(B)Lase it - Potting a Sotac Perst 4 laser tutorial

Lot of ums lots of rathers, and 30 minutes of shaky hands because I had 4 shots of espresso on an empty stomach and feel like I’m on speed. I’m no professional so don’t @ me.
Here’s a tutorial of potting a sotac perst 4 laser to make it more robust.
Message or comment with questions!

[@heythereheroco]

For everyone asking how they held up, I potted 2 and sent them into the wild to some people that would put more rounds through them than me right now, and they said theyre holding up well! the aluminum body is obviously more robust than some of the nylon units out there, but we will see how the zeroing mechanism holds up long term

[@pichikokis]

Xk68 do it with that one to see how go

[@ThatskindaJay]

So I zeroed it wit out potting yet just to align with my sight but it just moves on its own. Do you guys have this issue??

[@pichikokis]

@ThatskindaJay i don't try mine yet, I can not tell you

[@brandonrichey4195]

You stated this was not difficult to do but, in my mind, I think you’re The Man! Nicely done and thank you for this video!

[@ASAP2525]

a update video to see if this holds zero after like 500-1000 rounds would be legendary btw

[@m.7n6]

I used painters tape to cover those and carefully did mine with liquid electrical tape on the circuit board, and then used permatex gasket maker and clear silicone on the wires as well and inside the device.

[@escaleator]

I bet if you press the circuit board into warm play-doh just deep enough it would allow you to pot the board to the edges all the way around. Press it into the depth corresponding to how thick you want the potting epoxy.

[@heythereheroco]

good call!

[@LeCafeRacer]

You can just masking/packing tape around the perimeter leaving a lip. Fill with potting then peel away tape when cured.

[@scottbenton5880]

​@@LeCafeRacer This is the way

[@SGCXD]

This is the first video like this I’ve seen. I’ve been wanting to do this to other knockoff LAM devices but didn’t know if it would be worth the time.

[@Steelboots47]

Great video. Subscribed. This chinesium stuff is always interesting. Even if one of these clones turns out to be a dud it’s fun to mess with. Also love the background music

[@kurttroter3730]

great tutorial, looking forward to trying this.

[@jeffhunter3402]

Strangely relaxing to watch

[@Andysykes42]

Awesome I just ordered one ! Nice to see a video on it

[@Elpolloloco47]

How do you like it so far?

[@OgBrog]

I subscribed, would love to see more teardown/potting videos of chineese airsoft lasers.

[@Pyro5kinetic6beaver]

I potted 5 with liquid electrical tape and hot glue. Also applied acrylic conformal coating to all the electronics. Lol, on some of them the top button doesn’t work and neither do the + or minus switches. Thankfully, the other power switch works and the switch to change between vis and ir works. I also have the pad to change the power levels, which is annoying since I don’t look and can’t use it on a lot of the guns I have due to space. On the plus side, they don’t revert back to a base power level so I can pre program the power setting with those pads, if you’re using ir you should really use the lowest power setting anyway, 20mw just using that usable and way too bright. Even the 5mw should be used with a diffuser. I bought them as dedicated IR lasers so I only wanna use the ir setting. It would be nice if the vis and ir were slaves though. Don’t see why they aren’t, wouldn’t cost more. It’s definitely full of glue and liquid electrical tape. Nothing is moving out of place and it’s better sealed against water now and moisture.

[@Noneyabiznez1209]

I previously did this with airplane and missle parts. Typically you dont cover the lands and leads you put the compound at the ends of the part. Doing it this way 100% ensures youre buying a new one if any solder issue arrises because you cant access them now. If he placed the compound on the ends/ sides without leads you can easily fix or remove a part.

[@JohnDonne3PersonGod]

What do you mean at the end of the part?

[@Noneyabiznez1209]

@@JohnDonne3PersonGod the ends/ sides without leads(metal legs) coming off the part that are soldered to pads on the circuit board.

[@Noneyabiznez1209]

@JohnDonne3PersonGod depending on the part you only apply it to the corners. It's all dependent on where the leads are. The pieces that don't have leads don't need it because the issue with those part is typically a solder fail. Parts that have leads are prone to having the leads break, this is why you don't cover them. The potting/bonding/masking is designed to help it last longer under prolonged vibration, but it will not PREVENT it from happening. When those leads break he's either going to buy a new on or use the appropriate chemicals and tooling to remove that bonding. A process thats likely to damage the board itself and other parts around the initial fail.

[@JohnDonne3PersonGod]

So if I'm envisioning this correctly, it's the potting compound on the edges of the PB and the underside w/o the leads? Is that really sufficient for vibration? I have no intuition regarding this.

[@Noneyabiznez1209]

@JohnDonne3PersonGod sufficient enough to be used in military jet engines and JDAMs. Especially with the type of compound he used. There are parts and boards that get encapsulated but that encapsulate is as runny as water and after a bake in a humidity oven( basically a giant steamer) it sets to a consistency slightly harder than jello and can be removed with tweezers, a pick and q-tips with isopropyl alcohol. What he used will dry much harder and you need specific equipment to remove it. The typical potting you would see in commercial use will be a rubbery consistency because it disperses the vibrations, the harder compound he used is for securing parts to the board and to provide structural support for the leads.

[@kyleteeter7589]

JB weld makes a metal infused epoxy that is like clay. And you mold the gardening compound in with your hands and you put it down like clay, so it doesn't run everywhere, and you push it into place. And you have the extra metal infusion for hardness. That would be good to use.

[@heythereheroco]

is it conductive? if steelstick actually has steel in it you would immediately short out your board and it would be useless

[@glitch2023]

Are we ever getting a followup/update in how this has held up????

[@mdixongross]

I didn’t plan on watching all the way through, but the music made me stay. Great demonstration nonetheless, thanks!!!

[@DeathMond.]

Thank you for the video

[@echohunter4199]

Friend, great little laser unit here but when you reassembled this I didn’t see a water sealing gasket for the panel so is there one that’s maybe a clear silicone that I couldn’t tell? Or is there another silicone cover that goes over the unit itself? If not, no big deal, an easy thing to add if desired.

[@NATER867]

Need one of these videos for the Wadsn ogl

[@PrebleStreetRecords]

Might be a good idea to blast the PCB with conformal coating while you have the unit open, after potting. That way any ingress of moisture won't be as much of an issue. A thin bead of blue loctite around the mating surfaces of the cover and a silica gel packet left inside would help, too.

[@heythereheroco]

yes! got my hands on some now

[@BenMurr]

Links to the potting compound and that sweet squeeze tool?

[@joejoeseesingtons]

Good info

[@Semiautoautomatic_shaman]

Have you taken it out shooting yet and did it hold zero?

[@Pyro5kinetic6beaver]

Do you think this will stand up to 45-70 suppressed in terms of zero or a 308 dmr again suppressed very heavy barrel for a zero? Also wanna throw it on a 9mm, a hand g o n. I will be potting all of them though I’ll use liquid electrical tape.

[@SWZ32TT]

This is fantastic... but my question is with the laser diodes.... has anybody taken them out and is there a way to get the lasers to co-align? If so I'm sold.

[@user-dy1qs8yt6k]

Is this the same way on a real perst or is that all sealed and protected?

[@trevishornsby7385]

I jb weld epoxy the laser setup on mines so basically its a dedicated laser for said weapon.After you pot the internals an shooting a few hundred the laser will shift an shift an shift.basically take off the lens an tape iff the laser an fill to just below the laser neck line an it will stay soild,only fownside is its only sighted for that one an only weapon on an identical.lol

[@trevishornsby7385]

Thanks a boat load

[@Kycirion]

Great video! Just follow along and did mine. Have you thought of trying to investigate and fix the co-alignment issues with the IR and vis laser?

[@Aupexx]

Just did mine as well and I'm pretty happy with it. As far as the laser co-alignment, I've put a bit of thought into it myself and the only thing I can really think of is milling out a new laser head assembly out of aluminum (or something else strong) with perfectly parallel holes for the diodes to thread into. It wouldnt be too hard to do with a good mill or drill press but the turret assembly threads look pretty delicate so be careful disassembling it if you decide to put the effort in to go that route. Otherwise just pick which beam you like more, Then set it and forget it.

[@heythereheroco]

@@Aupexx yeah, for a 120$ device im not sure how far down the rabbit hole i want to go, i only got it for the IR since the vis is eh anyway

[@Aupexx]

@@heythereheroco my thoughts exactly. I personally just put a diffuser to catch the nasty diode spill. And put a small hole over the ir laser. Now I just use it as a single mode unit with an IR laser that has a bit of extra flood lighting from the diffuser. Cost about $10 and works well enough that I'm happy with it

[@Aupexx]

@@heythereheroco great video by the way! Potted my unit and it's holding beautifully

[@heythereheroco]

@@Aupexx awesome to hear! I didnt think this would get so many views lol, just a little hobby project of mine. I actually just ordered a Wadsn Raid-x to try the same thing. Im curious to see how it opens up and if it offers more access to the lasers themselves, might be an opportunity to co-align easier. just ordered it yesterday so i guess we will see!

[@djomen131]

Great video, potted mine, and is holding up like a champ! Any chance we could get a tutorial on potting budget night vision?

[@glitch2023]

Was it this same perst4? Also, how much did you abuse it? I wanna do this too but wanna have an idea of how well they can handle beatings.

[@lofighost8811]

@@glitch2023mine came off my gun during an airsoft skirm and fell 2 stories, thought i was gonna be spending some cash again but when i picked it up the finish was scuffed up but it held zero and the following weekend i went night plinking with the boys and it was still holding zero

[@justaregularguy3827]

@@lofighost8811 plinking with real firearms right

[@lofighost8811]

@@justaregularguy3827 we don’t use the term “plinking” in airsoft

[@jonsingleton203]

​@@lofighost8811yeah the term plinking comes from the sound of the bullets hitting steel targets .

[@sigmax3432]

Any substitute for potting compound other than what what used in the video??? That is rather expensive lol

[@21kiwi24]

Is there a way you could coalign the lasers? Not the end of the world, i get it, zero the IR and shoot with the IR. Just use the vis laser to point. But does it look possible to coalign? If not just to make the zero process easier?

[@derdampfhammer6652]

OK im an electrical dummy. What exactly does this do. Is the solder not strong enough? I think I would be more worried about hermetically sealing the cover to make sure it stays absolutely dry inside. Not being critical of you at all im just asking because I really dont know. If this actually makes for a viable useable LAM its def worth it.....till we can get Zenitco again.

[@theodoros1126]

This unit sells for 600+ euros in Europe . For that money I bought an Inforce WML gen II with both white and IR illumination coupled with a Holosun LS117IR . Both real firearm tools plus I got some change for ammo . Holosun went for 270 euros and the Inforce for 180 euros ...Still nice video , nice effort . I use the G&P dbal A2 for airsoft training . Very nice unit for 200 euros

[@heythereheroco]

I dont know in what world a sotac perst is 600 euro. a real Zenitco one is 600e, maybe, in which case it would be way better than a holosun. But this is a replica, which was around 90$ usd. Still a pretty potent IR laser, and for 100$ its hard to beat on something just for fun. Obviously wouldnt trust my life to a china clone, but i have fun taking things apart and making them better

[@theodoros1126]

sorry bud I left the comment on the wrong video@@heythereheroco

[@teknotronik711]

Where is the best place to buy @tiffen Where do you recommend buying from?

[@jasonian328]

How much would you charge and what’s the turn around if you did it for me?

[@glitch2023]

Any planned updates on this?

[@krol8221]

What if i sent you my somogear NGAL? Would you do this same thing to it? Youre way more patient than i am.

[@forgiveusmen]

Which version is better the sotac ngal perst etc?

[@karleesdaddy908]

sup bro can you make a similar tutorial on wadsn ngal and peq 15 la 5 c?

[@wintersoldier4335]

Can you do one on the SMS XK68?

[@Kolden999]

how hard would it be to change the lasers

[@austinmay7125]

what if you fill the whole thing with exopy?

[@CilicianElite]

No video on the aftermath?

[@Maddminute]

So potting is just epoxy over the circuitry?

[@shawnwillis7561]

Wouldnt a better method, or an additional method, be soldering the connections to be stronger and/or replacing weak wire with stronger wire? It seems to me that pitting wouldnt be as necessary if the connections are beefed up

[@heythereheroco]

Certainly could help if you have the skills and patience, but its generally not the wires that are breaking, and adding more solder doesnt necessarily mean a stronger connection, so the potting just locks what needs to be locked in place and protects it against the recoil.

[@johnym9051]

Have anyone tried to pot classic GP or other versions of airsoft DBAL? Did it worked?

[@antonijestanisa8565]

Been 9 months, please update

[@DragunBreath]

Just curious - what is the purpose of doing this? Is it mainly to keep components from coming off the PCB under rough use? If so, wouldn't it also be beneficial to resolder the components with leaded solder for greater flexibility?

[@Noneyabiznez1209]

It's to help vibration mitigation. It can pop parts loose this helps prevent that from happening as often. This was done wrong though. It will work for what he wants it to do, until it doesn't and then he can't fix this. We'll he could but to remove that bonding it's a long and frustrating process even if you use the correct tools of solvents, and there is major risk of damaging even more parts. I use to designed bonding templates and practices while working on airplane and JDAM circuit boards.

[@DragunBreath]

@@Noneyabiznez1209 - Good point, would be a nightmare to service this thing afterwards. But at the pricepoint these come in at, probably not really taken into consideration. I would have started with leaded solder, personally.

[@Noneyabiznez1209]

@DragunBreath yes they could have provided a stronger solder weld. But you can't just add a tom of solder to a Lea d Backes they are designed to flex and give slightly. If you over fill the lead/pad it can actually cause a failure. To be honest at this price point of you just disassembled it and masked off the no-go areas you don't want potting. You could drill a small hole and use a syringe to inject it, tapping every so often to get bubbles out. Or use the bonding in the video correctly and only apply it away from the leads. The guy has the right idea he just kind of combined the 2 instead of choosing one.

[@DragunBreath]

@@Noneyabiznez1209 - Oh no, don't get me wrong, I'm talking solder replacement, not adding leaded. Wick off the crappy brittle, but oh so ROHS-compliant garbage, then re-solder with the proper amount of leaded. Mixing solder types is typically a bad idea, anyhow.

[@Noneyabiznez1209]

@@DragunBreath bingo! You know what you're doing.

[@shawnwillis7561]

How well is the perst holding up? I'm pretty eager to know. I'm considering buying either a sotac perst/mawl or a somogear ngal

[@ICleverFoxI]

Mine is not potted yet and has not lost zero till it bumped it into a fence. Rezeroed it and its still running like a top only have loke 1500 rounds on it but it works pretty good. I plan on still potting the unit.

[@coltonrice5685]

Can we get an update

[@JetHenke]

Any update here? Did you do anything to the springs that holds the laser in place? When those springs move the zero will move. I put some epoxy on both springs so they can’t change position.

[@j.crizzle8942]

@JetHenke HAHA I see at least 2 of us are spending NYE checking for updates on DIY laser armoring 😂 I also want to know about those. Think I’m gonna epoxy mine if it worked out for you… I legit also thought about ordering custom wound replacement springs & swapping them in. Likely overkill AF, but that is def me… overkill AF. Wife calls me “Garage Overengineer” 🥸

[@JetHenke]

@@j.crizzle8942 Haha 😂 I have spent half day with my Perst-4. I secured it inside with epoxy on some spots and then glued the 2 springs with epoxy. After that i did alot of drop test from 7-8 feet down to the concrete floor. Nothing moves, it keeps zero perfect. Now i’m sure it will hold for my .223 😁

[@j.crizzle8942]

@@JetHenke YASSSSS 😆 that’s rad. Happy New Year of Pewing 👊🏽

[@heythereheroco]

@@JetHenkei wouldnt epoxy them since then you literally can never change it. I wasnt able to get the turrets out without destroying it so i didnt mess with em. id be curious to hear how you got in there

[@JetHenke]

@@heythereheroco It’s to late 😄 I was not able to remove the turrets but i took a small plastic pinn and put some epoxy between the laser and the spring, in other words is the laser and spring connected, so the spring can’t move away. It’s still full functional since it’s not glue on the other side. It works perfect so far and i hope it will continue that way, i’m not ready to spend money on an authentic Perst 4 😬

[@DocMurphy862]

Question. While watching this video, I want to try this to my wadsn ngal. Would you be able to do one about that unit?

[@karleesdaddy908]

i also got a wadsn peq 15 la 5c and i got the same question

[@danieled.c.8491]

I have a request if you can help me. I have a power draw problem with a Chinese peq. Even if the peq is turned off, the battery runs out very quickly.

[@chuetsai]

Is it set on off and are you using a pressure pad?

[@chuetsai]

This video takes a Chinese peq apart with detail. maybe it’ll help. Maybe you have a short somewhere ? kzbin.info/www/bejne/n6PLiHacl71lbbssi=8ZgT9zwjCld_2DJY

[@FCACTUAL69420]

Even with a real peq I have this problem. Always loosen the battery cap

[@ryanwilliams1410]

My ir and vis are off being slaved by like 2 feet at 10 yards. Anyone know when the lasers are supposed to truly co align?

[@heythereheroco]

they dont. thats why you just have to pick which one youll use. They are not high enough quality to be slaved, while theyre in the same mount, they will never co-align

[@jonsingleton203]

But a perst 4 you can buy the full power zentico real one for 800 bucks . I want to see one of the unubtanium ones like a mawl or OGL

[@heythereheroco]

lol, and that’s 400$ more than they used to be. 100 vs 800$ is a huge difference. For someone who may just want it for a .22lr or just to shoot occasionally why spend so much more? We can’t all justify that price

[@Knifegash]

wouldn't just using hot glue on everything achieve the same thing? why is the potting compound necessary?

[@heythereheroco]

potting compound hardens to a solid epoxy when cured. This holds everything together as one unit. Hot glue would still leave it open to vibration due to its softer cure when cold

[@Knifegash]

@@heythereheroco i thought about that, but then wouldn't it being softer mean it would dampen more of the shock, the glue absorbing the vibration and thus keeping those forces off of the components? rigidity is not always the most prevalent factor for these kinds of things, the concept that comes to mind is the best swords actually have a degree of flexibility to them, too rigid can cause it to shatter and too flexible will cause it to deform. i obviously could be wrong, but what do you think?

[@heythereheroco]

@@Knifegash you want everything to move together. If the material is soft, eventually the pcb will vibrate independent of the soft hot glue as it would detach since they will absorb vibration differently. like, if you take a buit of hot glue over something, and roll your thumb over it, it will eventually separate from the component. epoxy wont do that

[@Fairfax_kit]

does this actually hold zero?

[@maediongerrard7676]

Crazy enough some hold zero out the box

[@JetHenke]

Yes they do. But put some epoxy on the springs to the laser adjuster. If they move, then the zero moves.

[@emmanuelbarnett9736]

How much are your potting services?

[@zl8731]

How much you willing to pay? I just did mine yesterday and can do yours for a price.

[@woo302]

Any update with how its holding up?

[@GuacIsExtra99]

How much for potting service? Are you on gafs I can PayPal friends and family

[@BhaktaChase]

Same

[@Doc02864]

Is the $125 Chinese spinoff as bright as the $1,000 Russian OG?

[@oo-ru5lt]

fuck no, but it will still make any civ laser look like a joke

[@RWDS-partytime]

No, but my cousin has a real perst. My knockoff hilariously is somewhatish close. For a hundred bucks….. no brainer. We’re just killin coyotes in the pasture. Not a serious duty gun.

[@mikeeeeee555]

Uhh so what does potting mean and what does it do?😅

[@heythereheroco]

i cant keep answering this lol. check the other comments or google electronics potting

[@Gnolomweb]

@@heythereheroco rounds count/ updatE?

[@R1j0hn]

@ 3:00 ----> Better off to use a (metal) automotive or dental pick... 😉

[@heythereheroco]

i tried a couple picks to no avail. the better method would be to find a chemical tat dissolves the adhesive. Pretty sure its just red loctite but i was hesitant to put too much heat into it

[@RobertSmith-hr6cr]

Okay so I'm 50 years old and Retired Marine Corps Reconnaissance not a big tech guy. Please anyone without being an asshole who can explain to me the purpose of this it would be much appreciated.

[@IPC-D_Media_Unit]

Impact protection

[@RobertSmith-hr6cr]

@@IPC-D_Media_Unit Thank you.

[@MrTartarSauced]

It helps to keep the contacts on the board from separating (from recoil). Some of these airsoft lasers are pretty good but its hit and miss with QC.

[@darylobey8867]

Damping vibration and impact so the laser will hold its zero as a clone peq does work but hold zero nope or vibration knocks everything out of place

[@bradsunday]

Was my question as well. Thank you to all who replied

[@Savage556-oy7ci]

What you're gonna wanna do is throw that potting compound in the garbage and buy a unit made for real guns that can withstand recoil. 👍🏻

[@heythereheroco]

thanks for watching!

[@bazookajoe3886]

what are the specs on the IR laser output ?? is it full power like Somogear ??

[@Jeffplsgo]

howd it hold?