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Roger Lueck
09-18-2015, 1:02 AM
Good Evening Everyone,

Has anyone modified their Chinese laser by installing the adjustable laser tube mounts that are available for sale on Ebay, Amazon or elsewhere on the internet or did you make your own mounts?

If you purchased adjustable mounts, which ones did you purchase and what has your experience been regarding the installation as well as the ability to adjust the tube vertically and horizontally?

Thank You,
Roger

Dave Sheldrake
09-18-2015, 11:33 AM
I have adjustable's fitted to all of mine....depending on how much experience you have it can take 20 minutes...it can take days....lot of factors involved such as how accurately the holes in the tube section have been drilled, are the holes aligned with the frame or the gantry, are the mounts good quality or cheaper versions etc etc etc

Roy Sanders
09-19-2015, 1:03 PM
hi
I have a Chinese laser, please tell me why I would want to install adjustable mounts.

Thank you

Roy

Rich Harman
09-19-2015, 1:14 PM
hi
I have a Chinese laser, please tell me why I would want to install adjustable mounts.

I didn't realize that some lasers came without adjustable mounts. I guess if the non-adjustable mounts put the beam at the exact correct height then it isn't an issue. In order to get my beam centered in the last mirror I needed to raise the first mirror. The first mirror sets the height of the entire beam path and the last mirror was not adjustable in height. This also required raising the first and second mirror assemblies in addition to the tube.

It's important that the beam hit the center of the last mirror. If it doesn't then it will be hitting the lens off center and the beam won't be perpendicular to the work surface.

If the tube holder wasn't adjustable then I guess shimming would have worked, if not a bit more labor intensive.

Roy Sanders
09-19-2015, 5:44 PM
Ok, i get it. My laser is doing ok on the alignment. I never checked for adjustments on the tube itself, i will though. The mistake i did make was putting my laser on a work bench. it is hard to get to all the angles. I have to clean my shop again, so I will attempt to rearrange it to put it on a independent tabel/

Thank I learned something; and it is Saturday.

Roy

Roger Lueck
09-20-2015, 2:38 PM
Dave,

I have found 2 different style mounts on the internet, one made from plastic that is available in 2 different heights and the other is a circular aluminum mount. Which mount did you purchase?

Thank You,
Roger

Roger Lueck
09-20-2015, 2:40 PM
To all the DIYers,

Has anyone made their own CO2 laser tube mounts?

Thank You,
Roger

Dave Sheldrake
09-20-2015, 4:06 PM
321782

On the bigger tubes these

Joe Walmer
10-29-2015, 9:59 PM
Here are some of the options I came up with after not being impressed with the light object mounts they sell for 32 bucks. I am emailed them to RMA them yesterday yet to hear back.
http://www.lightobject.com/Pro-Laser-Tube-Mount-60mm-adjustable-P651.aspx

The best would be telescope view finder mounts. The good ones come able to mount it on a a dovetail rail system and you can "unhook" the tube anytime to test it on a bench and snap it back in place. Its meant to stay perfectly aligned. This model I found ill work down to the 50mm tubes in k40's. With the ADM mounts you can get a dovetail bar that is up to 14 inches long so you can get better stability and accuracy and the scope rings can be mounted independently at any distance. I hope to even get one long enough to mount the first mirror right on the end of it so its always aligned.
http://admaccessories.com/MDS_guidescope_kit.htm

I am real excited about these. They will fit 60-50mm tubes and for 5 bucks a pair I can use 4 and have my tube aligned pretty close If not I am getting some tube reservoirs from china for water cooling anyway I will mount them with these if they don't work.
http://www.performance-pcs.com/bitspower-tank-clamp-set.html

If you don't want to spend in the 170$ range for the real nice ADM series of scope mounts you can find a nice 40-60$ version but the ring spacing appears to mostly be 3-6 inches on these types. (still ok for a 40w tube I think)
http://telescopes.net/store/51149-a-finder-bracket-quick-release-for-50mm-on-c8s-c11s.html

I even plan on trying a piece of C beam open rail and I can even mount the optics on the end. taking it a step further I could even mount the the gantry that holds the laser head right on the open rail itself and the tube would move with the axis like the blacktooth laser and the glowforge. Or I could have a table that moved in the other axis and it would still be stationary.
http://openbuildspartstore.com/c-beam-linear-rail/

Dave Sheldrake
10-29-2015, 10:26 PM
324333

All EFR have done with the F180 and F220 is put the entire glass tube inside a metal box then fit a circular polarising mirror in the end to avoid the whole tube alignment thing. Works well too....the GSI SLC series have been doing the same for a long time (but on a $20,000 tube)

When time allows I will be running off some boxes for my tubes so they can be a quicker swap out without all the alignment issues :)


I even plan on trying a piece of C beam open rail and I can even mount the optics on the end. taking it a step further I could even mount the the gantry that holds the laser head right on the open rail itself and the tube would move with the axis like the blacktooth laser and the glowforge. Or I could have a table that moved in the other axis and it would still be stationary.

Good idea Joe...I can save you a bit of money as well, I have a couple of spare motors to drive the new gantry around for you ;)

324334

;)