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Beautiful blue Lifetime17 host for PLTB450b

LaserRanger

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Dec 5, 2018
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Hello everybody, Luis here with a post of an awesome host by Lifetime17. Incredible craftsmanship at affordable prices I must say. This host came in yesterday
20190123_160507.jpg
20190123_160536.jpg

I quickly wanted to see how well it would suit a PLT450B 1.6w diode I had in stock and have been wanting to put it in a host for some time. I usually modify hosts to fit lasers inside but I wanted to do something special.
The only driver I had was that soft start driver for "445-450nm at 1.4w diodes" so I just went with it and it's working nicely
20190123_155114.jpg
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As you can see, Im using a 3 element glass lense coated for blue lasers but I am getting very noticeable aberrations although the beam is still very visible without the use of fog and the spot on the wall is extremely bright even at a distance, there's no way I can use this laser without my protection goggles
Here are pictures of the beam and aberrations
20190123_160347.jpg20190123_160636.jpg20190123_160644.jpg
Thank you Rich! This host was exactly what I wanted!
Thank you guys for looking!
And remember! Safety first!
 





LaserRanger

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@thanhtung thanks, I believe it to be one of my better builds but mostly because of lifetime17s host.

@RedCowboy it does! That was exactly what I thought when I saw it in person! It looks so soft that I could shape it by hand but it's very sturdy and feels incredible in the hands.

Does anyone know of a lense I can use that will give me better results? I only have 3 element glass lenses and acrylics but this laser is too strong for acrylic. It gets hot fast, I haven't gone for longer than 60 seconds for fear of burning out the diode but the heat is not uncomfortable to hold but it is hot
 

GSS

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Sure is pretty:) and I always enjoy color matching the host to the diodes..
Have you tried a G2 lens with that PLTB450B1? Still give's a fantastic beam and spot with the G2 that I see no need for any other lens..
I still don't know why there aren't more PLTB's B1 builds.??:unsure: Capable of 2W+ and just a nice beam profile.
 
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LaserRanger

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Dec 5, 2018
Messages
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Sure is pretty:) and I always enjoy color matching the host to the diodes..
Have you tried a G2 lens with that PLTB450B1? Still give's a fantastic beam and spot with the G2 that I see no need for any other lens..
I still don't know why there aren't more PLTB's B1 builds.??:unsure: Capable of 2W+ and just a nice beam profile.

I'll have to buy a g2 then, what are your thoughts on a g7?
I didn't know of this diode and came across it on fleebay. I love the color of it, anything 450nm I really like. I don't know if it's just me bur to my eyes there is a difference between some 450nm and 445nm diodes. Like the m140 compared to this pltb450b is different and I seem to be able to tell the difference even when not next to each other. Or I could just be imagining things... Sometimes my 488nm looks greener and other times bluer...
 
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Nice build. I haven't used that particular driver in awhile, though. What current did you set it for? I became concerned about these drivers when I found they didn't regulate that well. I would stick to a short FL aspheric lens for this laser. You can pick one up on eBay for less than $8.00.
 

LaserRanger

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I set it to max current on the driver (resistors for my dummy load haven't arrived) although I don't really know the exact current but I will be turning it half way down since it does tend to heat up by the minute mark. Honestly, it was the best driver I had at the moment so I took it out of an old build I had and used it for this diode.. I should really get to build that dummy load

About the short FL aspheric lense.. Is that the te I use to search for it? I'll give it a try thanks Paul 🍺😎👍
 
Joined
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Messages
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I set it to max current on the driver (resistors for my dummy load haven't arrived) although I don't really know the exact current but I will be turning it half way down since it does tend to heat up by the minute mark. Honestly, it was the best driver I had at the moment so I took it out of an old build I had and used it for this diode.. I should really get to build that dummy load

About the short FL aspheric lense.. Is that the te I use to search for it? I'll give it a try thanks Paul 🍺😎👍

Yeah, you need to know the current the driver is set for. I would not put a build together without testing that the driver works and regulates the current at the level I want. All the short FL aspheric lenses have a focal length of ~2.4 mm. They are often called G1 or G2 lenses from earlier examples of them. The G just stands for "glass" and the number was used as a designation, mainly in the order of the time that they first were offered for sale. All of them are single lenses and come in brass housings.
 

LaserRanger

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Dec 5, 2018
Messages
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Yeah, you need to know the current the driver is set for. I would not put a build together without testing that the driver works and regulates the current at the level I want. All the short FL aspheric lenses have a focal length of ~2.4 mm. They are often called G1 or G2 lenses from earlier examples of them. The G just stands for "glass" and the number was used as a designation, mainly in the order of the time that they first were offered for sale. All of them are single lenses and come in brass housings.

Yeah you're right, if I want to make builds that will last, I have to measure the current to properly set it for the diode being used. That said I felt comfortable enough to use it since I had previously used it on an A140 and then an M140 diode without killing them but nevertheless I'll definitely wait for my resistors to build the dummy load.
Thanks for the info. I have seen those on ebay but I didn't know if those were better than the 3 element so I just went with the 3 element
 
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Yeah you're right, if I want to make builds that will last, I have to measure the current to properly set it for the diode being used. That said I felt comfortable enough to use it since I had previously used it on an A140 and then an M140 diode without killing them but nevertheless I'll definitely wait for my resistors to build the dummy load.
Thanks for the info. I have seen those on ebay but I didn't know if those were better than the 3 element so I just went with the 3 element

Oh, you have got to try at least one of the short FL aspherics. They work well to boost the power of your laser by as much as 25% over the three element ones. They are especially good on the M140, NDB7875 and this diode you used for this build.
 
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Jun 14, 2017
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Rich, I ordered one of these so-called Sharp “GH04C01A2G” 450nm diodes off of Techhood. Not sure how legit it is as I didn’t see it on Sharp’s listing. Maybe I didn’t look at the ri......anyway, I’m thinking up host ideas. I’ll let ya know when that journey starts.
SGD🍻
 




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