FS: >120mW PHR, >170-210mW 6x & NEW 8x Blu-Rays!!
I didn't know that there were more than the original "Lenspen" on the market, Igor... :thinking:
I thought i put an OR between "LensPen" and "solvents"...
But it looks like i put an "of"..... :thinking:
I'd recommend a LensPen MicroPro (or what's it called?).. Basically a LensPen with a tiny enough tip, that you can actually move it around on the lens. And then blow the tiny particles off with a rubber air-blower bulb from DX....
I also found ACS (or higher grade) solvents to work very well. That's 99.5% purity or more...
I use 99.5% acetone to wash glass lenses or diode windows... I used to use 96% ethanol, and it made more mess than it removed!
Another better solvent i would recommend would be isopropyl alcohol... The latter is probably safer for widespread use, since it won't melt most plastics on contact.
But my lens manufacturers told me they use the purest acetone they can get (probably Analysis grade), and that it does not affect AR coatings, which are baked onto the lenses...
I once put a plastic lens nut into the acetone, to see what would happen. It started mushrooming and then melted completelly..
But when it comes to plastic lenses, the ONLY thing you should EVER try is the rubber air-blower. In addition to that, i sometimes wash them in demineralised water, and then dry with the rubber air-blower..
But never touch them with anything! You'll just mess them up.
Instead, keep the lens caps on AT ALL TIMES, and you won't have problems..
If i see a plastic lens has particles on it, during assembly of a laser, i just throw it away, and take the next one from the tray....
The only plastic lenses i ever tried to clean were the AR coated ones, because they are so much more expensive... That was where i used distilled water to try to wash off the particles and then the rubber air-blower to blow away the water.
It has to be the purest distilled water tho, or else it will again introduce more mess than remove!
Thing is, with lasers, particles on the lens or imperfections in it are 1000x more noticable than in any other optics. This is because lasers are point-sources of light, and they enlarge everything like a microscope.
If you defocus the spot on the wall, and have a dirty lens, you will notice spots in the circle, that are turning around...
If you see concentric circles in the output, which don't turn with the lens, it's interference-rings from microscopic (literally) particles on the diode window... These are the hardest to get rid off. If you're not careful you break the diode window! You need the purest possible solvents and a lint-free swab, and only the most gentle touch. And then you have to suck on the other end, to suck the solvent IN and make it work like a vacuum cleaner - by sucking the solvent, and hopefully the impurities, away from the diode window...
But even IF you notice anything like that, in most cases it is best to just leave it be.... I am ALWAYS scared, when i have to clean diode windows, especially after i lost two rare freak 6x's when attempting to clean the window and breaking it instead. :cryyy:
This is why i keep saying: NEVER REMOVE THE FREAKING LENS AND ALWAYS USE THE FREAKING LENS CAPS!!! I don't include them for the laser to look pretty!
When you get a laser from me, it always has clean optics, because i spent a lot of time making sure of that before packing!
- First i check the diode window, then the lens.
- If the lens is dirty, i throw it away and take another from a tray of 100.
- If the diode window has interference rings, i clean it with outmost care, and the purest solvents...
- I even use an uncollimated blu-ray laser to illuminate the spring, and then brush it off with a special antistatic brush. The blu-ray makes the dust particles fluoresce, so i can see them, and make sure the spring is completelly clean, before i put it in.
- Then i assemble everything, and recheck if there are no particles present, before doing the final measurements, writing them down in the box, and packaging the laser....
It's EASY to KEEP the lens clean. It's HARD or impossible to MAKE it clean once you get it dirty!
Unless it's a glass one.. That's why i can't wait to get the medium lenses ready! But even with glass, it's beter to keep it clean than having to make it clean.... One day you could get a particle on it that is hard enough to cause actual damage to the glass or the coating! Better to be safe than sorry. Such particles are also the reason why the first step in EVERY cleaning should be the rubber air-blower!
Otherwise, Jay and i just made the final arrangements about how the lens will be mounted. When it comes back from Franco reviewed, it goes directly to Jay, for mounting, and then back to me for final tests, before i start the Test-Buy..
Once it's properly mounted and i do the final tests i will probably also send it to Traveller for the last review before the Test-Buy...