803T Sled and more.

[Th0ughts]

Hello guys. I'm currently making a blue laser pointer according to styropyro's guide seen here: watch?v=DVugSGldXZ8 I don't think I can paste links yet, so that's youtube right there.

I'm pretty new to laser pointer construction, and electronics (hardware) in general, so please try not to be too annoyed by some of the "noobish" questions I may have.

First up, I purchased my sled, just waiting for it to arrive, but I am having trouble understanding one step in the video, maybe it will become clear to me when I see the diode, but I might as well ask now.

At 2:00 - 2:11 in this video, it talks about putting a blob of solder on your soldering gun, and then applying it to the pins on the diode, I perfectly understand this, but then it says "...pull on the little piece of circuit board with your needle nose pliers..." my question is why would I need solder if I am removing something? Isn't solder for connecting electrical circuits? (Keep in mind, I am quite new to this stuff, so I will try to keep silly questions like these to myself if I can figure it out on my own.)

Two more questions:

Secondly, since the site for the driver in his video info is down (and even after I get re-directed to the new site, it seems that the driver is out of stock), what driver would you recommend for this project? (Specific links/product IDs would be godly).

Lastly, I wanted to make this portable enough to keep in a pocket like a pen. I know that it would take more batteries than can fit in a pen, so I ask for a better casing for the module, the 9v battery, and the driver.

Wait, I lied, one last question: I'm sure that I am going to sound like a complete idiot asking this, but I'm already thought an idiot by the previous questions in this post, so nothing is really lost here. This isn't related to blue lasers at all, but I was wondering where companies get green diodes for green pointers.

Thanks again guys, I shouldn't be too much trouble after this .

EDIT: Oops, I thought of one more thing, what kind of resistor/pot should I get?

 

[pseudolobster]

...my question is why would I need solder if I am removing something? Isn't solder for connecting electrical circuits?

You'll need to add some solder to your iron to evenly heat the solder pads in order to melt them so you can pull off the little flexible circuit board thing. You'll always want to add solder to remove things, otherwise you'll spend too much time trying to heat it evenly and end up overheating it.

Secondly, since the site for the driver in his video info is down (and even after I get re-directed to the new site, it seems that the driver is out of stock), what driver would you recommend for this project? (Specific links/product IDs would be godly).

Either this: http://www.laserpointerforums.com/forums/YaBB.pl?num=1206947255 (he's not selling any right now, but will start taking orders again in a couple days)
This: http://www.laserpointerforums.com/forums/YaBB.pl?num=1209418066 (runs off lower voltage, more efficient, more expensive)
Or, if you'd like to try your hand at building your own: http://www.laserpointerforums.com/forums/YaBB.pl?num=1185701612

Lastly, I wanted to make this portable enough to keep in a pocket like a pen. I know that it would take more batteries than can fit in a pen, so I ask for a better casing for the module, the 9v battery, and the driver.

You'll want to use lithium ion batteries. They're small, high voltage, and last for a long time. http://dealextreme.com carries a wide selection, including ones that are the same size as AA or AAA batteries, only they're 3.6v each.

Wait, I lied, one last question: I'm sure that I am going to sound like a complete idiot asking this, but I'm already thought an idiot by the previous questions in this post, so nothing is really lost here. This isn't related to blue lasers at all, but I was wondering where companies get green diodes for green pointers.

Actual green diodes are still being developed and are very rare and incredibly expensive... Most green lasers are DPSS lasers, or diode pumped solid state. They use an infrared laser diode and a series of special crystals which multiply the frequency of the light up to green.

EDIT: Oops, I thought of one more thing, what kind of resistor/pot should I get?

see answer to question 2.


Oh, and don't beat yourself up so bad, those are all perfectly reasonable questions. You've got to start somewhere, you've got to learn somehow.
Welcome to the forums!

 

[Th0ughts]

Thank you for the very informative post and welcome. It is appreciated greatly. Also a fast reply, I wasn't expecting a reply for a few days.

I'll be sure to post here again if I have any more questions.

Oh wait. I did have an unanswered question because I phrased it horribly: What should I put the module inside (I could be wrong, but by my research, I think they're called hosts)? I'd like to have it compact and not a flashlight, so any hints as to what I could use would be great .