long open can?

[terdy]

Ive looked everywhere on here for an answer to this, but, how well do the long open can diodes accept having a driver soldered directly to the diode? I was thinking of using one with a spring setup.

 

[TTerbo]

i see no reason why it would matter? if it is like a rckstr driver? just make sure the driver is secure not flopping around and dont let too much heat get to the diode.

 

[Pontiacg5]

Soldering the driver to the diode is the preferred method of doing it, it keeps the risk of a connection coming loose and reconnecting and killing the diode down. Just make sure that there are no shorts between whatever module you are using and the driver.

 

[terdy]

Thanks, ive done an 803t, it has more of a flat backside. It looks like i may have to add extensions to the diodes leads, it looks like they do not protrude at all from the housing, or is that just the photo?

 

[TTerbo]

once harvested they arnt very long. may need some resistor tails

 

[terdy]

thanks, thats what i was thinking as well.

 

[Morgan]

Why not use the outside of the complete module as your negative, (LOCs are case negative), and mount an insulated spring to the back of the module connected to the positive contact of the driver inside the module?

Check the manual for whichever driver you have as it may not support this but if it's possible then you may not need to put any strain on the mechanical/solder joint; diode pins or; the driver board.

Just an idea...

M

 

[terdy]

using a wire through the hole in the housing and through the spring for positive? One of the industrial line lasers i have her that i raided for parts and adventure, used pieces of foam to locate its driver in the center of its host, one on each side of a cylindrical housing. The unit is a laser blazer, a line projecting laser that came off a giant saw. I have hooked it up to my test load just to play with its pot, the most i can get out of it is around 20mw, using the 5v ac adapter for power. If i could find one of the larger diameter diodes, it has a threaded lock ring for holding the diode in its heatsink, im waiting on a pair of 14500s now to make a neat host, it still has all its stickers!! (using 1 14500)

 

[Benm]

Soldering a driver board directly onto a diode is always tricky. Slight pressure on the driver board sideways could dislodge a pin from the diode (or just pull off the solder joint if you are very lucky).

Still, doing exactly that is common practice in many commercial laser pointers, both greens and reds, but the connection is often mechanically fortified using epoxy or something similar.

It would be a big bummer to yank off a diode wire when changing batteries and such - so be a bit careful with that!

 

[Morgan]

using a wire through the hole in the housing and through the spring for positive? One of the industrial line lasers i have her that i raided for parts and adventure, used pieces of foam to locate its driver in the center of its host, one on each side of a cylindrical housing. The unit is a laser blazer, a line projecting laser that came off a giant saw. I have hooked it up to my test load just to play with its pot, the most i can get out of it is around 20mw, using the 5v ac adapter for power. If i could find one of the larger diameter diodes, it has a threaded lock ring for holding the diode in its heatsink, im waiting on a pair of 14500s now to make a neat host, it still has all its stickers!! (using 1 14500)

Just that! It's entirely up to you of course. My suggestion overcomes the problems Benm mentions above. It reduces the mechanical strain on the diode/driver joint. This may not seem so important right now if you're using relatively cheap diodes like LOCs and the like or, 'harvested for free', diodes from DVD burners but, when you have your first LD that cost more than $30 you might not want to risk it.

It's all good either way...

Photos when done please.

G'luck.

M

 

[terdy]

Will do, who makes the best silicone glue or epoxy these days? Im thinking of not having any wires at all.

 

[Benm]

Even with cheap diodes its worthwhile to take it into account. The monetary loss will be limited if you break one, but you still have to go through the while process of replacing it.

As for glue or epoxy: Glue can take a long time to set, and i'd recommend against using cyanoacrylate (superglue) as it can taint optics and doesn't have much volume to fill any gaps. The best option is probably a two-componenten (A/B) epoxy resin. This often comes in a twin-syringe package, where you push out equal amounts of the components, mix them and let them set. These usually set to a very hard resin eventually, which could pose a problem if you ever want to remove it.