2W SAIK SA-305 26650 Host W/Massive Mohrenberg Heatsink

[jakeGT]

okay i see now! i was looking from left to right not right to left and misses the triggers! thats pretty f'in sweet! im working on my first build ever, a phr.
hopefully i can build something like that someday!

 

[DTR]

DTR ---
As this is a hobby, I assume all the builders can figure this out.

I replaced the driver board with a piece of perf board press fit into the threaded disk. The spring is very short and the disk, as you said, is threaded in only a couple turns. That front spring can be replaced by a copper disc since the rear contact has the spring.
That rear "nipple" is plated steel and can't be ground off enough.
I had to machine the plastic switch retainer to accept the aluminum hold down shoulder so it wouldnt short to cell ground when screwed together. I don't like tape since it can slide around when screwed together.

HMike

I had forgot you said you were going to replace the driver board. That is a good point on the tape.

How much did this entire build cost you?

For what you get out of this unit the cost is pretty damn good. My cost was a little less than Mike's but he did a little more custom work than I did.

Thanks, i have been through this ( and every other DTR tutorial and review) a few times, I just could not recall remembering anything about diodes dying, or anything of that sort. It's a shame to think that this is the limitations on these diodes. But only have dealing in lasers for 4 or 5 glorious months so far, I understand that this is a pretty phenomenal feat already.

Thanks for the info HMike.

I personally have never had a diode die on my from too much current.(cross my fingers) I know some have. But I also test my diodes that I plan on using in high powered builds. I will put them on my bench supply @ 1.5A and if they give me 1650-1750mW they are efficient enough to be run at high current. If I only get 1450-1550mW I put them in a single flex unit which has a max of 1.5A. Also in my experience when you pump too much current into one of these they shutdown and just turn all that current into heat. As long as you have not run it too long like this they will come back without going zombie, led or open circuit when you turn down the current. This happens a little over 2A.

 

[Scottyzedinosaur]

"It has a fat compact body with good weight that feels great in the hand."
How do you know my wife?.....:crackup:

 

[Kenom]

Why can I find no information on combining drivers like mike and DTR are doing? How is it done? What is the result? a simple tutorial would be really nice on something that was overlooked in this tutorial.

 

[DTR]

Why can I find no information on combining drivers like mike and DTR are doing? How is it done? What is the result? a simple tutorial would be really nice on something that was overlooked in this tutorial.

To run dual drivers you just need to hook them up in parallel and add up their combined current. I will test them individually then with them wired together. You may loose 1-2mA when reading their combined output. It has been said that it does not matter but I like to set the drivers as close to the same mA as possible.

When I say parallel I mean both wire the corresponding wires from the driver together. IE both positive output wire from the driver will go to the positive diode pin and so on for the rest. Now you can heatsink the drivers or not. If you are running say 900mA each they can go for about 5-10 minutes before overheating. But as the driver heats up there will be a slight drop in power and if you sink them you can run them continuously and without this power drop. Shoot me a PM if you have any other questions.

Morgan also did a nice thread on his dual microboost build but the flexdrive is easier to sink and is a little more efficient with current when boosting the voltage. Hope this helps.:beer:
http://laserpointerforums.com/f65/dual-microboost-driven-skyray-build-1-8a-55628.html#post784286

 

[Kenom]

To run dual drivers you just need to hook them up in parallel and add up their combined current. I will test them individually then with them wired together. You may loose 1-2mA when reading their combined output. It has been said that it does not matter but I like to set the drivers as close to the same mA as possible.

When I say parallel I mean both wire the corresponding wires from the driver together. IE both positive output wire from the driver will go to the positive diode pin and so on for the rest. Now you can heatsink the drivers or not. If you are running say 900mA each they can go for about 5-10 minutes before overheating. But as the driver heats up there will be a slight drop in power and if you sink them you can run them continuously and without this power drop. Shoot me a PM if you have any other questions.


Morgan also did a nice thread on his dual microboost build but the flexdrive is easier to sink and is a little more efficient with current when boosting the voltage. Hope this helps.:beer:

Thank you for the quick reply. This answered nearly all of my questions. I understand the need for heatsinking these drivers. I was the first to point out that the flickering from the drivers was related to the thermal protection of these drivers kicking in. (not many people believed me tho)

So in theory if you were to take one driver set at 900ma and one driver set at 500ma, you would get 1400ma. Or if both were set to max at 1.2A each, you'd combine to a total of 2.4A I would imagine this would dramatically reduce the amount of runtime You would get off a single battery (regardless of size) since it's drawing a lot more.

Could you use 3 in parallel as well? NVM I answered my own question.. This is why the AMC7135 can be combined with MULTIPLE AMC7135 chips to increase the current up and up.

 

[anselm]

I would imagine this would dramatically reduce the amount of runtime You would get off a single battery (regardless of size) since it's drawing a lot more.

Of course.

Could you use 3 in parallel as well?

Yes, if two work, any number should.
What diode are you thinking about?

 

[jayrob]

Thank you for the quick reply. This answered nearly all of my questions. I understand the need for heatsinking these drivers. I was the first to point out that the flickering from the drivers was related to the thermal protection of these drivers kicking in. (not many people believed me tho)

So in theory if you were to take one driver set at 900ma and one driver set at 500ma, you would get 1400ma. Or if both were set to max at 1.2A each, you'd combine to a total of 2.4A I would imagine this would dramatically reduce the amount of runtime You would get off a single battery (regardless of size) since it's drawing a lot more.

Could you use 3 in parallel as well? NVM I answered my own question.. This is why the AMC7135 can be combined with MULTIPLE AMC7135 chips to increase the current up and up.

I think it's best to balance the output between the drivers Ken...

About pushing for high current. You must also have a battery that is capable of handling the current draw. IMR Li-Ion's from AW can handle huge discharge rate:
IMR16340 / IMR18500 / IMR18650 / IMR26500 *Part 2*

 

[anselm]

Or parallelize the batteries as well.

 

[jakeGT]

Looky what I got everybody! Just need to get two flexdrives set at 900mA and then will do my "copycat" version of this wonderful build, I love the host to, I'll admit it wasn't my favorite from these pictures but once I got it in person, It is amazing, feels perfectly heavy/balanced in your hand and look, it even has a thread for a tripod already in it. AWESOME!

 

[DTR]

Thank you for the quick reply. This answered nearly all of my questions.

So in theory if you were to take one driver set at 900ma and one driver set at 500ma, you would get 1400ma.

Or if both were set to max at 1.2A each, you'd combine to a total of 2.4A I would imagine this would dramatically reduce the amount of runtime You would get off a single battery (regardless of size) since it's drawing a lot more.

Could you use 3 in parallel as well?.

No problem.

I would not suggest pushing the 140 diodes past 1.8A. In my experience after this mA the diode uses the current much less efficiently which translates into heat and will cause a bigger than normal power drop during any given run.

The batteries Jay linked are great I also like the unprotected Sanyo cells for instance if you are going with an 18650 the ones LarryDFW sells or batteryspace.com has some. I of course love my bigger batteries like the 22650 or the 32650 which have the much larger capacities. 6000mAh on the 32650 FeiLong battery.

I actually have a great build I did with three groove 2 drivers in parallel.:beer:
http://laserpointerforums.com/f52/1...st-w-3xgroove-2-drivers-58497.html#post826958

Looky what I got everybody! Just need to get two flexdrives set at 900mA and then will do my "copycat" version of this wonderful build, I love the host to, I'll admit it wasn't my favorite from these pictures but once I got it in person, It is amazing, feels perfectly heavy/balanced in your hand and look, it even has a thread for a tripod already in it. AWESOME!

Yep I built myself a nice 1.9W one last night.:eg:

 

[elite ares]

^^^ Anybody else counting projector boxes?

 

[Mohrenberg]

^^^ Anybody else counting projector boxes?

Omfg, I didn't notice until you said something.

I think that was clever placement...he's just trying to brag lol




...i'd be bragging too

 

[jakeGT]

wow. thats alot of f'in diodes

 

[DTR]

Omfg, I didn't notice until you said something.

I think that was clever placement...he's just trying to brag lol




...i'd be bragging too

I keep the boxes for storage. Most of them are filled with scraps and different whatnot. Like battery holders, bags of flashlighst parts, packing materials, hosts that were not worth doing anything and a lot of miscellaneous crap.

 

[Kenom]

Nobody said anything about driving an a140 diode over 1.8A. I have a few 3,4,and 8W C-mount laser diodes and they need drivers. I've got a 7AH lead acid battery I pulled from a rechargable spot light that I was going to use for the battery (has a lot more ooomph)