Laser tube life

[Jerry DePuma]

Hi all, not to highjack antother thread, but does a CO2 Laser tubes have a shelf life?

In replacing a tube do you want the freshest product? And if so is there a way to verify, or do you just take someones word for it.

Thanks,
Jerry

[Dan Hintz]

A boatload of posts about this... yes, they have a shelf life. Glass tubes generally have a shorter shelf life than sealed metal tubes, but there are always outliers, so new doesn't necessarily mean better.

[Mike Null]

The problem is that nobody can predict the shelf life. It can be months or years. Theoretically, a fresher tube will last longer but they are unpredictable.

Your chances of getting a fresh tube are pretty good as inventories are kept very low by all companies.

[Jerry DePuma]

So basically it's the luck of the draw.

Thanks guys.

[rich shepard]

Well my first one lasted just over 6 years. Just replaced the second one at 7 months.
Cut some 1/64 ply then a hour later went to cut some card stock and half way through the run lost power. New one was inspected at the factory in China in January of this year so with luck I'll get another 6 years out of it. As they say luck of the draw.
rich