets even colder or dew is easily formed, it can even form on the circuit boards and water & electricity don't mix well.
If your outside humidity is very low, say under 15-20% you might be ok if you don't get it too cool, but if you are in a humid location it can get bad really fast.
If you can't tell if its humid, then its probably not. Just get a glass of ice water and set it on the table for 5 minutes or so until the water is good and cold; if the outside of the glass is dripping wet, bad news. if it remains dry you have low humidity.
 

hillbh

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I just checked my local news and the humidity for my city today is 50% , temperature is 25ºC , is it bad?
 




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