- Joined
- Nov 2, 2012
- Messages
- 25
- Points
- 3
Long-time lurker, recently signed up just to leave some photos of my dead green pointer that I dis-assembled. After studying the forum I have decided it is not worth fixing. I put the photos in an album on my profile.
The pointer was a cheap one, $15 US. I have had it for several years. The pointer worked for about 5 minutes then faded. I thought batteries? I changed them. The pointer would spit a few green photons then die. Sometimes I could shake the pointer and it would emit a faint green dot with no visible beam then die. Others it would be a bright green dot before dying. I though bad connection somewhere. I tossed it into the pen holder on my desk and every now and then I would drag it out and fiddle with it.
Being a mechanic, it is my nature to try and repair broken machinery. So I had to try first. At least tear it apart to see what made it tick.
When the Laser first stopped working, I Googled stuff like 'green laser not working'. With those early answers I learned about the IR pump diode. Oops. Too late. I had already glanced into the end of the LASER and saw the faint red glow. So, I knew not to do that again and that the laser was, somewhat, still electrically alive. If only I could figure out how to open it. I still thought I was dealing with a connection issue.
This year while recovering from a heart attack I had plenty of time on my hands. With Sams Laser FAQ at hand I clamped the nose in a small vise and began warming the body with a heat gun while applying a twisting motion with a pair of pliers. It broke free and I discovered the laser was just press fit into the body, held tight by a small bead on the cap male end. From there the individual pieces just screwed off. In order there was the end cap, a single lens assembly, the crystal module, the diode\power supply. By now the LD was still 'working' (viewed with a digital camera) but it no longer spit any green photons.
Then I stumbled upon this forum. The Search function does work. While I don't really know why the Laser does not function, I learned enough that it is probably a moot point to try and resurrect it. Thanks for the info. I'll leave the photos of the disassembled laser here for posterity.
The Laser cavity bathed in infrared from the pump. The wires from the post to the diode are visible as two dark streaks to the left of the bright spot on the left of the LD.
The diode assembly.
This is the pump and crystal assembly before I separated them, probably destroying the critical alignment. However, the nut holding the module was loose and the module would 'twist' so I now suspect that looseness led to the laser becoming misaligned, and why shaking it would sometimes get it to spit some green.
The pointer was a cheap one, $15 US. I have had it for several years. The pointer worked for about 5 minutes then faded. I thought batteries? I changed them. The pointer would spit a few green photons then die. Sometimes I could shake the pointer and it would emit a faint green dot with no visible beam then die. Others it would be a bright green dot before dying. I though bad connection somewhere. I tossed it into the pen holder on my desk and every now and then I would drag it out and fiddle with it.
Being a mechanic, it is my nature to try and repair broken machinery. So I had to try first. At least tear it apart to see what made it tick.
When the Laser first stopped working, I Googled stuff like 'green laser not working'. With those early answers I learned about the IR pump diode. Oops. Too late. I had already glanced into the end of the LASER and saw the faint red glow. So, I knew not to do that again and that the laser was, somewhat, still electrically alive. If only I could figure out how to open it. I still thought I was dealing with a connection issue.
This year while recovering from a heart attack I had plenty of time on my hands. With Sams Laser FAQ at hand I clamped the nose in a small vise and began warming the body with a heat gun while applying a twisting motion with a pair of pliers. It broke free and I discovered the laser was just press fit into the body, held tight by a small bead on the cap male end. From there the individual pieces just screwed off. In order there was the end cap, a single lens assembly, the crystal module, the diode\power supply. By now the LD was still 'working' (viewed with a digital camera) but it no longer spit any green photons.
Then I stumbled upon this forum. The Search function does work. While I don't really know why the Laser does not function, I learned enough that it is probably a moot point to try and resurrect it. Thanks for the info. I'll leave the photos of the disassembled laser here for posterity.
The Laser cavity bathed in infrared from the pump. The wires from the post to the diode are visible as two dark streaks to the left of the bright spot on the left of the LD.
The diode assembly.
This is the pump and crystal assembly before I separated them, probably destroying the critical alignment. However, the nut holding the module was loose and the module would 'twist' so I now suspect that looseness led to the laser becoming misaligned, and why shaking it would sometimes get it to spit some green.
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... anyways welcome and enjoy your stay
