New member, modding a Kam laser?

[Laser fan]

Hello, just signed up here.

I have been playing around with lasers since 1985 when I built a 1mw He-Ne laser and messed around with Holography. Recently I got interested in lasers again and brought a Kam 40 Fscan (made in China!) which is claimed to be 40 - 60MW, it's a DPSS laser. It has 15k Galvos (I think) and draws a few shapes, words etc. The laser can be controlled by DMX.

I brought it as it seems cheaper to buy a unit then the separate components.

Is anyone familiar with these lasers? I wanted to get a static beam from it but can't find a way of doing this. I guess for safety reasons it does not have a way of getting a single beam.

How much can you do with DMX? Is it limited to just selecting the inbuilt patterns?

Is there a good source for components in the UK? Eventually I'd like to build my own system, but for now am thinking of swapping around some of the bits in this laser.

[stanwax]

Hello Laserfan and welcome to THE home of lasers on the internet - Im sure you will have a great time here
DMX control is limited to the programed shapes messages and animations - Ive yet to see a DMX control of the type in your laser that you can program yourself. You really need a DAC and software which will open a whole new world to you. There are many from cheap soundcard DACs that run from free of cheap software right through a huge range right up to what the Pros use which is 99 times out or 100 Pangolin.
Maybe while you are starting out it would be wise to get something at the cheaper end of the scale but be warned if you get the bug - boy will it bite hard!!!!
Be prepared for a lot of money and time disappearing without a trace.
As for getting a static beam with no input signal the scanners should be rested at the centre point of the imaginary square they operate in, so all you would need to do is bypass the blanking of the laser. If its TTL you may find that disconnecting it from the DMX card output will turn it on - but be careful where its pointing!
Rob

[Steve Milani]

.......
Is there a good source for components in the UK? Eventually I'd like to build my own system...

The "good source" you are looking for has just answered you by post no.2....
His name is Rob *stanwax* here on PL (www.laser-wave.co.uk)
You luky man... you both live in U.K.
Rob is a great guy, so you can ask him everything you need/like.

And... Welcome on PL, of course!

Greets!
Steve

[Doc]

Hi, welcome to the forum.

I've just had a look at the specs on that unit, it doesn't appear to have an ILDA connector, but as it seems to have real galvos; you could easily modify it for DAC (pc) control.

I have a little KAM160 that I modified for ILDA control some time ago.

Stick around on here, read some projector building threads and ask lots of questions, before you *start* parting with money

[Jem]

...and messed around with Holography.

Oooooh... Someone mentioned Holography... I love holography

Welcome to the forum, this is a great place to be if you're interested in lasers. It's nice to see another UK member as well.

As others have already mentioned, Stanwax (Rob) is a great guy to deal with and i'm sure he'll be delighted to offer any help and advice you may require with any potential purchases. As for general advice, well, just ask away. This is a great community and there's always someone prepared to help out.

Cheers

Jem

[buffo]

Hi Laser Fan! Welcome to PhotonLexicon.

Keep your eye on the Meet and Greet subforum. The UK folks regularly organize Laser Enthusiast's Meetings; with a little luck you'll be able to attend the next one. It would be a great opportunity to meet some fellow laserists and soak up knowledge. You'll also be able to see some *very* nice gear in display. (And in most cases, you'll be able to talk with the guy that assembled it!)

Adam

[Laser fan]

Thanks everyone.

I found I could disconnect one of the leads and it disabled the blanking, turning the laser on without the galvo's moving. I wanted a static beam so I can add some more effects like a glass wheel.

The next mod I want to do is changing the laser from a few pre-programmed animations to a full computer controlled scanner. Looking in the unit I can see two circuit boards, one is the amp for the galovs and the other seems to be the power supply and I presume the circuits for creating the graphics.

How difficult would it be to put a DAC board into this laser?

[Laser fan]

Here is a shot of it's inners.

[Doc]

Really easy, just order one of these from DZ here on the forum, then read this thread.

You can use an external DAC.

[Laser fan]

Thanks Doc. That's great.