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Looking for my first laser

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PappaDon

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I've seen these lasers on the Internet for a few years now, mainly the adverts to Wicked Lasers (however I now know they're not the place I should be looking to buy one). I'm basically after something over 95mW that is very bright, looks cool at night and can burn/light matches etc.

Could anyone give advice on who the companies I should be looking to buy from, I've read the guide on here which suggests the companies may be a bit out of date. I'm looking to spend around about £150 - $200. I am from the UK, but will be going to America on 11th May which might also help getting a laser that can't be sent where I live.

Any responses & feedback appreciated.

Cheers
 





Thanks for the links.

I've now pretty much decided on lazerer as the source, now the only bit I can't decide on is (and bearing in mind I'm buying the laser for the coolness factor) should i get a 500mW green focusable or a 1W blue focusable.

What would a 1W blue lazerer be like at night against dark blue sky & which would have the greater burning capacity?
 
Yes Lazerer are a very good company.

In coolness, I'd say a blue laser is cooler than a green as they're not as common. Both would have good burning powers, if they both were focused the exact same then I guess the blue laser would have faster burning as it is more powerful.
 
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Thanks for the reply Gun.

My last question, is what's the life expectancy of these. I read the review on here and the guy edited his review 2 months later saying it died. I don't really want to pay over $100 for a laser that won't last long.
 
It seems strange that it would die after 2 months, I highly doubt that will happen to you, is there any warranty on the laser? As long as you stick to the duty cycles, your laser should be working for a very long time :)
 
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The laser has a 30 day warranty which seems a bit crap that they don't even offer 6 month warranty at the minimum.

itay, can I ask why you suggest 100mW green as a first?

Thanks
 
PappaDon said:
The laser has a 30 day warranty which seems a bit crap that they don't even offer 6 month warranty at the minimum.

itay, can I ask why you suggest 100mW green as a first?

Thanks
Click to expand...

I guess it's a risk you're just going to have to take if you buy the laser. A lot of people buy from Lazerer and very few seem to have problems.

I think he suggested getting 100mW as it's not quite as powerful as a 1W Blue laser which might be a bit too powerful for your first laser, but it's up to you :)
 
Il give it a go then.

I'm going to go with the 1W blue from lazerer.

Fingers crossed it doesn't get nicked by customs.
 
This is why I do not buy packaged lasers from these vendors. We WILL kill diodes from over-driving. Returning a laser to Laserer for a diode replacement is a pain in the ass.

With a DIY or member built laser, when you kill a diode, you just yank the dead one out and slap a new one in there...done! It costs less, doesn't have to ship to China, support from members, etc...

I suppose manufactured lasers are fine for those who aren't interested in working on them, building them, etc. But, that's not me.
 
How long would it take to learn to build your own 1W blue laser in your opinion?

I'm all up for learning & if it means parts are easily replaceable then I'm willing to try that route too.i can solder so that's not an issue.Do these come as kits or is it usually a case of buying all components separately ?
 
There are many options. You can buy a JAD (Just Add Diode) kit from a trusted vendor (Survival Lasers and the like), or you can go whole hog and even press your own diodes. The level of complexity is entirely up to you. I started out even hand machinging heatsinks for drivers, pills, etc.

Time is just a matter of getting all your bits shipped and assembly isn't terribly time consuming.
 
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