black lenses for cutting s/s

[penfold33]

i have been told using a black lense would be beneficial to me as the life of the standard lense im using is too short. is this true. armada have told me it makes no difference, but im not sure.

 

[jwax]

What do you mean by "Black Lenses"? Do you mean GaAs- as in opaque to visible? Also, we're talking for a CO2 laser, right?

 

[penfold33]

yes,got armarda quattro. standard clear lenses im using seem to be getting marked to quickly. (white smears-resulting in a drop in performance.i.e slower cycle times and drastic focal point adjustment).
i was informed some time ago that when cutting stainless steel the black type lense, (BLACK MAGIC LENSES). would address my problem. however since then ive been told otherwise.

darren

 

[jwax]

Darren, what is "armarda quattro"?
Go to

http://www.II-VI.com,

and ask the CO2 experts your optics questions. We have always used GaAs with AR coating, and had very few problems.
John

 

[penfold33]

ok i spelt it wrong . amada quattro= make and model of my laser cutter.

but thankyou for the info much appreciated.

darren

 

[sr20ser]

The black coated lenses have made no difference in cut quality or life for my company. We are using PRC lasers and have always used II-VII lenses, except for the free trial lenses from different companies.

The build-up I would think, is from not having an adeqaute purge in the beam path.
-Tim

 

[chadxyz]

The "BLACK MAGIC LENS" do last a little longer when aluminum or stainless deposits build up on the due to splatter. The coating also helps reduce reflections back up into the system. Having said that, in my experince they do not greatly improve the cut quality or speed. Also they do not transmit the light from HeNe pointers used in most high power CO2 lasers. This can be a safety hazzard and make it harder for the operator to locate on the material. My experince was with PRC lasers as well.

 

[chadxyz]

Hey Tim it is a small world huh?

 

[JayMaechtlen]

Don't forget to bug the vendor's support people. Amada still has in-house staff to work with users. AFAIK the service dept. still answers the phone for free as well.
Good luck!
(was 20 years at Amada, mostly in lasers)
Jay


Jay Maechtlen

http://home.covad.net/~jmaechtlen/