Newbie- silly question about power supply

[rocabig]

I have one of those cheep chineese 40w co2 lasers and the laser tube power supply blew up i am thinking of upgrading the laser to 50w at a latter date but thought is it posable to put a 50w power supply in still using the 40w tube till i have enough money to get a 50w tube or should i just get the 40w power supply and upgrade everything later

thanks

Richard

[Melody-gweike]

It is better to match your laser tube with your laser power. But there is no much difference between 40W and 50W.

[mondo50m]

I am a newbie also. I have a 'cheap Chinese laser'. I have done some research on the tube and power subject. If you are going to go to a 50w power supply, then get a 50w tube. Also, remember, there is probably not enough room in one of the Chinese 40w lasers to accomodate a 50w tube. It is suggested that when running a 40w laser to keep the power below 15mA. This will lengthen the life of the tube. If you are running a 50w power supply with a 40w tube, I would think (and this is only my poinion), that it would be very easy to overpower the tube. And that could alter the lifespan of the tube or even damage te tube to the extent of it being useless. Please note, this is just my opinion.

Milt

[Exsecratio]

Careful on tube ratings

a 50 watt can be an overdriven 40 or a knackered 60 .....

Like Mel said, the difference between the two after a month or so will be un noticeable. 40 to 80 yes or 40 to 100/130 yes, but 40 to 50.....very little point.

best wishes

Dave

[rocabig]

Thanks guys
was going to modify the case to fit a larger tube anyway
have had 2 power supplies go up in a big ball of smoke in the past month the machine has never been used above 10mA i dont trust the supplier of the machine any more it is still under warranty but they keep sending faulty parts to fix the problem.

Richard

[Exsecratio]

Hiya Rich,

I got the inside line on PSU problems today from a friend of many years experience in laser supply, it *appears* from what I have been told that a
*few* far eastern manufacturers of PSU's are building replicas of the sony system and using cheaply sourced components (aka fakes). This leads to unstable voltages and big fluctuations that can kill the lower end tubes quite quickly.

In general if you are going to buy a PSU then get it from the same people that supply tubes as the two will likely be matched and of better quality.

Can I venture to suggest buying either tubes or PSU's from companies that mass market just about everything isn't such a good idea?.To fully support laser components it takes a lot of experience and knowledge, sadly this is something very few if any of the small *overnight* drop shippers understand so when something goes tilt they are about as much use as a chocolate teapot


While it may be a very old saying "Buyer beware" still holds as true today as it always has. If somebody is selling you a tube or psu or any other part at a fraction of the usual price then you have very good reason to be skeptical

best wishes

Dave

[rocabig]

Thanks Dave
the two power supplys i have blown up have come from the manufacturer of the machine
think i have found a reliable sourse for a new one in the usa at least it is tested and comes with a real warranty

Richard

[mondo50m]

I have been looking for a supplier here. Can you give their address?

Milt