So my eBay laser tube arrived broken…see pic
Question is, do you think if I adhere it back together with silicone sealant would it still work?
if its only the water part and not the gas seal then theoretically yes. Silicone and pray my friend 
Sorry to see that your having so many “experiences”…
Here is a post on the subject. Seems as if epoxy is an available and good choice.
https://plus.google.com/112581340387138156202/posts/Jz9gAKuSfTc
@donkjr damn, wish I would’ve found this post earlier when I searched.
I’ve already started using Super glue…the gorilla glue brand as that’s what I had laying around.
So far results are mixed. The plan was to go over the super glue with silicone adhesive to ensure no leakage but it popped off on me.
In the process of round two now but if it doesn’t work will go get the glass glue and other things as suggested in the post you linked
@Nathan_Thomas I assume that you know about this. This kind of thing is captured there since its so hard to find stuff on this community. Also you can follow me and see my collections which capture these posts by category.
I would use 3M 1838 two part Scotch-Weld Epoxy. The only drawback on it is it is expensive. We used it for aerospace applications, satellites, missiles, and bonding magnets into motors. Very good stuff and what I would use if my tube came apart. Be sure to read the tech sheet on prepping the surfaces…
I see it on ebay at times but would think twice about buying there as the epoxy only has a 24 month shelf life. Though I have used some that was expired by 2 years and it still worked fine but just on noncritical stuff.
Update:
So far so good. What I did was apply 3 layers of adhesive to compensate for not having or using the recommended epoxy.
The first layer is Gorilla Glue brand super glue that I had lying around. I gave that about 10 minutes to cure. Then applied a thick layer of waterproof silicone sealant adhesive. Gave that about an hour to harden a little bit. Then came back with another layer of super glue on the top and the bottom just for overkill and in case there were any tiny spots where water could leak that I missed. I let the whole thing cure overnight.
No leaks so far as I’ve filled the tube with water this morning. Still waiting for the silicone to fully cure over the nodes before test firing.
Just for future reference cyanoacrylate glues (superglue) are not recommended around optics as they tend to fume and can get on the optics.
@Nedman yes I was told that earlier, but it was already too late. I’ve already ordered another tube anyways
Get rid of it and buy another. The eBay seller is sending me a replacement but I’m going to use it as a spare whenever it arrives.
@Nathan_Thomas if you going to trash it anyway I’m looking for one partly operational to test with, coolant conductivity, flow etc tests. Doesn’t need an good output.
@donkjr ok I’ll know by tomorrow at the latest. Was waiting for the silicone to cure and will test fire. But it’s yours if it doesn’t work.
Ok, I tested it and all seems good so far. No leaks and it is engraving well so far. I haven’t tried cutting yet which I’ll get to hopefully in the next day or so. I’m back to work this week, so time is scarce again.
@donkjr I’m in the U.S.
This tube is working so far, but I do have the original tube if you want it. I know it doesn’t work because it was the tube that blew with the condensation on it. But as far as why exactly, not sure yet. I don’t see any obvious cracks, so if there’s a crack somewhere it’s small.