CNI Beam expander?

[IsaacT]

Does CNI have a beam expander to attach to the PGL-III-C host? With my lasers on the way to bloompyle I was thinking about ordering one.

Thanks,
Isaac

 

[EpicHam]

Does CNI have a beam expander to attach to the PGL-III-C host? With my lasers on the way to bloompyle I was thinking about ordering one.

Thanks,
Isaac

Yes they do.
They are made of laboratory grade glass instead of the usual salvage optics sold by Optoronics and other cheap eBay sources.

Much less microscopic artifacts and scratches ...
In theory at least , never tested it.

They cost around $120 and comes in lots of expansion ratios.

Your choice really.

 

[Trevor]

Yes they do.
They are made of laboratory grade glass instead of the usual salvage optics sold by Optoronics and other cheap eBay sources.

Much less microscopic artifacts and scratches ...
In theory at least , never tested it.

They cost around $75 and comes in lots of expansion ratios.

Your choice really.

Optotronics used to sell Melles-Griot expanders. They were far better than the DL expander I had.

But their stock of them ran out some number of months or years ago.

Trevor

 

[EpicHam]

Optotronics used to sell Melles-Griot expanders. They were far better than the DL expander I had.

But their stock of them ran out some number of months or years ago.

Trevor

You can buy lots of lasers for 1 Melles-Griot expanders

 

[Trevor]

You can buy lots of lasers for 1 Melles-Griot expanders

That's because they're made with laboratory grade optics.

Laserglow's expander for the Aries will probably work, and will use optics as good as or better than CNI. Their customer service is top notch as well.

https://www.laserglow.com/ADR#

Trevor

 

[EpicHam]

That's because they're made with laboratory grade optics.

Laserglow's expander for the Aries will probably work, and will use optics as good as or better than CNI. Their customer service is top notch as well.

https://www.laserglow.com/ADR#

Trevor

$1200 for a few pieces of glass does seem kinda..... pricey for a hobbyist .
Thats faculty equipment pricing lol



EDIT: $400 is better but still quite pricey for a hobbyist

 

[Trevor]

EDIT: $400 is better but still quite pricey for a hobbyist

Well... it's made specifically for the PGL-III-C with high quality optics and doesn't require an adaptor to mount. Everything will be properly aligned (I've had issues with CNI optics) and will come with Laserglow customer service.

IMO it's several times better than the CNI option without being several times the price.

Trevor

 

[EpicHam]

Well... it's made specifically for the PGL-III-C with high quality optics and doesn't require an adaptor to mount. Everything will be properly aligned (I've had issues with CNI optics) and will come with Laserglow customer service.

IMO it's several times better than the CNI option without being several times the price.

Trevor

$120 and $400?

 

[Trevor]

Good customer service, guaranteed quality control, and you don't have to pay to get an adaptor machined?

Seems worth it to me.

Trevor

 

[EpicHam]

Good customer service, guaranteed quality control, and you don't have to pay to get an adaptor machined?

Seems worth it to me.

Trevor

you can always ask CNI to preinstall it for ya ?

 

[Trevor]

you can always ask CNI to preinstall it for ya ?

At an increased cost, making the Laserglow option even more attractive.

Especially for US members, the option with the cheapest initial investment is not always the most economical. Those of us who have been here a while and have dealt with CNI a lot have learned that.

You really do get what you pay for. :beer:

Trevor

 

[hwang21]

Rule of thumb... it's always you get what you pay for... unless it's just overhyped crap

 

[ultimatekaiser]

indeed. I've got one of said expanders and it works wonders. The Aries 150 i have it on puts out something incredible with it on. However, it only comes AR coated to pass green 532nm at a max input of 2mm beam diameter since its produced exclusively for the Aries and Hercules lasers. Since your laser is focus adjustible already, you'd have to focus it to an adequate size first before putting the expander on it. at infinity usually they're usually <1.5mm.