Buying my first Green Laser

So I am pretty new to laser pointers, I have owned a couple of super cheap lasers in the past, nothing worth mentioning, but I have been trying to do some research and I cant really seem to find any information that satisfies me I read the Guide to buying your first laser, except that didnt teach me things I didnt already know. So I want to explain what I am looking for and hopefully someone can help me out.

I am looking for an entry level GREEN laser, I probably wont go any further than entry level honestly, but I will see where it goes. I have no idea what nm means in terms of lasers, the only thing I have gathered is that nm determines the color of the laser, if it does anything else, please tell me. I want a green laser that isnt super cheap, but is affordable and will last me through multiple uses (and uses rechargeable batteries if its appropriate). As for the mw power of the laser, I want something that can shine a beam very clearly at night and hopefully in the day time too. I would like to use the laser to point up into the sky at night to pick out stars with those I am out star gazing with. From the research I have made, a 50mw laser should do me fine, but at the same time I do not know for sure if a 50mw laser is enough for what I would prefer to do with it. Like I said, I would really like to use it in the day time and see a beam, honestly just for fun. As far as safety glasses go, I don't know what to get :S Or if I should get them at all. I have no clue.

TLDR: What does "nm" fully mean with lasers? I want a green laser pointer that shines a bright beam into the night sky and preferrably daytime too, I would like a nicely built one for a reasonable price. What laser would be right for me? I am nescient when it comes to this stuff right now, so please understand I am still looking and learning about lasers.

Feel free to link me to posts around the forum that could explain this to me too. (preferably posts that are up to date)

Thanks in advance everyone! This seems like a nice community from what I have been reading

"nm" or "nanometers" is a measure of the wavelength of the light, which corresponds to the colour of said light. Green - most commonly 532nm, or now, 520nm, is the brightest - your eyes are far more sensitive to green than other colours. For example, 50mW of green will be about 4x as bright as 50mW of 450nm (blue).

50mW is plenty for pointing at stars during the night, less will work, but 50mW is just about perfect I find. For a visible beam outside in daylight you'd need A LOT more power. 50mW would be a little visible indoors during the day without smoke/fog, but to be really visible you'd need around 500mW or more for green - and that's for indoors, not in direct sunlight. Outside you'd need even more power.

What's your budget? Often people look for a "quality" laser but only want to spend $10. You can get one for $10 - but it won't be good quality.

Also, what is your location? That helps us determine what can/can't be shipped to you as well as some good places to buy from that may be closer to you.

You can get by at 50mW without safety glasses, as long as you use common sense and take into account any reflective surfaces and other potential hazards. There's plenty of information in the safety section on that, possibly the general section too. The usual don't point your laser at people/animals/vehicles/planes/whatever applies of course. You won't be able to see the beam with glasses on. 50mW is still enough to cause permanent eye damage.

diachi said:

"nm" or "nanometers" is a measure of the wavelength of the light, which corresponds to the colour of said light. Green - most commonly 532nm, or now, 520nm, is the brightest - your eyes are far more sensitive to green than other colours. For example, 50mW of green will be about 4x as bright as 50mW of 450nm (blue).

50mW is plenty for pointing at stars during the night, less will work, but 50mW is just about perfect I find. For a visible beam outside in daylight you'd need A LOT more power. 50mW would be a little visible indoors during the day without smoke/fog, but to be really visible you'd need around 500mW or more for green - and that's for indoors, not in direct sunlight. Outside you'd need even more power.

What's your budget? Often people look for a "quality" laser but only want to spend $10. You can get one for $10 - but it won't be good quality.

Also, what is your location? That helps us determine what can/can't be shipped to you as well as some good places to buy from that may be closer to you.

You can get by at 50mW without safety glasses, as long as you use common sense and take into account any reflective surfaces and other potential hazards. There's plenty of information in the safety section on that, possibly the general section too. The usual don't point your laser at people/animals/vehicles/planes/whatever applies of course. You won't be able to see the beam with glasses on. 50mW is still enough to cause permanent eye damage.

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Okay, 50mw sounds perfect for what I am looking to do. I will most likely enjoy a 50mw device honestly. I don't know how much quality lasers cost, but my max budget would be about $100. If I can't get a quality laser for that price then I will consider increasing my budget. Currently I don't have that money right now, but when I do in a few weeks, thats how much i'm thinking i'd be willing to spend for now. I live in Fort Worth Texas.

Edit: As far as the "nm" of the light, im cool with whatever green color that will be most visible.

Get a 561nm yay!

-Alex

Hi GaFooB :wave:

Welcome to the forum

Hi GaFooB, for $100 you have some great options for a quality laser that will last. Do some research and follow the suggestions of members as you can easily be fooled into over paying for some mass produced garbage. Here is a few places other also will reccomend
laserbtb.
optotronics
O-like

Sci fi
Sanwu
Or ask any member to build you a custom laser

FUBeaches said:

Sci fi
Sanwu
Or ask any member to build you a custom laser

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A custom laser eh? I am going to look around the forums for this, but before I do that, I guess ill ask just in case I cant get my question answered through my own research What can people customize when building a laser? I am pretty interested

a lot of things.... like differences size host or different material, stronger diode, multiple operating mode,new color scheme and so on...

GSS said:

Hi GaFooB, for $100 you have some great options for a quality laser that will last. Do some research and follow the suggestions of members as you can easily be fooled into over paying for some mass produced garbage. Here is a few places other also will reccomend
laserbtb.
optotronics
O-like

Click to expand...

Thank you for those suggestions I was not sure if O-like was a good website, some people were saying that some websites started out good, but they lost their quality and went more towards cheaper products. Anyway, I trust you on this one, I will be browsing around those websites as well as custom lasers from trusted users if I find that a custom laser is better for me.

Hap said:

Get a 561nm yay!

-Alex

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I can't seem to find a video on one, I love the 561nm based on charts honestly, but I want to see video of one and I can't seem to get that. Could you by any chance provide one?

GaFooB said:

I can't seem to find a video on one, I love the 561nm based on charts honestly, but I want to see video of one and I can't seem to get that. Could you by any chance provide one?

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Probably because they are so rare.

http://laserpointerforums.com/f52/review-cni-561nm-glp-module-95756.html

What do you guys think about these selections? I personally Don't know the major differences other than the nm and mw. I am looking at 100mw since its in my budget and I am hoping will provide a better and longer experience for use.

520nm 120mW pure green laser waterproof Laser torch/focusable [OL-520-120] - $99.00 : Zen Cart!, The Art of E-commerce - Looks solid, but I have a few doubts about it as far as the build quality and it having a locking key.

PL 520nm 532nm 100-1000 ---532nm 100mW (FDA)--- What does the FDA mean? FDA approved? or FDA restrictions?

HL 532nm 50-300 ---handheld 100mW (FDA)---- Whats the difference between this one and the 2nd link I provided?

From what I can tell between the second and third link, one has a heat sync on it as well as a charger for the battery and an aluminum case, which honestly I like the most and i'd be willing to spend the money on it. But overall, what differences do you guys see that I possibly do not that I should be aware of?


Thanks to everyone welcoming me to the forum and taking the time to help me out, I really do appreciate the support

GaFooB said:

What do you guys think about these selections? I personally Don't know the major differences other than the nm and mw. I am looking at 100mw since its in my budget and I am hoping will provide a better and longer experience for use.

520nm 120mW pure green laser waterproof Laser torch/focusable [OL-520-120] - $99.00 : Zen Cart!, The Art of E-commerce - Looks solid, but I have a few doubts about it as far as the build quality and it having a locking key.

PL 520nm 532nm 100-1000 ---532nm 100mW (FDA)--- What does the FDA mean? FDA approved? or FDA restrictions?

HL 532nm 50-300 ---handheld 100mW (FDA)---- Whats the difference between this one and the 2nd link I provided?

From what I can tell between the second and third link, one has a heat sync on it as well as a charger for the battery and an aluminum case, which honestly I like the most and i'd be willing to spend the money on it. But overall, what differences do you guys see that I possibly do not that I should be aware of?


Thanks to everyone welcoming me to the forum and taking the time to help me out, I really do appreciate the support

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I'd go for one of the LaserBTB units - whichever one is up to you, the PL will of course have the longer duty cycle due to that massive heatsink on the end. As for the FDA part - it means the laser meets FDA safety feature requirements - or at least should. Key switch, interlock, indicator light and start up delay I believe. Edit: Oooh, and shutter, I forgot about the shutter.

diachi said:

I'd go for one of the LaserBTB units - whichever one is up to you, the PL will of course have the longer duty cycle due to that massive heatsink on the end. As for the FDA part - it means the laser meets FDA safety feature requirements - or at least should. Key switch, interlock, indicator light and start up delay I believe. Edit: Oooh, and shutter, I forgot about the shutter.

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Just a quick note I went to laserbtb again to refresh and they were kind enough to post the Chinese holidays are in and there are I believe no orders or at least shipping going on starting Feb 1 to Feb 15 as employees are on vacation during that time and then orders might not go out till after the 20th...a quick edit

GSS said:

Just a quick note I went to laserbtb again to refresh and they were kind enough to post the Chinese holidays are in and there are I believe no orders or at least shipping going on starting Feb 1 to Feb 15 as employees are on vacation during that time and then orders might not go out till after the 20th...a quick edit

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Good point, thanks for adding that , I keep forgetting about Chinese New Year. Currently waiting for an order myself ...