Old Spectra-Physics 162, But How Old?

[Eidetic]

Just took delivery of the oldest SP-162 air cooled argon ion laser I've seen, but I really don't know how old it is. Everything about it looks like it's from the '70s. The power supply color is pre-1977 and the resonator is three rods, unlike the "L" section on all the others I see. There's a sticker on it with a manufacturing date of 1981, but it just looks older than that to me.

It was harvested from a Hell scanner, and has a board installed in the power supply from them causing the current pot to be moved to the side. Is anyone familiar with this type of 162 head?

[mixedgas]

Its certainly the oldest one I've ever seen, certainly pre-1988. Steve

[Eidetic]

Here's a pic I found on Sam's site, showing the plasma tube in this laser. The cover over the gas return spiral isn't present in this head however. http://repairfaq.ece.drexel.edu/sam/sptube3.jpg

[Laserman532]

i think the sn tags were put in the lower right corner of the inside of the resonator when you face the open side...i would trust the date on the tag if it appears to not have been tampered with. My first job at SP in 1978 was installing the tube and aligning those babies..8 hours a day...for my first year there.

[Laserman532]

Here's a pic I found on Sam's site, showing the plasma tube in this laser. The cover over the gas return spiral isn't present in this head however. http://repairfaq.ece.drexel.edu/sam/sptube3.jpg

the tube you pictured from same website came later...it was in the argon with the big plastic housing (i think they called a 163)- the tube in the laser you pictured will have a cylindrical shaped heat sink. and it appears that the laser you have has a wavelength selector prism assay installed...probably set to 4880.

[Eidetic]

This one's tag is on the outside of the rear mirror mount. The power supply is definitely older than 1981. Do I have it right that they went to white paint in '77? I say that because the oldest SP laser I've found with white is from that year. Do you know when they went to the "L" section resonator?

I'm thinking this is a system from the mid-'70s, retagged by SP to go into the scanner. There's a stamp on a transformer in the power supply with the date 1973. There's no key switch, or hole for one. It'd got to be a pre-'75 supply. The head has a rectangular, black aluminum housing.

[Laserman532]

the ps is older than the head for sure. Not sure what year but 77 would be a good guess, everything I shipped from the factory was white paint. This 162 is not the oldest version because of the bellows are the rubber type...in 78 we were using screw on metal bellows (rubber bellows came later as a cost cutting solution). SN tag on rear mirror, yes you are correct...I thought the earliest versions had the tag inside the resonator but was probably moved to the outside of the laser head because these heads came in by the pallet load to have new tubes installed. It was easier to track the SN's by looking at the tag on the outside of resonator. these lasers were run to death so the heads were returned for new PT's quite regularly. The "L" resonator was probably the 163 all aluminum resonator you are referring to...this laser head you pictured has 6 little tiny compensating quarts rods

[Eidetic]

Here's a pic of this laser model from a 1973 Laser Focus ad. I'd LOVE to find one with this cover on it!

[Laserman532]

haha...funny you should mention that...we had a place called the bowling alley up in an attic of the engineering department where obsolete designs went to die...and I snagged a few of those tiny 162 cases you pictured and I mounted a pair of galvos to the end of a 164's and 171's with those cases...all painted black...looked sweet ...galvos, shutter mounted right on the end of 164's, no one had ever seen that

[Eidetic]

You painted everything black. I remember your place on Evelyn (that right?) in Mountain View. All black. Laser Rays Art Productions. Anyway, maybe this 162 head was built in '81 from old stock parts, and mated with an old power supply.