Need to find new gold mirrors for my Universal laser

[Kevin Gregerson]

Attachment 296493Attachment 296494Thanks for all the replies, here are the mirrors in question. Would I be power loss based on this wear? It's a pretty old tube so I'm not getting near 50w in the first place. I assume based on the conversations here I can just find a cheapish .75" x 1/8" mirror, pop these ones off the bracket, re-glue on be on my way?

Those mirrors are done, and yes, you are losing a ton of power. I'd bet your lens and beam window are done as well based on the look of the mirrors. I had one client with a machine in similar condition to yours. Started at 26.2 watts ended up at 53.6 after replacing all the optics. Check around with optics suppliers that do ZNSE they should be able to get you older optics for your laser.

Also, you can go aftermarket mirrors, but remember universal Quality checks the crap out of their suppliers and will not carry them if they don't meet spec. If you want aftermarket mirrors and lenses most of us dealers can get them to you cheaper by 10-20 percent. But the power coming out of them that I've tested has been a 3-5% difference in power at the cutting table. Reliability has been about the same though.

Also, old universal tubes really don't mean you've lost anything for power. I've seen a number of 10 year old 50 watt universal tubes still putting out 53-58 watts. Though, your model has tubes that aren't made by Universal rather they are made by Synrad who have similar reliability ratings.

[Neil Pabia]

I just bought a mirror from Epilog, .75 x .120 and it cost $40 with shipping. It may be worth using their mirrors instead of the more expensive ones.

[Martin Boekers]

I'd say you got your money's worth out of those mirrors!

Mirrors on one of the cheapest investments on a laser. How long have these been used?
Are they cleaned regularly? Are you rastering or engraving something different than recommended?

You should see great improvement when replaced, which could pay for those mirrors in a short time...

[Lee DeRaud]

Are they cleaned regularly?

Looks like they were scrubbed with steel wool once a week, whether they needed it or not.

[Dan Hintz]

Looks like they were scrubbed with steel wool once a week, whether they needed it or not.

Optics should never be allowed to get even within a football field of that level of abuse. I expected some slightly chipping or foxing around the edges, but the entire piece was obviously abused in another life.

[Kevin Gregerson]

Optics should never be allowed to get even within a football field of that level of abuse. I expected some slightly chipping or foxing around the edges, but the entire piece was obviously abused in another life.

They get like that when put into storage in the middle of the country for some reason. I think it has something to do with a combination of heat and cold with all the chemicals in the machine becoming corrosive fumes or something to that nature. If you plan to store the machine for long periods of time it's best to pull the optics and store them in their own container in a ziplock. They last longer that way.

[Lee DeRaud]

Vaguely related question: mirrors/lenses are easy to replace, but how hard is it to remove/replace the beam window in a VL200?
From the front it looks like it's in some kind of rubber/plastic grommet...I hate those things.

[Howard Garner]

Easy,
You do need access to the back side, but it just has a "nut" holding it together.
So take off some covers and have at it.

Howard Garner
VL300 & VLS350 both 30 Watt

[Dan Hintz]

They get like that when put into storage in the middle of the country for some reason. I think it has something to do with a combination of heat and cold with all the chemicals in the machine becoming corrosive fumes or something to that nature. If you plan to store the machine for long periods of time it's best to pull the optics and store them in their own container in a ziplock. They last longer that way.

it's the moisture I mentioned earlier... but that optic had to have been practically sitting in water Just like with a bathroom mirror, once moisture gets under the edge of the coating, it will continue to wick in and destroy from the edges inward. That's also why I said a mirror can be perfectly usable if it's just the edges that are flaking... but that piece was well beyond "just the edges".

[Lee DeRaud]

Easy,
You do need access to the back side, but it just has a "nut" holding it together.
So take off some covers and have at it.

Ah, good to know, thanks.
I left those PITA rear cover screws off (a tip from the tech when I replaced the tube a couple years ago), so that shouldn't be too bad.

[Neil Pabia]

laser mirror.jpg
Those mirrors are a bit worse than mine was, I was able to just turn my mirror and restore full power.
Anyone have an idea of what caused this?

[Howard Garner]

Do you have a copy of the service manual?
I have a zip file if you need it. Covers VL200 and VL300

Howard Garner

[Chuck Stone]

laser mirror.jpg
Those mirrors are a bit worse than mine was, I was able to just turn my mirror and restore full power.
Anyone have an idea of what caused this?

I wonder if it was just not cleaned completely? If you get residue on it and
leave it there, the beam can heat the residue and cook the coating.

[Kev Williams]

I can't even fathom how mirrors can get that bad? The original mirrors in my 18 year old ULS and 10 year old LS900 look like brand new. Every once in awhile they get a Q-tip wiped over them. Pics are of the lens head mirror on my ULS. The gantry mirror looks no worse--


mirror1.jpgmirror2.jpg

[Kevin Gregerson]

I can't even fathom how mirrors can get that bad? The original mirrors in my 18 year old ULS and 10 year old LS900 look like brand new. Every once in awhile they get a Q-tip wiped over them. Pics are of the lens head mirror on my ULS. The gantry mirror looks no worse--


mirror1.jpgmirror2.jpg

Depends on the user and what they are used for. Converters who are running 3m materials tend to go through at least a set of optics every year. Schools, seem to be on two extremes either once a quarter or once every several years. Really depends on the usage. I find the ones in labs tend to need a lot more work. Where the ones dedicated to a department tend to be better as the training gets passed down correctly. Military is probably the most random when it comes to maintenance needs. It seems to be timed more towards military activity than materials or anything else.