I have an opportunity to buy a Lexel Model 95 ion laser - what can I do with it?

[redrocketmaker]

My college is getting rid of it and I can get the laser and the power supply for about $200 bucks.

it's an Argon laser and can pump out about 8 watts at max power, but it's big and bulky and I have no idea what I would do with it, so I'm open to any suggestions (that are constructive in nature and not anatomically impossible).

Here's a link to pics of the laser and info:
(It's the Lexel Model 95 w/powersupply)

http://129.25.60.59/sam/laserpic/lxl95-1.jpg

Photos of Lexel Laser Corporation Lasers and Power Supplies

 

[ElektroFreak]

Buy it up for that price, but beware of the MASSIVE power requirements: 220V 3-phase power is required, and a lot of it. Those things suck as much power as a small town. (not really but you get my point)

 

[MarioMaster]

That's a steal for a working Lexel 95. Compared to solid state, ion lasers are big, heavy, and terribly inefficient. The colors and beam quality make up for it though.

Depending on how hard the laser was used and the total runtime on the tube, the output may be low. The tubes are usually binned for power output from the factory, the 95-4 being the highest output, giving a nominal power of 4 watts total (more if it was a good tube)

I have a Lexel 95-4 system that was performing great until the tube developed a failure So if you end up deciding you don't want it, I would be very interested in purchasing the head (my PSU still works)


As for running requirements, you'll need 208v 3 phase power at around 35A per leg and a hose tap and drain nearby. This laser requires constant tap water cooling to prevent it from melting down.

Click Image to Enlarge

 

[redrocketmaker]

Ouch.
It's sounding like a bit of a white elephant (kind of cool to have, but not much use and expensive to maintain). -I don't even have 220v at my house.

The only reason I even considered it, was because my father in law runs a sign shop in the valley, specializing in neon, so I thought it would be easy to have the tube serviced -refilled with argon gas, etc.

The Prof. said it was working when they put it in storage about three years ago, but no guarantees.

I'll probably pass on it, but I appreciate the good info.

Thanks,
Todd.

 

[Meatball]

What can you do with it?

Well...

1. You are not limited to only retinas that could could sear open, but also living tissue.. IE your face. We can help you find some proper goggles, and show you some tips on running such high power lasers.

2. You can impress your friends by lighting a 2 X 4 on fire from ten feet away.

3. You can impress everyone here with proper beam shots

4. You can shine the beam through some galvo scanners to get a girlfriend by projecting the phrase "Will You Be Mine?" via free laser show software.

5. You can go to jail with a $11,000 fine for putting that beam anywhere near an airplane. I recommend keeping that beam out of the sky - always.

6. You will need an additional part time job - This is so you can pay for a higher water bill, a much higher power bill, and the faster internet connection you'll need to spend most of your life here at LPF.

Its a beast when it comes to ion lasers, so realize that if you buy it, you are a fortunate to have gotten your hands on it. Take care of it, but most of all take care of yourself and anyone nearby by taking every safety precaution in the book. This machine can seriously harm you in less than a tenth of a second - and that doesn't even have to come from the beam.

I MUST emphasize the safety measures you will have to make. It only becomes a toy after you've made these safety measures.

Looking at the dot on a white wall from 5 feet away might be enough to damage your eyes.. that is, if the beam hasn't burned through the wall yet at that point. :evil:

If I were you, I would buy it, and then become all ears here on the forum for awhile before firing it up!

 

[sopark4000]

Depending on where you are located I will buy it from you if you don't want it.

 

[Pontiacg5]

I dropped my hand in front of a Lexel 75 doing 1.2 or 1.4W, can't remember exactly. I won't be doing that again

If it were me I would already have it lasing in my basement, but I have a 10 horse rotary converter and 220 waiting...

If it's been in storage for three years the tube probably isn't in the best of shape, unless of course they run it regularly. It may pick back up to it's rated power but it will take a lot of time running to get there and that = $$$

But, if you pass on it and your close to me I would love to take it home

 

[redrocketmaker]

Normally, I wouldn't be adverse to "buying from Peter to sell to Paul", but the guy said to me "yeah, I'd probably let it go for a couple of hundred, just to get it off the books and out of my store room -but if you take it, I don't want to see the damn thing on ebay next week."

With that in mind, I wouldn't feel right about re-selling it.

Honestly, hearing from you guys on how dangerous this thing is, I'm surprised he even thought of letting me buy it. -Maybe I should ask him if he has any Plutonium laying around

 

[sopark4000]

I can respect that. I wouldn't want to buy it just to sell it though. It just sounded like a nice deal to me. But yea i understand what you're saying. Well you should see if you can try and get it to run because that is quite a deal IMO.

 

[Pontiacg5]

Good, because I can't afford to run the thing!

If you do pass on it you should convince your professor to sell it himself on craigslist or something. I hate to see a good real laser rot in a storeroom somewhere...

 

[sopark4000]

Good, because I can't afford to run the thing!

If you do pass on it you should convince your professor to sell it himself on craigslist or something. I hate to see a good real laser rot in a storeroom somewhere...

Same here. It would be a real shame to let this thing rot. Kind of makes me wonder how many lasers like this are just sitting unused in some storage space. Selling a used industrial laser isn't exactly like selling a used car. There's a market for it but it's not huge.

 

[MarioMaster]

Indeed, I've been trying to sell the power supply for mine for quite a while with barely a nibble of interest. These don't come by very often.

 

[Ibidala]

I am looking at the same model with holography in mind. Does anyone know of a reason this unit WOULDN'T work for making holograms?

 

[Cyparagon]

I don't know much about holography, but I'm pretty sure that's way more power than you need considering HeNes are commonly used.

 

[Ibidala]

Thanks, but many kinds of lasers are used now and I need single argon line about 2W which is what this one is supposed to do in several wavelengths as single lines. I can't say I wouldn't like to play with all those multiline watts but I mostly want one at a time. Just thought someone might have some experience making a hologram with one of these beasts. Thanks!

 

[Things]

I thought holography required some special beam property that could only be obtained with HeNe and a few diodes. Might want to ask over at photonlexicon.com