I messed up new parts guys

[Crazlaser]

Hi guys, I'm very confused.

Recently I bought a C6 host from survival laser. I also bought the Oclaro 700mw diode module without driver from DTR. I bought the DIY 400mA - 1.1A Driver & Pill Module driver set to 1 amp. The max recommended amps is 1.2 so I'm running it slightly lower.

I wired everything up, put in two 16340's as directed by survival laser. The laser outputs barely anything, but a small red dot. I feel like I may have burnt out the diode. It still barely puts out anything.
I contacted DTR and he said that maybe the problem is the diode is drawing such little voltage, and the voltage gap is 6v between the 8.2v batteries and ~2volt draw. He said I should use an 18650. Does that mean that neither components are damaged and I just need to change batteries and it will work, or are they damaged and I need different ones.:undecided:

He recommended I buy the module again, but this time with the driver installed. However, I don't know where to get the contact board and how to fit it in the host. The driver I bought from survival laser came preinstalled into a special module that fits.:crackup:

Any help would be greatly appreciate so I don't burn my wallet from being dumb.:evil:
:thanks:

edit: If someone with more knowledge than me would help me out by providing a parts listing of what I need knowing I already have the host and a pill, that would be great.

 

[DTR]

SL has them.
Survival Laser Driver

Or you could try that build again but I suggest a single Li-ion. Two Li-ions with a buck makes a 6V+ difference between the power source and load which I have found can cause surges with several buck drivers out there. They have a very clean start when using say a 445nm which is a 5V forward and two Li-ions but switch to a red and keep two Li-ions you can get some small transients with that large a difference. Best to just use a single Li-ion with them.

With buck drivers that have a 1-1.5V dropout which is most the common ones like the X-drive, blitzbuck, blackbuck, ect....

With red diodes to use one Li-ion
With blue and the around 5V forward green diodes use two Li-ions
With blueray and over 7V forward greens use three li-ions.

The Oclaro and Mitsu high power 638nm diodes are very sensitive to even small votlage surges. I really like using the Nano buck/boost and flexdrive buck/boost on them as it gives a full battery cycle of regulation and they both have very clean outputs.

 

[Crazlaser]

SL has them.
Survival Laser Driver

Or you could try that build again but I suggest a single Li-ion. Two Li-ions with a buck makes a 6V+ difference between the power source and load which I have found can cause surges with several buck drivers out there. They have a very clean start when using say a 445nm which is a 5V forward and two Li-ions but switch to a red and keep two Li-ions you can get some small transients with that large a difference. Best to just use a single Li-ion with them.

With buck drivers that have a 1-1.5V dropout which is most the common ones like the X-drive, blitzbuck, blackbuck, ect....

With red diodes to use one Li-ion
With blue and the around 5V forward green diodes use two Li-ions
With blueray and over 7V forward greens use three li-ions.

The Oclaro and Mitsu high power 638nm diodes are very sensitive to even small votlage surges. I really like using the Nano buck/boost and flexdrive buck/boost on them as it gives a full battery cycle of regulation and they both have very clean outputs.

Well it sounds like I surged'em alright, I tried wiring it up to only one 16340 and the output is the same.

 

[diachi]

Well it sounds like I surged'em alright, I tried wiring it up to only one 16340 and the output is the same.

Sounds like a LED'd diode or bad driver to me. You took ESD precautions and used as little heat as possible when soldering the LD, right?

 

[ElectricPlasma]

Sounds like a LED'd diode or bad driver to me. You took ESD precautions and used as little heat as possible when soldering the LD, right?

This and the OP is why I don't solder diodes, just buy a module ready to go from DTR. Those damn things are too fragile for me to handle, best off to just get the work done beforehand if you can so that you don't lose the diode. Even if it means paying someone a small amount to do so for you.

 

[Crazlaser]

Sounds like a LED'd diode or bad driver to me. You took ESD precautions and used as little heat as possible when soldering the LD, right?

I purchased it without the driver but in the module with wires.
I used a 40w iron to connect the wires.

 

[diachi]

I purchased it without the driver but in the module with wires.
I used a 40w iron to connect the wires.

Hmmm, that rules out heat being the issue at least.

Did you ever connect the driver to power without connecting the LD?

 

[DTR]

The diode tested out when I built it and my bet is on using two Li-ions. That was the reason when I was still pairing the Oclaro diodes with the X-drive I only listed with a 3.5-6V voltage input. They worked flawlessly when using just a single Li-ion but use two in series and frequently they would LED the diode on power cycles. It was the over 6V difference as the Oclaro is only about 2V forward. After some time coming up with a solution to remedy it Angelos made me X-drives that had a 1V voltage drop diode on the X-drive board for use with the Oclaro which would bring the forward up to over 3V and worked great for those wanting two Li-ions or power supplies over 6V without issue. I also have also seen the same reported several times with the blitzbuck and Oclaro. I have since switched to the nano or flex as the buck/boost lets you go down to just over 2V min and 6V max which gives the ability to use a couple Quality NiMH AA or AAA cells.

 

[diachi]

The diode tested out when I built it and my bet is on using two Li-ions. That was the reason when I was still pairing the Oclaro diodes with the X-drive I only listed with a 3.5-6V voltage input. They worked flawlessly when using just a single Li-ion but use two in series and frequently they would LED the diode on power cycles. It was the over 6V difference as the Oclaro is only about 2V forward. After some time coming up with a solution to remedy it Angelos made me X-drives that had a 1V voltage drop diode on the X-drive board for use with the Oclaro which would bring the forward up to over 3V and worked great for those wanting two Li-ions or power supplies over 6V without issue. I also have also seen the same reported several times with the blitzbuck and Oclaro. I have since switched to the nano or flex as the buck/boost lets you go down to just over 2V min and 6V max which gives the ability to use a couple Quality NiMH AA or AAA cells.

There you go then OP - that's probably the answer I'd go with.

 

[Crazlaser]

Yeah, it's def my fault, not DTR, probably me over powering it. Soon I'm just gonna order the same diode and leave Jordan to install his driver and I'll just buy a contact board from SL. About $78 and it's fixed for sure. Does it suck?, yeah, but it's my fault plus waiting for parts to come like a child waiting for Christmas morning is part of the hobby, right?

 

[DTR]

On this one I would not really say it is anyone's fault. This is just a little known quark about the combination of the Oclaro a buck driver and two Li-ions. Shoot me a message and I will make you a deal on one in module with driver to lessen the pain that can go out with your NUBM44 unit that will be going out tomorrow.:beer:

 

[Crazlaser]

This man^, can't say enough good things about him... I bought an NUBN44 diode in a 20mm module and happened to unscrew two parts, breaking the connection inside. He kindly offered to fix it, and now he's making me a great offer on another module which I also broke. :gj::angel: The customer service difference between Jordan and say, a company
like laserbtb...not even close to the same level. I email him a question and he is quick to respond. Wish I could rep ya man cause you're the man

edit: rep'd him

 

[tomfire1735]

This man^, can't say enough good things about him... I bought an NUBN44 diode in a 20mm module and happened to unscrew two parts, breaking the connection inside. He kindly offered to fix it, and now he's making me a great offer on another module which I also broke. :gj::angel: The customer service difference between Jordan and say, a company like laserbtb...not even close to the same level. I email him a question and he is quick to respond. Wish I could rep ya man cause you're the man

you can rep DTR after you reach 50 post!!

he is the best so far in my book.

he offered me the same thing when i first started out.

 

[Pman]

Good advice here. I would like to point out that in my experience the Mits 500 is the more robust diode out of the 2 and my Mits builds will output more. I really doubt that there is anything wrong with the driver. Sounds like a textbook case of a blown diode. Need any help contact me or ask here. Everyone makes mistakes especially when you first start building.

 

[10fenny]

Sorry if I missed this part... but did you test your driver with a test load to verify it was 1 amp?

 

[Garoq]

Hi Sean,

I don't remember seeing anything about your particular application, but as DTR mentioned the red diodes work just fine with buck drivers on a single cell. I have also used 2 cells to power a Mits 500 with no problem, but I have no experience with the Oclaro.

Your driver and pill module should still be fine, FWIW.

Gary