What Wattages can do what?

darkerror05 · Jan 26, 2009

I just bought a 5mW greenie from DX for $13. When I recieved it the sticker did say that it was the 5mW model. My dad is an optics engineer and he brought home a meter to test the wattage. The laser tested at 130 mW. I'm not sure if this is accurate because the meter was acting up. I was wondering if some tests would help show what the actual wattage is.

I did the balloon test by putting a black dot on the balloon and shining on it. It popped in about 5-10 seconds. I can also burn a hole in electric tape but I can't "cut" it. The beam is visible even when the lights are on. From what I have read these are not characteristics of a 5mW greenie.

Using this information could anyone guess what the actual wattage may be around? Or does anyone have some more tests I could do to better estimate the wattage? Thank you.

phoenix3200 · Jan 26, 2009

Welcome to the forums

I'm guessing it's at least 75 mW. My KD50 (50 mW) doesn't do any of that without a magnifying glass.

I would be careful on three counts - first, you're probably getting plenty of IR out with the laser, which isn't visible but can hurt your eyes. Second, at those brightness, I would wear eye protection just in case the beam heads back your direction. Third, if it indeed is designed for 5 mW but is pumping out a lot more than that, your laser will most likely die/the crystal will break sometime in the next few days.

darkerror05 · Jan 26, 2009

So basically I should enjoy this thing while it is a burner and get ready to order a new one? Well for $13 I guess its a pretty fun toy even if it only lasts a few days. If anyone is curious it is sku 91 on DX. I might end up buying another one and hope that is "breaks" in the way this one did.

Thanks for the help.

artix · Jan 27, 2009

It won't last long. And phoenix is right, you have an overpowered laser. (I would say ~50mW)

billg519 · Jan 27, 2009

Was that LPM a thermal one or a photodiode one? Green lasers can badly fool a photodiode based meter due to the IR leakage badly distorting the reading. My DX True 50mw green (no IR filter) reads over 250mw on my Lasercheck (photodiode based), but reads around 70mw on my thermal power meter. In any event, it sounds like you got a way overspec laser ... enjoy it before it dies ... unless they just slap a 5mw label on whatever is around and mail it out ... the recent FDA us issues probably have caused a backup of now US-prohibited over 5mw lasers in China. After all, they put melamine in skim milk over there to make it "whiter" and sell better, so why not "relabel" a few lasers and sell them anyway.

darkerror05 · Jan 27, 2009

We tried both photo and thermal testers. The thermal was the one the read 130mW and the photo sensor overloaded(was meant for ~30mW which we thought would be enough)

charliebruce · Jan 30, 2009

My "100mW" flashlight style one ($38) barely has a visible beam in daylight, and stings my skin quite painfully after less than a second, but it doesn't really cut or smoke much. Have you tried burning yourself with it?

Receipts burn quite nicely, what does it do to one?

At a guess, you must have got at least 40mW there, at a very bare minimum, and it could be up to 100mW including IR.

potatorage · Jan 30, 2009

Maybe they sent you the wrong one ;D

rocketparrotlet · Jan 30, 2009

You should definitely get eye protection for a laser of this power. Also possibly consider an IR filter. That's way too powerful.

-Mark

RA_pierce · Jan 30, 2009

130mW can easily "cut" electrical tape, light matches, pop balloons instantly, and burn wood (in my experience, without pin-point focusing).
My guess would be that your laser is outputting about 50mW of green (at most) and the rest is IR leakage, although >80mW of IR leakage sounds too high to be coming from a 35-50mW green laser.
Typically, 30mW can pop balloons and burn electrical tape a little, and these 5mW greens from DX can range from <5mW to about 30mW.
The laser is definitely overpowered but the reading is probably incorrect.

Have fun, though, and be safe.

jwc · Feb 8, 2009

I ordered a 5mW DX laser a long time ago (like September). When I received it, I was surprised at how bright it seemed. The beam was clearly visible, even in dimly lighted conditions.

I had a chance to test it out at a lab and was surprised to see 55mW on the output screen.

However, the 5mW DX lasers have changed recently. The cap and label are clearly different. I also suspect that the driver circuit is different as well due to some slight differences in startup.

damon20r · Feb 10, 2009

I also ordered a dx sku 91 5mw green and got it a couple weeks ago. It's beam is barely visible indoors during the day and highly visible in the evening and at night. it will burn a hole through black tape also. It takes about 3 to 5 sec. to make a hole. This is on the china batteries that came with it. I haven't had to replace the batteries yet. I guess for $13 I got a good buy it sounds like.

I'm a noob at the BTW.

DayOfShadows · Feb 10, 2009

hmmm, zombie thread PHAIL :

(yes i know i spelt fail wrong, but sometimes i feel its to fail for even the whole word)

What Wattages can do what?

darkerror05

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phoenix3200

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artix

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billg519

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darkerror05

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potatorage

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