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ArcticMyst Security by Avery

Just dropped my 445 c6... oops

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Jun 12, 2011
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So I just dropped it from about 1.5m taking it out of my bag onto concrete =( The host is ok, the diode is ok but the lens has cracked. I have to say that it was pretty robust when you see what physical damage there was.

imag0188pe.jpg

imag0189s.jpg


I'm just glad that the diode is safe and it was only the lens which is easily replacable. I hope.
 





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How did the lens crack anyway? Didn't know they were that easy to break Can you post a picture or 2?
 
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I can't see any damage on the front or back lens but when I defocus the lens it is really glare-y. And when I focus to infinite, and aim at a wall you can see lots of dispersion lines. Not able to take a pic of the lines and my camera just picks it all up as a solid colour.
 

Benm

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Lets hope its the lens that cracked and not the diode window...
 
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You can replace a lens real easily.

Can you by any chanceunscrew the lens COMPLETELY, turn the laser on and take a picture of the dot? You may have damaged the diode window.

also be careful not to get any dust in the lens cavity, you wont be happy if you do;)
 
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So your diode window is fine. Just buy a new lens. There are various members who most likely have a spare 405/445 coated glass lens. Be careful putting the lens back as to not get junk on the lens.
 
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i can still see some blotches in the pic (even though its only a little bit)
is that some dirty stuff on the diode window itself?
is there any way to fix it?
its just that i have a similar situation with a 405 pen
 
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i can still see some blotches in the pic (even though its only a little bit)
is that some dirty stuff on the diode window itself?
is there any way to fix it?
its just that i have a similar situation with a 405 pen

You can clean the diode window if you must. (Those blotches are not going to affect anything tbh. Usually if you mess with it then the mess gets worse.)

I use a high quality lens cleaning solution and a Q-tip. You can use acetone and alcohol 90%+. Just make sure you are VERY careful not to crack the window or scratch it.
 
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For a lens, I have a 445nm lens from rayfoss. www.rayfoss.com

You can get two of them for only 13 dollars

The beam stays pretty small at distances. Much better than whatever coated lens that was previously in the build.

Only con about it is that the lens is half threaded. So, you can either hot glue the lens to the focusing ring .
Or transfer the individual lenses inside into your new lens with the broken individual lenses inside your old lens module.
Or take the lenses out of the new lens, and put them all in order, but backwards, so that way you can put the focusing ring on the threads and the unthreaded end into the heatsink towards the diode.
 
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You can clean the diode window if you must. (Those blotches are not going to affect anything tbh. Usually if you mess with it then the mess gets worse.)

I use a high quality lens cleaning solution and a Q-tip. You can use acetone and alcohol 90%+. Just make sure you are VERY careful not to crack the window or scratch it.

In my experience, cleaning the diode window every now and then (on lasers with adjustable focus that are used often) is a good thing to do. On several occasions, cleaning a dirty window on 445 and 405nm lasers results in a few tens of milliwatts more power output. Aside from that, I like my beams clean. Dust and junk causes annoying splash that can ruin beam photographs.

Regarding the acetone... I would be hesitant to recommend acetone for cleaning the diode window. I use alcohol and a cotton swab with great results but the diode window is adhered to the can and it might be possible for the acetone to dissolve whatever adhesive is used.
I'm not sure if this is the case. Maybe I'll test it on a dead diode...
 




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