I did something bad. (pot mod)

[styropyro]

From what I know, Optotronics pens are just hand picked NewWish units. That means the modules and everything will look the same. I do know the Opto claims that some of their pens use 1W pumps, but unless they aren't driven at full power, the battery life would be horrible and so would the heatsinking. I'd love to disassemble one of those to see if they are any different or use 1W laser diodes but I don't feel like shelling out the money for one.

 

[Tabish]

Repeat after me... I WILL NOT POD MOD LASERS....

Seriously, its a gamble. Plus you won't get much out of it assuming it works.

Even if it does work, don't expect much life out of it.

 

[RA_pierce]

Repeat after me... I WILL NOT POD MOD LASERS....

What's a pod mod?

As long as the current doesn't exceed a safe current, there's really no problem with it.
I "pot mod" lasers all the time. Small adjustments yield higher power without putting too much stress on the diode.

Personally, I don't think it should be considered a "mod" to begin with. The point of having a potentiometer is to adjust the operating current precisely for optimal performance. That's pretty much what a "pot mod" is doing.

 

[lazzerjim]

i broke 2 laser pointers while unassembling them to get to the circuit board. does anyone have any tricks?
thanks

 

[Tech_Junkie]

This is a year old thread. Please dont bump old threads unless you are adding info. Make a new thread.

But be warned we dont promote pot modding. In older lasers you could get away with it sometimes. On the newer ones you will kill your laser really fast. So its not recommended. Green lasers are so cheap now, you might as well just buy a new high powered one.

Thanks.