I finally got around to checking out a laser I've had sitting here for a while (2 or 3 years).
It's an old Lexel 88 that a friend of mine bought a while back. It never worked for him and ended up sitting in my basement shop until now.
I decided that it was about time I actually got in there and figured out what was wrong:
[HERE is a quick video pan, if you're inclined - 41.1MB]
Here are some pictures of the unit before I got into it:
The inside:
Cathode end of the tube - (notice the snapped off cathode line):
The laser tube/magnet and reservoir:
Brewster Stem - (I first realized there was water in the tube when I saw some junk floating in here...):
Inside the tube/magnet
Everything here is looking good, now all I need is a new tube!
So my theory is that the laser was running at nominal power when water was cut off to the unit and it didn't have a chance to shut down properly thereby dying a watery death. (Tube cracked; and water ensued.) In the process of poking around initially, I snapped one of the cathode leads off, effortlessly. I'm pretty sure it should've put up more of a fight but it was corroded from the water that it had been exposed to for 3 or 4 years.
I plan on getting a new tube and reanimating this laser eventually. I thought I'd post up some pictures for fun. Let this be a lesson, think twice before cooling a water-cooled laser with water straight from a hose with no reservoir/pump!
-Jonathan