- Joined
- Dec 13, 2010
- Messages
- 108
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- 0
Hey everybody. I'm new to this whole thing and this is my very first build, ever.
I decided to get into this whole thing when I read an article talking about how the lasers inside DVD burners were class 3b lasers. I thought it would be a small, fun project to do.
So, I'm basically wondering how I did on this first build of mine. I've had very little prior experience with soldering and electrical stuff, mostly for school projects. And I have had near zero experience with lasers. :cryyy:
Front view. The host is just an ordinary small steel box with a lid that I just had laying around.
Side view. I added some feet on the bottom for when I need to use it on slanted surfaces.
Inside view. I have three switches. A momentary on the outside, and a clickity on-off switch and a flip "safety" switch on the inside. The flip safety switch must be on before you can use the momentary or the clickity switch to turn on the laser.
I made a cr123 battery holder out of some foam chunks after I couldn't find any holders for cheaper than $20 on ebay.
Parts are all epoxied in except for the safety flip switch (was a little too large), and the circuit board (still need to replace the POT sometime).
It's driven by a DDL driver with a ceiling of about 300mA.
I added a small heatsink to the LM317, even though I don't really think it needed it. Also, I kinda went crazy with the heatshrink and electrical tape after I caught some current arching from an exposed wire to the LM317. Luckily, the capacitor absorbed it and the diode and driver weren't damaged.
Testing the laser on a rainy night. I'm running it at about 180mA in this photo.
So, how do you guys think I did? :thanks:
I decided to get into this whole thing when I read an article talking about how the lasers inside DVD burners were class 3b lasers. I thought it would be a small, fun project to do.
So, I'm basically wondering how I did on this first build of mine. I've had very little prior experience with soldering and electrical stuff, mostly for school projects. And I have had near zero experience with lasers. :cryyy:
Front view. The host is just an ordinary small steel box with a lid that I just had laying around.
Side view. I added some feet on the bottom for when I need to use it on slanted surfaces.
Inside view. I have three switches. A momentary on the outside, and a clickity on-off switch and a flip "safety" switch on the inside. The flip safety switch must be on before you can use the momentary or the clickity switch to turn on the laser.
I made a cr123 battery holder out of some foam chunks after I couldn't find any holders for cheaper than $20 on ebay.
Parts are all epoxied in except for the safety flip switch (was a little too large), and the circuit board (still need to replace the POT sometime).
It's driven by a DDL driver with a ceiling of about 300mA.
I added a small heatsink to the LM317, even though I don't really think it needed it. Also, I kinda went crazy with the heatshrink and electrical tape after I caught some current arching from an exposed wire to the LM317. Luckily, the capacitor absorbed it and the diode and driver weren't damaged.
Testing the laser on a rainy night. I'm running it at about 180mA in this photo.
So, how do you guys think I did? :thanks:
