NEW! Sanwu - X5 Beam Expander

[RedCowboy]

Sanwu says they're finally shipping my order today.......

Well that certainly took a hot minute!

I'm still waiting for my tap, tracking says import customs clearance is finally done, so I'm guessing they shipped it on a freaking boat.

 

[Shmackitup]

Well that certainly took a hot minute!

It sure did. They said they finally had enough good ones in stock to send my order. Sounds like they have some supply issues on their end. They entered the market with a new product a little prematurely I'd say.

I'm still waiting for my tap, tracking says import customs clearance is finally done, so I'm guessing they shipped it on a freaking boat.

It's probably being smuggled rectally through the southern border!

 

[Ricker]

Sanwu says they're finally shipping my order today.......

 

[Lifetime17]

Hi,
Tap size for the Sawn BE 3X might be the same for the 5X .
Rich

 

[RedCowboy]

Yes the 3.3x and 5x are the same treads, same back half and same concave lens too, only the front half and lens are different ( wider and longer FL ).

 

[Ricker]

Is the finish brighter (more shiny) as well?

 

[RedCowboy]

Actually the old 3.3X body is a tiny bit brighter maybe.....if I touch the 3.3X it feels infinitely smooth, like chrome..... but the 5X has a micro groove feel, like a 1000 cycle buzz as I drag my finger tip across it.

Maybe they polished the 3.3X ?

p.s. Both appear to be stainless steel. Both are non-magnetic.

 

[Shmackitup]

Yay, it finally shipped...... and it's delayed.

 

[Gryphon]

Great success! A generic 11.5x0.5 tap from ebay did just the trick. I don't have any metric drill bits but a 27/64 did just fine, now I just need one of those new fancy 5X BE's.

 

[Shmackitup]

Great success! A generic 11.5x0.5 tap from ebay did just the trick. I don't have any metric drill bits but a 27/64 did just fine, now I just need one of those new fancy 5X BE's.

I found that a 7/16" worked a little better than the 27/64" with the M11.5 tap. The threads were a little tight for me using the 27/64".

 

[Gryphon]

I’ll give that one a try next, I probably got away with it this time as the end of the cap that is tapped is fairly thin

 

[RedCowboy]

Well I finally got my tap today and for aluminum a 7/16 drill works just fine..... but I might try 27/64 to see if it isn't too tight, for brass or copper 7/16 would likely be perfect, seems like brass likes a slightly bigger drill.

 

[Ricker]

No one has found any wiggle with the 11.5?

 

[Gryphon]

It threads in just fine for me at what I would call the looseness of a well worn fastener. Not tight and locked into the threads like a brand new nut and bolt, but that doesn't really matter as once the base of the BE butts up against the front of the laser it tightens down just fine and doesn't feel like it's going to strip. All that said, I still wouldn't wrench down on it, just tight enough to keep it secure without the base unscrewing when adjusting the objective lens.

 

[RedCowboy]

Yep, just a little on the loose side but it works well enough..... it's a 1/10 of a mm difference after all...... now my 9mm x 0.5 tap is too big for our common lens barrels ..... are they actually 8.5mm ??

 

[Shmackitup]

I'm just gonna go out on a limb and say it's not a M11.4 x .5 thread but actually a M11.5 x .5 thread......