HeNe bundle.

[paul1598419]

You got lucky, Mosc. You're right that PP doesn't negotiate and the seller not doing so made your refund a near sure thing. I'm glad you got a settlement that was to your liking.

 

[Mosc007]

I have had a few paypal disputes over the years. Nearly always settled after negotiation. I was very surprised the seller escalated direct to a claim. Only one other time a dispute was escalated. I have found the paypal dispute process is very fair.

The seller was doomed from his first reply. He admitted he was going to send replacement power supplies but hadn't sent them even after 3 weeks. Surly he must have expected paypal to rule in my favour after admitting fault.


To be honest I feel a little guilty. I never expected that much refund.

This seller was no newbie though. Almost 1000 sales. He knows how it works.

 

[Mosc007]

The power supply arrived from Meridith Instruments. After signing a declaration because it was shipped outside the US. It is a Voltex DG-22-00 for tubes from 9-16 Inch.

I can now test the larger tubes. Started with the Xerox tube made my Melles Griot. Using the 20 Watt Hyperion it measures 3.4 mW, Not bad for a 24 year old Tube. I am certain the 20 Watt sensor is very inaccurate at low power though.

An update on this tube. I have purchased a Sanwa LP1 LPM so I can measure low power Lasers. Switchable ranges from 40 uW to 40 mW.

Made in Japan with a Calibration certificate. Looks like a very well made unit and measurements are very easy. It uses a Silicon Photo Diode calibrated for HeNe tubes. Other wave lengths you need to use a table that is printed on the inside cover.

This Tube after a 5 min warm up is measuring 6.1 mW. Slightly down on its rated 6.6 mW. Maybe it needed longer to warm up.

 

[Mosc007]

Tested another tube. This time a Siemens LGR7631A made in 1986

After a 5 min warm up it measures 3.0 mW. This seems like a good output for this tube. Maybe I am pushing it a bit too

 

[Mosc007]

Tested 2 more tubes.

Melles Griot 5 mW. Dead. Does not light up at all. No Plasma.
Melles Griot 5 mW. Almost dead. Only outputing 0.7 mW.

 

[paul1598419]

Looks like that Melles Griot tube made for Xerox is the best out of the batch. That Siemens tube is pretty old, so not surprised it is low. Soory to hear about the other two Melles Griot tubes, but if one is still just under 1 mW, that's not too bad. I paid $130.00 for a Melles Griot tube, driver, power supply, and parts to make a switching/protection circuit for a new little 6 inch tube that puts out 0.57 mW. I have a Siemens LGK7630S that isn't quite that old that does 7.6 mW. I think it was made in the 90s.

 

[Mosc007]

I am learning fast when buying old gas lasers it's very much a lottery.

I was considering buying a new Siemens HeNe from Meredith when I bought the supply. On special for $99.

Just hope I can find a working argon before I go broke

 

[paul1598419]

At least gas lasers aren't as expensive now as they used to be. Meredith is expensive, but you can count on it being a good tube. If you look long enough and are patient, you'll find a good argon at a decent price.

 

[Mosc007]

At least gas lasers aren't as expensive now as they used to be. Meredith is expensive, but you can count on it being a good tube. If you look long enough and are patient, you'll find a good argon at a decent price.

Their are quite a few Argons on ebay cheap. But they are usualy advertised untestsed / not working. The problem is the shipping to Aus just to find out they dont work.

Their are some working ones. But expensive. Can get New tubes for 10k.

 

[ultimatekaiser]

yeah. most of the ones I see are stuffed. Any that are worth owning usually need a refurb or some kind of attention. Large ones go overpressure from sitting too long and small ones often are messy and run to within an inch of their lifespan. I have a 2214-40MLA for sale, but it won't come cheap. It's harder and harder to find a good ion laser, as they are pretty much retired except for very specific things. They're still good for high power UV, but realistically they're all but useless in the face of newer solid state stuff in 99% of common situations, which is superior in almost every way for most applications. The bulk of the small to medium sized ones were made for 10/20/40mW power ranges for scanning and florescence and all that stuff. Same with HeCds. All of which are now pretty much completely supplanted/replaced by solid state stuff. HeCds and Argons are mostly only used in research now, where they are specifically needed for a particular trait-much like stabilized HeNes are.