Starting into all of this without a degree from MIT can apparantly be rather daunting. let me rephrase this; strarting into this thinking you can "hack" a maglight into a "burning laser flashlight" because you saw a video on youtube posted by some D-bag and learning that it's not all that easy can be disappointing... it can also be a new adventure and a new thing to keep your mind occupied when in class ;-)
a few things that were never broken down into plain english for me could have saved me > a week of searching and frustrtion.
1. you cant direct drive a laser diode without blowing it up.
2. you MUST have a laser host.
3. you MUST have a driver for your diode. ( the lm317 is so easy to build that i made one before i learned how to solder. search the threads here on the quick and easy build using a bread board. it cost me <$5 to make )
4. the PHR-803T "from an xbox" is not from the tray of an actual xbox housing, it is from AN EXTERNAL HD DRIVE!!! dont rip apart you red-ringed console to salvage a diode that doesnt exist.
5. The 16X and 20X DVD burner diodes are PLENTY strong enough to learn on. gather your bearings before you ( if you ) go to bigger and more powerful diodes. with more kw's, more risks/cost/danger/frustration come into play. learn the basics first.
as plain as i can describe, it goes {power supply}{diode driver}{housing}{diode}
you cant skip any of those steps!!
What driver do I need for my ______ diode? the answer to that is there is technically no driver built for any specific diode, you change parts on a driver to accomodate what your source of power is going into your diode. there is 55 billion posts about builds using ( i bet you anything ) the SAME EXACT configuration you have/want to build. search around a little, and you will go far.
above all, dont do what I did and say "oh, eff this, I'm just going to buy a WL handheld and forget about building one".
Building your own baby will give you so much more respect for all of this, you will gain further knowledge on something in life and when you break what you've built, you will know how to fix it!
"hey, look at this laser I bought from China"
or
"hey, look at this laser I BUILT"
---let's face it, being a nerd can be a bad thing in most "normal" social situations... you can either be a nerd who has a laser he bought online, or you can be "that nerd who BUILDS lasers".
i wont flame anyone for noob questions, i had them when i started too, so feel free to ask away. and remember: there is no such thing as a stupid question.. only stupid people who ask them ;-)
a few things that were never broken down into plain english for me could have saved me > a week of searching and frustrtion.
1. you cant direct drive a laser diode without blowing it up.
2. you MUST have a laser host.
3. you MUST have a driver for your diode. ( the lm317 is so easy to build that i made one before i learned how to solder. search the threads here on the quick and easy build using a bread board. it cost me <$5 to make )
4. the PHR-803T "from an xbox" is not from the tray of an actual xbox housing, it is from AN EXTERNAL HD DRIVE!!! dont rip apart you red-ringed console to salvage a diode that doesnt exist.
5. The 16X and 20X DVD burner diodes are PLENTY strong enough to learn on. gather your bearings before you ( if you ) go to bigger and more powerful diodes. with more kw's, more risks/cost/danger/frustration come into play. learn the basics first.
as plain as i can describe, it goes {power supply}{diode driver}{housing}{diode}
you cant skip any of those steps!!
What driver do I need for my ______ diode? the answer to that is there is technically no driver built for any specific diode, you change parts on a driver to accomodate what your source of power is going into your diode. there is 55 billion posts about builds using ( i bet you anything ) the SAME EXACT configuration you have/want to build. search around a little, and you will go far.
above all, dont do what I did and say "oh, eff this, I'm just going to buy a WL handheld and forget about building one".
Building your own baby will give you so much more respect for all of this, you will gain further knowledge on something in life and when you break what you've built, you will know how to fix it!
"hey, look at this laser I bought from China"
or
"hey, look at this laser I BUILT"
---let's face it, being a nerd can be a bad thing in most "normal" social situations... you can either be a nerd who has a laser he bought online, or you can be "that nerd who BUILDS lasers".
i wont flame anyone for noob questions, i had them when i started too, so feel free to ask away. and remember: there is no such thing as a stupid question.. only stupid people who ask them ;-)
