Alright, I looked around for as much information on the Arctic as possible (my apologies if this isn't the right section for this as well). Not much was found, beyond the standard “how I took the host and fitted it with different parts to make it what it should be.” I'm going to correct that as best I can. I'm pretty impressed with how quickly I got it – I took delivery almost 3 weeks to the day from when I ordered it (it was a single day fast, to be specific – ordered on a Saturday, it arrived on Friday). Other than an issue with getting my status updated (sent a rather strongly worded email stating that if the order didn't ship within the next 48 hours I'd be calling my credit card company to get a chargeback; Jeice replied back that my order had actually shipped a couple of days prior to the email, and I got a mailing confirmation within an hour of his email).
Smartswitch
The Smartswitch, Wicked Lasers' somewhat crowning achievement (well, aside from taking months to complete an order, that is), is actually quite a simple undertaking. There is a PIC 12F675 microcontroller located on one side of the LED board that controls the different functions of the laser. It is my hope that I can replace this controller with one containing a program of my own design. At any rate, my original one seems to be undamaged, so I can always fall back on that one if all else fails. I won't be attempting to mess with the pushbutton controls right away – rather, I'll be experimenting away from the laser until I can further understand what I'm doing.
The driver
The stock driver revolves around a Linear Technology LT3477 current mode DC/DC step up converter. (Mine died, so I've spent the last 2 months trying to set up to replace it – I've built a solder reflow oven out of a toaster oven to do the job since my luck isn't so great with hand soldering SMD components.) There's a bunch of transistors, but I can't tell what type as there aren't any identifying marks on them, and of course there's the standard ripple reducing capacitor, inductor, potentiometer, and diodes to protect against reversed voltage. The laser diode connects at one end, and the other end connects to the battery – pretty standard stuff. The microcontroller/LED board and the momentary switch that makes up the input for the Smartswitch connect via headers to the driver board. This makes installation and removal of the driver board a little easier (in fact, my only complaint about the way they did the driver installation originally was that the negative lead wire was only about an inch long, which made it a bitch to get out).
I've been doing research into building a few different LED/micrco boards and replacing the original with one of my own design. Doesn't seem like it would take much – the hardest part seems to be learning to program a PIC.
The heatsink
In my research, I discovered that either my heatsink is off-spec, or not many people know that the diode does not press-fit into the heatsink in the same manner as if it were an Aixis module, but rather it's friction-fitted into the heatsink by a combination of the heatsink holding it from the bottom and the machined holder for the collimating lens. This means that (in theory; I only have mine to test with) if you want to intall/remove the heatsink without damaging the diode leads, you could just unscrew the lens holder to loosen the diode, then unscrew the assembly to reveal the driver.
I'll continue to add to this thread as I learn more/finish building/take photos.
Smartswitch
The Smartswitch, Wicked Lasers' somewhat crowning achievement (well, aside from taking months to complete an order, that is), is actually quite a simple undertaking. There is a PIC 12F675 microcontroller located on one side of the LED board that controls the different functions of the laser. It is my hope that I can replace this controller with one containing a program of my own design. At any rate, my original one seems to be undamaged, so I can always fall back on that one if all else fails. I won't be attempting to mess with the pushbutton controls right away – rather, I'll be experimenting away from the laser until I can further understand what I'm doing.
The driver
The stock driver revolves around a Linear Technology LT3477 current mode DC/DC step up converter. (Mine died, so I've spent the last 2 months trying to set up to replace it – I've built a solder reflow oven out of a toaster oven to do the job since my luck isn't so great with hand soldering SMD components.) There's a bunch of transistors, but I can't tell what type as there aren't any identifying marks on them, and of course there's the standard ripple reducing capacitor, inductor, potentiometer, and diodes to protect against reversed voltage. The laser diode connects at one end, and the other end connects to the battery – pretty standard stuff. The microcontroller/LED board and the momentary switch that makes up the input for the Smartswitch connect via headers to the driver board. This makes installation and removal of the driver board a little easier (in fact, my only complaint about the way they did the driver installation originally was that the negative lead wire was only about an inch long, which made it a bitch to get out).
I've been doing research into building a few different LED/micrco boards and replacing the original with one of my own design. Doesn't seem like it would take much – the hardest part seems to be learning to program a PIC.
The heatsink
In my research, I discovered that either my heatsink is off-spec, or not many people know that the diode does not press-fit into the heatsink in the same manner as if it were an Aixis module, but rather it's friction-fitted into the heatsink by a combination of the heatsink holding it from the bottom and the machined holder for the collimating lens. This means that (in theory; I only have mine to test with) if you want to intall/remove the heatsink without damaging the diode leads, you could just unscrew the lens holder to loosen the diode, then unscrew the assembly to reveal the driver.
I'll continue to add to this thread as I learn more/finish building/take photos.
