Is the Galileo worth it?

Am I posting this in the right place? I'm new here...

Anyway, I need a good green laser for experiments, like diffraction, and random things with semi-silver mirrors.

So my friends don't blind me when they find "my new laser 0.01mW laser pointer," I would want something no more than 8mW. Of course, you can't find anything between 5 and 20 mW... :undecided:

I have been looking mainly at Wicked Lasers, and Laserglow. Right now, I definitely like the Galileo-5 Laserglow Technologies - Handheld Lasers, Alignment Lasers and Lab / OEM Lasers, mainly because of its 100% duty cycle, its click on, click off switch, and the fact that, because of its click on, click off switch, you can put it on a stand.


I don't need a
:lasergun:
but I would like to have something that you can see at night.

Are there any reviews for the Galileo, or any possible alternatives to it?
Also, how does the beam compare to the Lyra?

(Yes, I have never owned a laser before in my life)

:thanks:

I'd actually like to know what everyone else has to say as well. I've been looking into green lasers lately and have come to find that the 5mW LG Galileo is pretty close in price to the different style Rayfoss 100mW greenies. Is it because LG is much better quality? I know everyone likes LG and Rayfoss so I didn't know if there was something I was missing. Besides the click on/off switch and the 100% duty cycle what else separates these two lasers?

Mike

The Galileo was my first green laser. This was a few years ago.
It is solid and the divergence is good.
The battery life is excellent and it is great for anything requiring continuous use.

It is expensive for a 5mW, but it is more reliable than the cheapies... no issues with dimming in cold weather, long lasting batteries, APC, etc.

It will have a visible beam at night but nothing extraordinarily bright. Unless there is very humid or foggy it won't draw much attention if used in public.

If you want a pretty visible beam at night but nothing that will slash and burn, you can check out NOVAlasers.com.
The X-series X15 might fit the bill and give you more power per dollar.
It runs on AAA batteries and has only a momentary switch but it is not lacking in quality and is quite a bit brighter than the Galileo.
I would say 5-10mW is good as a classroom/office tool, 15-20mW makes a good pointer, and 30-50mW is good for a pretty strong beam.
NOVAlasers is a sister company of LaserGlow.

There are cheaper options, but I think that if you are looking for a safe, reliable pointer, the Galileo will not disappoint.

I'd advise against Wicked.
You can choose for yourself but they have one of the worst reputations of any known laser company.

Thanks, and I know that the Galileo has a weakish beam (It's a 5mW, for crying out loud,) and that's alright. However, I was wondering if anyone knows of a good 8mw laser, or something like that; better power, but not quite enough to be "dangerous".

Everywhere I look, I haven't been able to find an 8mw laser!!
I could pot-mod the Galileo, which I am beginning to increasingly like, to 8mw, but that would disable the insurance, would it not?

42Duckers said:

Thanks, and I know that the Galileo has a weakish beam (It's a 5mW, for crying out loud,) and that's alright. However, I was wondering if anyone knows of a good 8mw laser, or something like that; better power, but not quite enough to be "dangerous".

Everywhere I look, I haven't been able to find an 8mw laser!!
I could pot-mod the Galileo, which I am beginning to increasingly like, to 8mw, but that would disable the insurance, would it not?

Click to expand...

You really can't pot mod the galileo. It has a system called APC that verifies that its is outputting a certain power.
Pot modding is one of the worse things you can do to a beautiful 5mw laser.

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I wouldn't want to do anything to the Galileo that would be taking a chance, especially since it's $90. However, do you think that lens alignment could be used to sharpen up the diffraction? Or would that be too risky, especially because of my inexperience in lasers?

I looked at the X-15, from NOVAlasers, and there are a few things that I noticed about it:
It cost almost $100, which might mean that it is good, or it might mean that they're ripping me off,
And the deciding factor was that it had, like 99% of the lasers that I have seen before it, a momentary push button.

Also, 15mW is fairly powerful... would you recommend that type of laser for a presentation?

I think that I'm going with the Galileo, but I'll look around a bit first on NOVAlasers.

42Duckers said:

I wouldn't want to do anything to the Galileo that would be taking a chance, especially since it's $90. However, do you think that lens alignment could be used to sharpen up the diffraction? Or would that be too risky, especially because of my inexperience in lasers?

I looked at the X-15, from NOVAlasers, and there are a few things that I noticed about it:
It cost almost $100, which might mean that it is good, or it might mean that they're ripping me off,
And the deciding factor was that it had, like 99% of the lasers that I have seen before it, a momentary push button.

Also, 15mW is fairly powerful... would you recommend that type of laser for a presentation?

I think that I'm going with the Galileo, but I'll look around a bit first on NOVAlasers.

Click to expand...

NOVAlasers is a great company. I've purchased several lasers from them. They are one of the trusted companies.
The reason I mention the X15 is that it does not cost much more than the Galileo but is brighter but still at a reasonably "safe" power level.
It's definitely not a rip-off. As I said, they are a sister company of LaserGlow.

Back to the Galileo -
Unless you have experience and are comfortable with modifying green lasers, I would not recommend trying to realign/pot mod it. There isn't much gain you will get from it. Too much current can kill the laser and you never know what kind of stability you will get. It's always a gamble. Any modification will void the warranty.

I have a green laser module sitting in my spare parts box. I can adjust it from 0-20mW. It is currently happy at 10mW stable.
At the moment it is just a bare module but I can install it in a flashlight host.
I could sell it to your for a bit cheaper than the Galileo (depending on the cost of the host and heatsink) and it will be just as solid and with a constant on/off switch. It is IR filtered and has APC. Divergence is good and beam quality is excellent.
Let me know if that sounds good to you.
Otherwise this module will probably sit in my spare parts box forever.

Sure, I like to save things that would otherwise be sitting in spare parts boxes! (An adjustable would be great!)

How much would you want for it, and what would the benefits of that laser be, vs the Galileo? I'm considering this a possibility...

42Duckers said:

Sure, I like to save things that would otherwise be sitting in spare parts boxes! (An adjustable would be great!)

How much would you want for it, and what would the benefits of that laser be, vs the Galileo? I'm considering this a possibility...

Click to expand...

The power won't be adjustable during use. I just mean that I can set it anywhere between 0 and 20mW. Right now it is at 10mW.

It will have the same functionality as the Galileo - 100% duty cycle, constant on/off switch, etc.
I can put it in any host that will fit the module.
I had this one in mind: http://laserpointerforums.com/f64/aurora-sh-032-kit-51476.html
I'd just have to contact Flaminpyro and have him machine an aluminum heatsink for the module. Depending on how the module fits in the host, the laser could use an 18650 battery which has tons of capacity. If so, your laser won't need a recharge for a long, long time.

There are other options as far as hosts are concerned but I think the one linked above would be a good choice. A simple aluminum heatsink in that host should not cost much. I'd have to talk to Flaminpyro about the details, though.
Let me know if you are interested.

Another question: I have heard that something like a 20mW can really damage your eye, even though it's still "low power" in the real world of lasers.

What are the risks of a 10mW, which is what you say you will probably set it at?

42Duckers said:

Another question: I have heard that something like a 20mW can really damage your eye, even though it's still "low power" in the real world of lasers.

What are the risks of a 10mW, which is what you say you will probably set it at?

Click to expand...

The reality is that even 5mW, which is considered "safe" by the FDA, can damage your vision.
The reason 5mW is "safe" is because the blink reflex (0.25 seconds) reacts quickly enough to prevent damage from direct exposure.
This does not mean that intentionally staring into a 5mW laser beam is ok and that no damage will occur.
All it means is that 0.25 seconds of exposure to 5mW of laser light is not enough to cause lasting damage.

Assuming you accidentally shine a 10mW laser into somebody's eye or your own, damage is possible but if only for a moment it is not likely to be severe.
Even a 1mW red laser can cause temporary flash-blindness, so a 10mW green laser will be very uncomfortable. As far as retinal damage is concerned, the worst case scenario is that a couple photoreceptors will be damaged and a small blind spot will form, which your brain will learn to patch up.

There really is no reason this laser should be used in a setting where the audience (either you or anyone else) may be directly exposed to the laser beam.
You mentioned that you would like to experiment with mirrors and diffraction. I think that for this you will be fine. Mirrors and other optical elements will attenuate some of the beam and reduce power.

If you prefer, I can set the laser at 8mW for you. A couple milliWatts won't affect brightness much.

If you want to be 100% safe, pick up a couple pairs of some cheap laser safety goggles that you can use while setting up your experiment. At 8-10mW, you don't need expensive goggles.

Thanks, I think that I'll take the offer! How much do you want?
It would be fine if you set it at 8mW, as I don't really need real power for what I'm doing.

When you say

There really is no reason this laser should be used in a setting where the audience (either you or anyone else) may be directly exposed to the laser beam.

Click to expand...

Would a 8mW still be recommended for presentations?

If not, that's okay, because I can always buy a cheepie at staples or something like that.

8mW will be fine for presentations so long as you don't point the beam at any faces.

I'll contact Flaminpyro and see if he is up for making a heat-sink for the stainless steel host and what the cost will be.

I'll send you a PM with the details when I get them.

Good!

Could you give a refund if the laser doesn't work? Since it is looking like it might be expensive (which is fine, as long as it is good,) I wouldn't like to spend a bunch on something that turns out to be damaged in the mail. I won't take advantage of it, I promise...

Not that a good laser with a stainless steel host would get damaged in the mail, but I just want to be sure.

Check your PMs.