Argon Questions?

So I just got my  first argon and don't know much so I had some questions.........

First off here it is.... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=330315702865

What do you think, Did I get a good deal?

So how long SHOULD i run it...How often?

Is there any kind of duty cycle?

What do you use your argon for?

What else should I know?


Thanks 2 all,
-Brooks

KGB_Productions said:

So I just got my  first argon and don't know much so I had some questions.........
First off here it is.... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=330315702865
What do you think, Did I get a good deal?
So how long SHOULD i run it...How often?
Is there any kind of duty cycle?
What do you use your argon for?
What else should I know?
Thanks 2 all,
-Brooks

Click to expand...

You got a "fair" deal. The shipping is excessive.

When you first get it, run it for about 5 hours. Run it for about 30-60 min. a month (minimum)

There is no duty cycle

I make pretty light beams with mine

It will be nowhere close to 1/4 Watt. When you get it, post the model number from the laser head. We can give you an idea of the output

Peace,
dave

THANKS DAVE....


I plan on putting this with a set of scanpro 20ks for a nice 488nm single color show...when i do this (maybe 1 month) I am going to send it off to mariomaster to get it tested....unless anyone lives near NEW ORLEANS, LA USA..............anybody??

I knew that it wasn't going to be 250mw when I got it but if you had to ~guess around what power should I expect to get?

EDIT:---He did discount shipping $20 after the auction ended

KGB_Productions said:

THANKS DAVE....
I plan on putting this with a set of scanpro 20ks for a nice 488nm single color show...when i do this (maybe 1 month) I am going to send it off to mariomaster to get it tested....unless anyone lives near NEW ORLEANS, LA USA..............anybody??
I knew that it wasn't going to be 250mw when I got it but if you had to ~guess around what power should I expect to get?
EDIT:---He did discount shipping $20 after the auction ended

Click to expand...

Without the complete model number from the laser head, we cannot know. However, these little blue Cyonics units are generally very low output (<20mW)

A $20 discount is better than a stick in the eye

Peace,
dave

Dave, did you see it comes with an AOM?? An AOM itself costs more than that. Let me know if you don't want it, I'll take if off your hands

Cyparagon said:

Dave, did you see it comes with an AOM?? An AOM itself costs more than that. Let me know if you don't want it, I'll take if off your hands  

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;D-----I know-----it comes as "un-tested" but if it works Its going into the projector  

Looks like you got a good deal if it all works!

I think the strongest single line 488 that uses 115V power is a 30mW tube. Now remember, this is 30mW nominal, which means at full current it could do around 50mW, it just depends on the tube.

Just remember, if you turn it on run it for at least a half hour. It's not good for them to be started and then shut off a few seconds later. There are a few argons designed to be run like this (HGM lasers, etc) but yours is not one of them. Besides, it feels great to have a laser that you can just 'let run' after only owning pointers. You can just turn it on and enjoy it and not ever worry about 'duty cycles' or anything like that.

shrecken licht has a ~130mW single line at 115V, doesn't she?

I know there are the 2113 tubes which are rated at 75mW single line, but 130mW would be pretty impressive! I have a tube rated at 30mW 488 that is brand new. I've never had it to full current so I'm really curious as to how much power it will do. My 40mW head does around 170mW at 10.6A but that is multiline.

GooeyGus said:

I know there are the 2113 tubes which are rated at 75mW single line, but 130mW would be pretty impressive! I have a tube rated at 30mW 488 that is brand new. I've never had it to full current so I'm really curious as to how much power it will do. My 40mW head does around 170mW at 10.6A but that is multiline.

Click to expand...

The 2113 requires 220V. No problem, just FYI

Peace,
dave

just wondering how many mw you could get out of 115volt 15amp. btw for a multi line

jamilm9 said:

just wondering how many mw you could get out of 115volt 15amp. btw for a multi line

Click to expand...

Sorry. It doesn't work like that. Different makes and types of tubes, age and condition of the tube, what color line is being filtered for, and a few other variables all confound such a simple formula.

Peace,
dave

At 115V, the best you can hope for is ~200mW all lines when it's new.

Cyparagon said:

At 115V, the best you can hope for is ~200mW all lines when it's new.

Click to expand...

I know there are some 60x's that do like 300mW multiline, multimode, but I'm not sure if they're 115 or 220. Usually 200mW is the best you can hope for on a multiline system that runs on a regular 115V outlet.

Argon lasers are hideously inefficient due to the quantum mechanical nature of the argon atoms you can expect an efficiency of about 0.01%.

from a regular 120 volt socket you can get at the most 120V x 15A = 1800 Watts.
0.01% of that is 180mW. If you factor in the losses in the heated cathode, fans, passbank and other circuitry, you would be lucky to get 80mW out of one of these.

Those small cylindrical argon tubes typically are rated at 20-40mW and you will probably get closer to 15-20mW except when its new i would expect. If you swap out the optics for multiline optics, assuming the optics are external, you might be able to get 5mW more then before in total but aligning optics is no walk in the park without an optical bench and some experience. But that AO modulator is a great find, if it works it's easily worth what you paid for the whole package.

Just for god sakes don't run that thing without the blower on it.

The sticker on mine says 400mW maximum but i never get more then 45mW out at maximum power. They make it higher then it really is because when it's brand new the optical gain is huge and you get a ton more power then you are supposed to.

Swapping from single line to multiline optics should give you more than 5mW

It really just depends on how the tube was treated. Mine has a hair over 3500 hours which is getting a bit "older" but cranks out more power than tubes with half the hours. Argons take a ton of power but they can make a ton of power. Seeing 5W coming out of a huge glass tube and then being split by a prism will give you a nice fuzzy feeling inside.