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silver_pioneer

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Dec 7, 2005
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This is my red laser.I don't know how to get to the lens to clean it.I've gottn this far.
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BTW I've pot modded it before.
 
I'm not sure of the severity of the lens contamination, but I don't think complete disassembly is required, unless the dirty lens is just an excuse to take it apart. If you don't really want to take it apart, there is an easy way to clean a lense that is damn near perfect.

Get some 99% isopropyl alcohol from a computer store or an electronics store. While you are there, pick up some canned air (it's not really air in those things, but you know what I'm talking about).

When you are home and ready to go, get about 2 or 3 cotton swabs, and tighten the wads by holding the cotton end with a tissue over it, and twist the swab until you can feel the fibers getting tighter. Twist it the other way and they unravel, which is bad. Do this to both ends.

Pour out a little of the alcohol into the lid that came from the bottle, and dip in the swab (it's a bad habit to dip the swab right into the bottle). Shake off the excess with a flick of your wrist to prevent alcohol from squeezing out onto your lens. Too much alcohol could seep under the lens and then you have a bigger problem.

with the air can nearby and ready to go, wipe the swab across the lens in a slow, straight motion from one side all the way across to the other side (don't go back over it!) and quickly remove the swab and blast off the still mostly wet alcohol with the air can. This should be plenty sufficient to make your lens nearly contaminant free, but it is sometimes necessary to repeat this process.

The key steps here are the single-sweep-only to push all contaminants into the alcohol and to the side, and the gust of air blows this little alcohol puddle of dirt right off the lens.

I have only had to repeat this process a second time once or twice, because I wiped the same swab over the lens a second time, redepositing the dirt.

If the contaminant is some kind of silicone, you might have to do this several times to remove it. Silicone is pain in the *** to clean up.
 
I tried to clean it and now its worse.When I checked with a magnifier theres lines on the lens that won't go away.
 
I am having the same problem right now with my green laser pointer. I had it in my pocket and some fuzzies got in there, and now there is major spatter. So I tried cleaning it out with a q-tip, but i couldnt do the side to side thing like you said, so i "spun" it. It worked OK, but now I have a halo. I cannot seem to get it clean. It bugs the crap out of me.
 
Whoops...that doesn't sound like the best cleaning technique then.

I'm sticking with compressed air only.

I keep a scotch tape over the opening when not in use.
 
Yeah, my fault for not mentioning that you need to have full access to the lens. It's too hard if you are reaching into a tiny hole.

I have been using the same CNI laser for about5 or 6 years (~80mW), and the end just unscrews, exposing the entire collimating lens. It helps tremendously that the lens is just sitting on top of a hole, epoxied in place. It makes the swab cleaning very, very easy.

The air can should definitely be tried first, pocket lint likes it in there. Use the swab method if there is something sticking to the lens or it has fog machine residue on it, but only if you can get the end off.

That's one of my only complaints about the leadlights, the end cap has to be forcefully removed if you want to thoroughly clean the lens.
 
cbfull said:
The air can should definitely be tried first, pocket lint likes it in there. Use the swab method if there is something sticking to the lens or it has fog machine residue on it, but only if you can get the end off.

That's one of my only complaints about the leadlights, the end cap has to be forcefully removed if you want to thoroughly clean the lens.
Click to expand...


Hmm, you know, I wonder if that is why mine wouldnt clean that well. I have been playing with mine in "artificial fog" and I bet when the fuzzies got in there it didnt help stir that around and make it worse.

And yeah, that does suck about the leadlight with the end. But at least right now its about 95 percent clean, its got that halo around it, but you can only see it in pure darkness at a flat wall. I mean this laser was purchased to be used, so I guess it is inevitable.
 
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