My first build ( DIY from raw materials ) WIP

[jbtm]

First. I didn't know where to stick this thread. This sounded right because I am indeed experimenting with making my own host.

This is a WIP thread. Meaning a build-log that I'm publicly sharing.

First thing I want to say. Before anyone goes "OMG looks like arctic host" .. Yes. I'm making my own twist of the arctic to my own needs. Why? Because I simply liked the size of it, and it fits my hand very well. Due to this, I took the arctic laser pics I found online and did up an estimated size copy, with my own mods.

Since its my own, I have so much room to work with idk what to do with it all.

Features I plan to have:
* 3W 445nm 9mm diode
* SXB-2 driver
* 18650 powered ( 3400mAh cell rated for 8A max constant current )
* tail cap will feature push-on, push-off, SPST flat chrome button w/blue light ring
* mom-push button on the side for turning on and off the laser ( also chrome )
* eventually a AVR programmed smart button to at least have the option to be run as a toggle button or momentary "lasers on when pressed" button.

This laser is intended for indoor, never leaving the house use. No safety for it will be used as I don't live with people who'd mess with it, and I pull batteries. This laser purpose is simply to have a 445nm laser that can burn stuff. It's main reason to be created is for college. I'm in a Machine shop class and was given a task of 'make anything you want with manual mill/lathe" no specifications other than falling +/- 0.005 tolerance. This laser is being created as a project, then being populated with parts at home for personal use.

Craft material: T6 aircraft grade aluminum. My teacher didn't have 1.5" stock, only 2" stock. So I had to remove 0.800" off on the lathe. Since this stuff is butter, it was done using a few passes of 0.120 depth-of-cut. Man did that leave a mess of snow-pellet sized aluminum bits.

With that all said. This is the rough concept design of the basic, milling and other mods will be done on the fly.

So, now to make it.
Laser is divided into 5 parts. Starting with part one.

A work in progress. Things to do yet:
* Drill it out via 1/2" drill
* Bore larger holes
* inside threads
* mill the 5 slots on the end
* Acetone remove blue paint


Mind you this is a class I only have twice a week, for 3 hours. Now that stock is turned to the right diameter, the rest should go faster. Next class hope to get this finished off, then start the body section.

Will post updates/pics as they come. Can't wait to have the final build finished.

 

[sinner]

Very nice, It's study related too so you're doing something not many people get the chance to do.. Machine work is top notch! Subbing so i can see the end result !

+1 for excellent design

 

[jbtm]

If I was smart I shoulda just asked my teacher if I could chuck it in mastercam and use the HAAS CNC lathe... Oh well, doing it by hand and having everything fitting together is good rep more/less specially for getting hired in industry, to say you made a complete assembly that fits together. . Thanks!

 

[SKeeZ]

Lookin good. +1

 

[jbtm]

Fun fact of the day. I busted a custom made ID thread cutting tool because I forgot to remove .100 from threading depth into the part. Slammed the flat tip of my cutter into the end... xD WOOPSIES! Easily make another.

Anywho...

Lucky for me I just did a scratch test thread. Idk why I even went down so far when really I need to go half way in reality. But hey, we lean from mistakes, and I left over 3/8" thick at the bottom for room to smooth the insides, and just incase I want to simply thread the hole and screw in a button. Its a undersized hole for unknown-button currently.

Things to do to this part: Simply thread the inside, and mill 5 slots at the top. Then construct the body. Since I had only 40 mins of extra time after I broke my thread tool, knowing it takes time to clean up, I used that time to construct a handle for a machine at my work. It woulda been a waste to load it up for making the body, and loose my concentricity...

 

[KapHn8d]

Very cool... and so far, everything looks awesome. Thanks for sharing your project with us. I'm looking forward to the progress!

c

 

[jbtm]

Wednesday I didnt make a new inside thread tool yet. So I decided to work on making the button hole on the tail cap, and making the body. Since we have oodles of OD threading tools, That was done with a carbide threading insert. This part is nearly complete as-is. I plan to knurl the body center as well as a few other minor details. Curently, due to lack of ID thread tools, this doesnt screw onto the tailcap just yet.

For those whom may wonder: Inside I have 3 diameters.

The largest is 1.20" diameter, 0.90" deep. This give plenty of room for future plans to have a microcontroller to manage a button that would enable me to have toggle vs momentary functions. The driver for the laser I plan to have in the heatsink, as like mention before, I want exchangable heads.

The second diameter is 0.93" at 0.73" deep. This area will be where I'll have the disc to make battery contact ( so obviously adjustable ). As well as where an LED or so will poke through possibly, for power indicating.

Then the rest is 0.75" through hole. Making the battery slide through very smoothly yet have very minimal room to wobble around. literally 1mm spacing around the battery, at most.

More to come. Until I make my thread tool next to build is the heatsink followed by the focusing ring.

 

[jbtm]

Notha day of class, More progress.

Works as the back of the driver mounts flush with the aluminum face ( Yay heatsinking! ) I still need to bore out the front heatsink for the focusing part, and turn inside diameters for the mounting of the laser diode itself. Seeing my school has drills/mills from every single size on the starrett chart to 2" plus diameter, Finding one for a 9mm diode to press into Aluminum, wont be hard.

Also need to do inside diameter threads still. Once I make my new inside thread cutting tool, I doubt to have a weeks of work to have it ready to be screwed together. I just lack the dummy diodes for test fitting, and an actual working diode.

As for the battery connections / springs inside, I plan to simply make a pair of nylon disks. One will thread into the tail cap, simply making it so it has no connection to the host until the switch is pushed.

More to come as things happen...

 

[Tmack]

That machining looks fantastic. Thanks for sharing.

 

[jbtm]

Thanks ^.^

Well, I made a new threading tool. This time I made a longer body so its actually usable. This is O1-Steel, HSS, oil harden tip.

This time I made sure to go 100 thou stop before the end. On a lathe like we have, 100 thou is quiet a big range to stop. Gotta be stupid to miss it and slam it into the end. I just wanted things to be done so I didnt bother 10 degree rake etc on the tool. Makes for a little messier threads but, I'm not complaining. All the threads currently come together ultra-smooth. Better than I recall my spyder S3, there's absolutely zero slack as their pretty darn exact. Tis what you get for using a full size industrial lathe which can take 4ft stock to be cut, plus of course whatever can hang out the back. I can get pics of our old old machines if wanted.

So here's the parts so far. I have a scrap test nylon disk inside the tailcap as this will eventually be what connects to the battery, so a switch makes the electrical connection. The 3rd part from the left, The threads inside look a lil messy because yeah, I need to wire brush or pressure spray it, to get little debris out of the threads.

Here you can see the tail cap threads onto the body with a perfect seam. Its practically impossible to tell its 2 parts no matter how you look at it.

However the front heatsink, is different. And I think its because I need to use a parting tool so I have a dead sharp 90 degree angle, because theres a little fillet between the smaller diameter and the little lip you see. I think that fillet is causing the hair split gap.. Not critical, but it does honestly bug me.

And then of course the laser assembled in one unit. Lacking buttons, battery connection, a laser diode, and focusing part+lens. I also still plan to do SOME milling work, Just not sure what. I want it to be a little different, not just a pipe with some fancy knurling. Very pleased with how its coming along. My teacher gave me what I requested. 12" long stock. Leaving me with 2" left. There is ZERO room for making mistakes. He told me this stuff isnt cheap ( T6-Aircraft grade 2" dia stock ) and not to screw up. Knowing I had to turn diameters to the exact for threading, and actually thread parts etc, I'm rather pleased so far, things came together without any mistakes.

So today in my 3 hour class I mage to carve a new threading tool + quench it, Thread ID/OD threads ( long process at 60RPM 10 thou-per-pass x 4 ) so I had time to react to stop it before slamming anything into the material. Bore out the front heatsink with a boring bar, Thread it, and horse around with my 12" of nylon stock to learn how it handles.

More to come, as it happens, next week.

http://i.imgur.com/IjLM4MF.jpg <-- Higher res of the host

 

[NKO29]

WOW Very nice! I wish i had access to a lathe, atm i can only use a CNC router/extruder. Very fun, but can't do much metal work anyways, amazing job +REP :beer:

 

[jbtm]

Thanks ^.^ I'll be honest with you, for geek cred I'm tempted to make a clone / attachment to this for lightsaber stuff. Meaning the whole 10W LED + poly tube + Soundboard + speaker deal..Just because I always wanted to, and why not :3

 

[crazyspaz]

Glad to see this thing progress and take shape...it sure is a nice looking host! and if you plan to make more, they will be bought up instantly...

 

[sinner]

The final product looks very good , Cant wait to see it in action!!

 

[The Lightning Stalker]

I see we are both getting rough threads. This is a common problem in 6061. Come to find out the cure for
this is to set the compound at 29.5°, lock the cross slide, and feed with the compound. Oh, and use lots
of lube.

 

[jbtm]

I see we are both getting rough threads. This is a common problem in 6061. Come to find out the cure for
this is to set the compound at 29.5°, lock the cross slide, and feed with the compound. Oh, and use lots
of lube.

Oh yeah. Proper threading method is 29.5 degress and cross feed. With this I was at 60 degrees and simply moving my X axis. It works, the threads get a bit dirty until I blast out the little balls of snow-aluminum. Because this stuff when you cut it doesnt like making chips, it likes making tiny pellets especially with new tooling, thats how you get away with taking such big depth of cut without tools heating up. But once the threads are cleaned out, all my threads glide butter smooth and have no wiggle at all since I did everything at a tight tolerance.. But yes, you are correct. PROPER threading is done at 29.5 degrees, not moving the X-Axis, but cross feeding.