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Output problem with my Odicforce red laser

Daz

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May 17, 2011
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Hi all,

I bought a laser kit and LPC815 sled yesterday from Odicforce. I also purchased a pair of CR2 batteries and charger from them. The kit came with a LD driver.

I had no problem extracting the LD from the sled or putting it all together.

The problem I have is that the output power even with the pot on the driver wound up to max power is very poor. Focusing it to a dot (it does have a slight ghosting on one edge) does not even warm up black tape, etc.

Does anyone have any pointers as to what I can try and do?

Many thanks
Daz
 





ped

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Nov 25, 2008
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Whilst odicfore are held in high regard from the people that use them (myself included) i have had a couple of duff sleds off them, he quickly sorted it out and sent me replacements FOC. Contact them and explain, and before you fit a new diode, turn the driver down.
 

Daz

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May 17, 2011
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I've turned the driver down but I'm not sure how I go about testing the current it's drawing. I do have a meter but no separate power supply. I've also turned the lens the other way round by following a post on the forum and that's helped with producing a good dot. I got some setting compound from Odicforce which I haven't used yet in case I need to take it apart again and have felt the driver is quite warm. I've sent 3 emails, and left 2 voicemails today and no reply (it is Sunday I guess). Is there anything else I can try?
 

chefla

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Mar 24, 2011
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Try to hook up the batteries with wires to the driver and use a test load. Then you can use your meter to measure the voltage drop on the resistor.

I build the same a few weeks ago. The driver comes preset to 200mA, which is exactly where mine was. Using this out of the box you should be getting quite some power out of it. If you crank the pot up then you should see an increase in power. Beyond 300mA the driver gets quite hot. That is why I replaced mine with a 1085 driver set to 370mA.

Mine also has some ghosting. The spot itself is fine, the red streaks are only visible close to the aperture of the lens like parts of a wide cone. Seems to be a problem with the PMMA lens that comes with it. I tried a different lens and the ghosting was gone.
 

chefla

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Mar 24, 2011
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Or simply measure the tailcap current first: Unscrew the bottom end that contains the switch, set your meter to mA or A and measure the current from the (-) of the battery to the housing. See what reading you get. This type of driver needs approx. 20mA for itself. So if you measure 320mA at the tailcap, then your diode gets 300mA.
 

Daz

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May 17, 2011
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It's okay now as I paid Odicforce for a new LD and driver which works well apart from the batteries last only 3 - 4 minutes. I've reported this to Odicforce as wither batts or charger are faulty.
 

chefla

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Hey, good to hear that! But you are not running it for 3-4 minutes continuously? Which current did you set it at?
 

Daz

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May 17, 2011
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they set it to 250mW for me. No, I don't run it for 3 - 4 minutes. I mean the total usage is 3 - 4 minutes. It should be more like 30 mins apparently.
 

chefla

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Is the ghosting still there? Mine looks like this:
p1090590i.jpg
 

Daz

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I'm waiting for the batteries to charge again (should be too long as they only take around 45 mins but apparently should take a few hours which is why I think the charger may be at fault here) and I'll take picture and post it.
 

Daz

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May 17, 2011
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I found the spring to be useless as an aid to focusing and threw it away (actually I lost it!) and replaced it with a few winds of PTFE tape. Much better!
 

chefla

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Mar 24, 2011
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Forget the spring. All I did, was to put some tape on the body underneath the focusing head. This eliminates the slight wobble and makes the focusing more precise.
Too bad we can not use a three element Aixiz lens in this host. I tried it, but the focal length of it is too long, so you can not screw on the head any more.
 

chefla

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Mar 24, 2011
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About the batteries, I also got them from odicforce. The CR2, 3.0V ones. I only charge them like once a month. Have no idea though about the actual run time. But for me it is quite sufficient.
 

Daz

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May 17, 2011
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how long do your batteries last for and are they the green batteries like mine?
 

chefla

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Mar 24, 2011
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Yes, they are green: OFL12 on their website. I am charging them with their OFL21 charger. Do me a favour please and measure the voltage on the batteries when they are finished charging. I can post my results when I charge mine the next time.
And, be careful with them. Those batteries do not have a protection circuit build in. So you need to make sure that you don't deep discharge them. Protected cells won't let this happen and they shut off at a safe voltage level.
 

Daz

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a battery measured 3.43v fresh after charging. I don't understand how to measure the current you mentioned on another post.
 




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