My First Build

First I want to thank the folks that made this possible.
Mhemling: for trading me one of the two flashlights and the heatsink I used for rocks.
Mrcrouse: for making the heat sink.
DTR: for the module with diode and driver.
Flaminpyro: for the Focus adapter, wire kit and flux..

Links to their LPF or web pages.
DTR: https://sites.google.com/site/dtrlpf/
Flaminpyro: Laser Pointers - View Profile: Flaminpyro
Mrcrouse: Laser Pointers - View Profile: Mrcrouse

These are the flashlights I used.
Ultrafire C3: $9.89 UltraFire C3 1-Mode 240-Lumen LED Flashlight w/ Extension Tube - 2 x AA at FastTech - Worldwide Free Shipping

Smallsun ZY-C5: Small Sun ZY-C55 Cree XR-E Q5 185lm White Flashlight - Black (1 x 16340) - Free Shipping - DealExtreme

The diode is a 120mW 450nm Osram PL450B with Microboost driver set at 200ma.
This is a pic of what I started with.


Here is one with everything broken down.


The Smallsun is a side click so I used the positive contact for the LD driver.


The negative pickup was a bit tricky, I could not use the cleaned driver board from the C3 as it would not fit in the front behind the module and if I put it in the back end of the body it would hit the positive connection. I didn't want to trust an insulator so I cut the outer ring and soldered the negative lead to it.


I couldn't get a pic of it installed, but it sits flat side up around the positive contact and the body clamps it down on the plastic switch body.

This is the module with the driver inside.


I put the body tube from the C3 into the Smallsun switch body and soldered the leads together and covered the joints with heat shrink tube. The syringe in the pic is flux, never solder without flux.



I installed the module in the heat sink and slid it into the end tube of the C3 using a very small amount of thermal compound.

I screwed the two together and put the lens back in, put in a battery and pushed the button. To say I was pleased and relieved when it fired up is an under statement.

Here is the finished laser.


Now I had an extension tube and tail cap from the C3 and the front piece to the Smallsun, driver/led. I put them together and put a 14500 in and it all fit.
So I have the laser that can use a 14500 or a 16340 and a flashlight that uses 14500 batteries.



And a beam shot.


The laser puts out 125mw and draws 520ma at the tail cap.
The flash light draws 550ma so I'm not worried about the switch.

Most of all I have to thank LPF for all the info that I have learned here.
Thanks to all of you.
Ed

This is badass! A side clicky c3!!!! this is the first one I have seen +1 if I can

Very nice review, the pictures make it all the better.

Cool set up you have devised so it can use more than one size of cell for power

Nice! Unique combination of host parts.
I agree, gotta love a side clicky.:yh:
Good to see a 1st build that's not the typical multi watt burner.

+1 nice job. :beer:

Congrats on your first! It looks great and I'm sure you had a blast doing it. I'm looking forward to your future projects! +1

c

I'm going to be doing 3 more a 405nm, 638nm and a 520nm. The flashlights I'll be giving away.
Thanks for the positive reply's and reps.
Really love this place.

can't rep you yet. very nice, one of these days, I gotta get a single mode 450nm. are you going to get the single mode 638nm? I got the 500mW rated mitsubishi and it's bright, but the divergence is the worst of my collection. I gotta get a single mode opnext 638nm too.

when you do the 405nm and 520nm, I would go with a g lens. It's really the only way to hope to get 100mW out of 520, driven at maybe around 300mA. for 405nm, I find a g lens thins the beam without effecting divergence a ton. the extra burning power is noticable on mine between the 3 element and g lens. since the beam is thinner, it concentrates the beam's photons making it much easier to see. 405nm is hard enough to see. I find every little bit helps.

that said, it's nice to have both lens types.

Great work on your first build.:beer:

Congrats!

The first build is always exciting

Nice clean job on your first Laser build...:gj:
Thanks for sharing the detailed info.


Jerry

Pretty sweet set up I really like it clean as a whistle.:beer:

How does that helping hand with the LED work?

jander6442 said:

How does that helping hand with the LED work?

Click to expand...

It works well, but is a bit light. I'm going to make a base for it to make it more stable. The LED is great; I can see what I'm doing, no small task.
Ed :thanks:

This is an Awesome Laser Antharak! Unique, and a great mod. Looking forward to some more great work from you! :beer:

~ LB