Laser tube hissing loudly after replacement (and not working)

To learn a bit about what’s all over that tube, try this experiment:
get a large glass jar you can throw away and clean and try the inside.
rub your index finger on your face near your nose to get a little oil on it and then press your finger onto the inside of the jar in 2 or 3 places.
make a little bowl out of aluminum foil, place a few drops of super glue in the foil bowl and then place the jar over the bowl.

24 hours latter see if you can see your finger prints on the inside of the jar.

IIRC CSIs use this trick to get fringer prints off of things.

It will also show you why you would never want to put superglue on anything or around anything which might be sensitive to the vapors given off while curing.