[MonoNeuron]

Has anyone bought one of the professional laser tubes from COLETECH on eBay yet? They appear to have the metal seal on the end instead of the glue and are purportedly able to last 8000 hours. They give a warranty of 8 months for them at 60% power and come in sizes 80, 100, 130, 150 watts with power supply.
They look very similar to the Parallax designed tubes from USA.
Good price too if they do indeed last as long as they say they do.
Richard.

[zax15uk]

I haven't purchased one from Coletech but did see a new Chinese machine recently that had a similar tube. It was an xyz system, and seems like these have become the standard.

I suspect there will be some bad examples that don't last any longer than the older glass tubes but in general they may be better. Time will tell.

Zax.

[MonoNeuron]

Yep, I think the xyz systems are supposed to last around 2500 hours which is a more reasonable, and useful, length of time for one to last compared to the epoxy ones. I had a "cheap" epoxy one that I bought first then built the machine around it only to find the laser was outputting only about 10 watts after 6-8 months in storage. never used it and wasted $1500. (power supply as well).
If these metal sealed ones do actually last for 2,500 hours then they look to be a good buy.
I believe the metal sealed ones could probably be re-gassed by Parallax or some other company that does this compared to the cheaper throw away ones. This would have to be checked though as Parallax may not want to do this as it might conflict with the sales of their laser tubes.

I was going to save up and buy one of the Parallax 100 watt tubes but after all the customs duties and taxes it would turn out to be around $8K. The Chinese ones seem a vary viable option in contrast.

Granted, also, the power supplies aren't up to the standard of the US ones but they are also not $1300 either and I could buy 3 power supplies for that from China. Most problems I have had with power supplies is the capacitors drying out after long use.

It takes me ages to save up enough money to buy stuff and I really need to spend it the most cost effective way but you have to weigh up the longevity issues with the cost issues and try and strike a happy medium.
I priced a ULS RF 100 watt laser here about 12 months ago and they were $22K AUD which is way out of my price range, unless I win the lottery. :-)
Rich.

[Pierke]

Hello MonoNeuron

i've buy a 3-axis cnc board from coletech, an it works fine.
No problem, and fast delivery.

Pierke

[vivinar]

Now the laser tube that our company used is 100w glass laser tube guranteed for 9 months
and the lifetime is around 8000hours.and it just 1.35m length

Vivinar

[MonoNeuron]

Hi Vivinar, Where do you get your tubes from? Are they from the same source?
The smaller tube length would be really beneficial so the whole table doesn't have to be so big to accommodate the extra tube length of the standard ones.
I am thinking of getting the 150 watt one, as I can do most engravings with the 30 watt tube I have now, and would like the extra power to cut things really fast to reduce the carbon build up on wooden products and utilize a longer depth of focus lens for thicker Acrylic.

[ozstockman]

I priced a ULS RF 100 watt laser here about 12 months ago and they were $22K AUD which is way out of my price range, unless I win the lottery. :-)
Rich.

Is that price for the whole laser system or just for a laser tube? I am looking for 100 watt laser engraver/cutter here in AU for a long time and I cannot believe ULS sell one for just 22K. I have got their 50W machine and just want to upgrade to something more powerfull.

[MonoNeuron]

Hi Ozzy,
It's just for the tube. No extras. I think the power supply is extra too.
It's probably a good time to buy now as the Aussie dollar was 1:1 today with the yanks so it should be cheaper than I last got quoted. I think it was about $0.86 back then. It took them a while to get the quote because no one had ordered a 100 watt ULS laser before.

Don't forget you will also need to pay for duties, taxes etc.

I have just bought a 100 watt glass tube from Coletech and it looks pretty good and also arrived in 1 piece. Can't wait to get into putting that into action.
Rich.

[vivinar]

Hi Vivinar, Where do you get your tubes from? Are they from the same source?
The smaller tube length would be really beneficial so the whole table doesn't have to be so big to accommodate the extra tube length of the standard ones.
I am thinking of getting the 150 watt one, as I can do most engravings with the 30 watt tube I have now, and would like the extra power to cut things really fast to reduce the carbon build up on wooden products and utilize a longer depth of focus lens for thicker Acrylic.

I am sorry to see your message so later.
Yes, if you want 150w,we also have,the warranty time for this laser tube is 9 months.It is made of CO2 glass.Now most of chinese factory for 150w will use such laser tube,becuase of it's long lifetime
If you need,can ask me anytime,we will package with wood for you.also we have experience on DHL express.
and any quality problem,we promise to rechange it for you.

[MonoNeuron]

Ok Vivinar, I will keep you in mind for next time.

I have just had another look at the tube and it isn't a glass-metal seal as I first thought. The metal ends are glued on just as the older style tubes are but the glue seal is much better quality and there isn't as much glue on them.
I suppose only time will tell how long these things last. I was hoping for the better seal and not the epoxy though as that was the main reason I bought it.

I might take some photos of it and post up here soon to show all and sundry the quality of the tubes.

Rich.

[zax15uk]

Rich,

Photos would be nice when you have time. The examples I looked at did not appear to be epoxied as the metal ends were embedded in the glass, but now I'm wondering if it was just a 'clean' bond with a glass sleeve or something else. I must admit I didn't inspect too closely as I was in the factory looking at the Yb:YAG systems.

Zax.

[MonoNeuron]

Here are a few pictures of the tube.
You can see the glass is flattened out on the end to give a good flat face for the sealant and if you look really hard you can see some epoxy on the join between the metal and the glass. I wonder why they don't place a Viton O-Ring on a shaft inside the tube then glue the end on. It would negate any contamination of the gases.

The tubes are very well made and I hope they live up to the hour specs.

One day they might get as good as the westerners with a metal to glass seal.

Time will tell and I will definitely come back here and give out some observations on how things go.

Rich.

[oneeye]

Here are a few pictures of the tube.
You can see the glass is flattened out on the end to give a good flat face for the sealant and if you look really hard you can see some epoxy on the join between the metal and the glass. I wonder why they don't place a Viton O-Ring on a shaft inside the tube then glue the end on. It would negate any contamination of the gases.

The tubes are very well made and I hope they live up to the hour specs.

One day they might get as good as the westerners with a metal to glass seal.

Time will tell and I will definitely come back here and give out some observations on how things go.

Rich.

Hi Rich,

i buy tubes from Shirley ( coletech) since 2005, all very good quality, i bougth a 80W Ultra too ( that one is GSI clone) , this is a nice 1 tube i have, it have 6000 - 8000 hs lifespan , and very good beam density .

[MonoNeuron]

Hi Oneeye,
Do you run your tubes near the limit most of the time or do you just use 1/2 power or less for most things?

It will be a good experience for me to set this up and see how it goes. Good I hope!
Now all I need is my controller from lightobject.com and I will be in business.
I will purchase a chiller for the water in the next few months but right now I have a thermometer, milli-amp meter and flow switch to install with the water pumping through a aluminium radiator with a fan blowing across it. It should be adequate for the first few weeks of service.
Rich.

[zax15uk]

Rich,

Thanks for posting those photos, it is a significant improvement over the 'basic' glass tube design so hopefully that translates to a more robust tube and better quality controls.

The standard tubes CAN last a long time and work well but so many are poorly manufactured or insufficiently tested that there are as many 'duds' as there are good examples floating about.

Zax.

[AustinT]

Thanks for the pictures of the long life tube, I am about to buy a 60 watt tube and I wish I could go with the long life 80. Most of my work is going to be engraving and everyone says the 60 watt would be a better choice. Maybe they will have long life 60 watt tubes someday

[zax15uk]

You could use an 80W tube - just get the correct lens. The only disadvantage is the DOF could be marginally shallower.

Zax.

[oneeye]

Hi Oneeye,
Do you run your tubes near the limit most of the time or do you just use 1/2 power or less for most things?

It will be a good experience for me to set this up and see how it goes. Good I hope!
Now all I need is my controller from lightobject.com and I will be in business.
I will purchase a chiller for the water in the next few months but right now I have a thermometer, milli-amp meter and flow switch to install with the water pumping through a aluminium radiator with a fan blowing across it. It should be adequate for the first few weeks of service.
Rich.

Yes, i need fast cut to hight prodution so i use power near limit and hight speed. now i´m buying a 150W ultra tube from Shirley, if u contact Shirley say u know me , Rick from Brazil, she will give u special attention.
i sale laser machines and replacement parts , i buy a lot of tubes and PS from Shirley.
will u buy a DSP card? nice! i use DSP in all my machine , try found a new version DSP, this one use PHcad as software , it is nice1, i think if u buy it from Marco ( lightobjects) him dsp use RD software( lasercut) , it is good too.
I am sure you will not regret it.
This is my 80W tube

View All Photos Photo Gallery - Photo 2 of 16 by RickLaser - MySpace Photos

Rick

[mikempp]

has anyone bought the coetech 150W CO2 Laser Tube + Power Supply Long Life >8000h
yet and have any thing to say about them? i need a new tube now. wishi could afford a big high quality tube!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[twehr]

will u buy a DSP card? nice! i use DSP in all my machine , try found a new version DSP, this one use PHcad as software , it is nice1, i think if u buy it from Marco ( lightobjects) him dsp use RD software( lasercut) , it is good too.[/url]

Rick

FYI - Marco's current DSP uses the PHCad software.