Did I get lucky!!?

[Richie89]

So I recently built a PL520 (50mw)
And I'm using a 220ma driver instead of the Max suggested 250ma driver, but when I finally decided to plug the Meter in and test it, the Results were Far higher than I thought. I made sure the calibration was correct and of course, it was. I guess that explains why it looked quite intense for a supposed 50mw which I originally thought it was because with a 3E lens and 220ma I couldn't see it going much higher than 50mw.
I'm getting 95mw with a 3E lens and 113.5mw with a G2, that's almost PL520B territory on max 275ma current. Could Jordan have mistakenly sent me a pl520B? I seriously doubt he would have made that kind of mistake so maybe I just got lucky on This pl520.

Edit 9-2-2017..
Okay so I haven't gotten on much the past month so I'll go ahead and tell you all that my PL520 failed on me somehow, so I purchased a new diode from DTR and rebuilt it yesterday and it fired right up. I don't know what happened, but I'm just happy I was able to rebuild it. And I must say I'm absolutely proud of my soldering job
The positive one looks way better and looks how it's supposed to, the negative doesn't look good but that's because I didn't feel like fixing it.

 

[diachi]

Might be an idea to double check your current?

 

[Richie89]

Might be an idea to double check your current?

Yeah I was thinking that but I never bought a DMM maybe I need to think about getting one.

 

[paul1598419]

I have several DMMs. You need at least one good one. I currently have four and use all of them from time to time. A dummy load and a DMM and you can check the current the driver is providing to the LD.

 

[diachi]

Yeah I was thinking that but I never bought a DMM maybe I need to think about getting one.

Even a cheap one will do the job for testing the current using a dummy load. Worthwhile investment.

 

[BobMc]

Almost twice the power? That's a over spec like few I've seen. Enjoy, as mentioned you might want to double check your current just so you don't lose that in gem. :bowdown:

Ps, Curious, who sit the currect?

 

[lasersbee]

So I recently built a PL520 (50mw)
And I'm using a 220ma driver instead of the Max suggested 250ma driver, but when I finally decided to plug the Meter in and test it, the Results were Far higher than I thought. I made sure the calibration was correct and of course, it was. I guess that explains why it looked quite intense for a supposed 50mw which I originally thought it was because with a 3E lens and 220ma I couldn't see it going much higher than 50mw.
I'm getting 95mw with a 3E lens and 113.5mw with a G2, that's almost PL520B territory on max 275ma current. Could Jordan have mistakenly sent me a pl520B? I seriously doubt he would have made that kind of mistake so maybe I just got lucky on This pl520.

How did you do that...:thinking:

Those cheap $5-$10 DMMs are just fine for
checking low voltages (<50V) and current (<10A)
Those are my everyday DMMs. When I want to
measure something more accurately I use my
more expensive FLUKE multimeters.


Jerry

 

[jnrpop]

The PL520 diode is a datasheet rated 50mW diode, so is rated for 50mw @ the typical datasheet rated current.

This diode running at 225mA (double the typical datasheet current value) will easily output 113mW, as the results in DTR's testing will also show, check out the thread for this diode :beer:

It's a great diode!

 

[paul1598419]

Huh? I think the cheapest DMM I have cost me $135.00. And that was back in 2001. I have not used a $5 or $10 DMM that I can remember. I never even give them a second glance. That being said, I have no idea how accurate they are, but I could find out as I have some very accurate meters to test against. All of my meters are within 1% of each other.

Sorry. Didn't mean to derail this thread.

 

[Richie89]

I have several DMMs. You need at least one good one. I currently have four and use all of them from time to time. A dummy load and a DMM and you can check the current the driver is providing to the LD.

I have been wanting to get one for quite some time, I didn't think I really needed one, but now I'm realizing how handy they can be.

Almost twice the power? That's a over spec like few I've seen. Enjoy, as mentioned you might want to double check your current just so you don't lose that in gem. :bowdown:

Ps, Curious, who sit the currect?

It was actually Gary. Hopefully if the current is correct then I'll be loving this beautiful thing for years to come

How did you do that...:thinking:

Those cheap $5-$10 DMMs are just fine for
checking low voltages (<50V) and current (<10A)
Those are my everyday DMMs. When I want to
measure something more accurately I use my
more expensive FLUKE multimeters.


Jerry

Hey jerry, it's not so much calibration as it is testing previous lasers I've got to see it they match the original output when I first got it. Mostly I use my WL P125 to see if the meter at least matches my p125, and my meter sits at almost exactly 125mw so that's kind of my (not so good) calibration technique. lol I know it's not actually how you check calibration but it's the best I got

The PL520 diode is a datasheet rated 50mW diode, so is rated for 50mw @ the typical datasheet rated current.

This diode running at 225mA (double the typical datasheet current value) will easily output 113mW, as the results in DTR's testing will also show, check out the thread for this diode :beer:

It's a great diode!

I'll definitely check again. Hopefully if all is okay than I can enjoy this laser without the fear of blowing it up, lol

 

[lasersbee]

I have been wanting to get one for quite some time, I didn't think I really needed one, but now I'm realizing how handy they can be.

Hey jerry, it's not so much calibration as it is testing previous lasers I've got to see it they match the original output when I first got it. Mostly I use my WL P125 to see if the meter at least matches my p125, and my meter sits at almost exactly 125mw so that's kind of my (not so good) calibration technique. lol I know it's not actually how you check calibration but it's the best I got

As long as the WL P125 has not seen too many
hours and/or abuse your Laser should put out
the same or close Power levels as when it was
new.

Huh? I think the cheapest DMM I have cost me $135.00. And that was back in 2001. I have not used a $5 or $10 DMM that I can remember. I never even give them a second glance. That being said, I have no idea how accurate they are, but I could find out as I have some very accurate meters to test against. All of my meters are within 1% of each other.

In my years of AMM and DMM use I've blown my share
of meters. Since I use my meters for other than low
powered electronics I needed a way of reducing my
DMM costs. I really don't need that much accuracy
when checking a charging circuit on a $300,000
New Holland tractor.. Even 10% accuracy will do just
fine.

I've checked Voltage and current on those cheap
DMMs and they are quite close to 1%-3%... On
some scales they are better than that.
And all that for $5.00. When they blow I throw them
out and grab another one from the shelf.

The Cheap DMM's flaw is that they have no High
Voltage (>50V) protection and could explode in
your face when checking house voltages.
Here's some of the cheapies I use...

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/1-Mini-Digital-Multimeter-Ohm-Voltmeter-Ammeter-AVO-Meter-DT830D-Test-Leads-LCD-/222584169662?hash=item33d30ce4be:g:ggAAAOSwhwdVUep8

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Car-Auto-Van-Practical-Digital-Multimeter-Multi-Meter-Detector-Lead-Cable-/322590514213?hash=item4b1be49c25:g:c64AAOSw7PJZZvFI

Can't beat $2.78 and $2.18 for a throw away DMM.

Like I said... For accurate and precise PCB cuircuit
measurements I use my Fluke DMMs.


Jerry

 

[paul1598419]

I've had a very few problems with my DMMs and VTVMs over these many years. When I have had a problem, it has always been to my advantage to send it in for repair and recalibration. I can remember two times off the top of my head when this has happened. If you are getting great accuracy and resolution from these cheap meters, that's great. I can't disprove your claims as I don't have any. The repair and recalibration of these meters has always been less than the replacement price, so....no brainer.

 

[Richie89]

As long as the WL P125 has not seen too many
hours and/or abuse your Laser should put out
the same or close Power levels as when it was
new.


Jerry

Yeah no kidding because that P125 is old as hell, they came out in 2007 or 08 I believe, yikes! Surprisingly it sits very stable at about 121mw. Raziko took pretty good care of it before I bought it.

 

[Thengine]

I've been interested in getting a 520nm laser for awhile. How is the divergence on the PL520.

The PL520 is TEM00 and it's big brothers are all multi-mode?

 

[Alaskan]

I've been driving a PL520 hard enough to output 100 mw, hasn't died yet. I've heard that the single mode operation might not be pure single mode at the higher currents.

 

[paul1598419]

No direct diode laser gives TEM00 modes. They don't produce a Gaussian beam. Even single mode diodes have a rectangular emitter that becomes the dot when collimated.