xirrious
0
- Joined
- Dec 25, 2013
- Messages
- 591
- Points
- 28
First off, this is NOT a comprehensive review. So no complaints about the information given, after all its your choice to read or not read my posts..
So secondly I made another purchase through LPF directly. For simply shipping costs Tha Greenlander sent me a very high quality <5mW 650nm pen. Compared to my other 650nm pen it is not nearly as bright, but does have better beam specs, a bit less divergence i'd say, and overall a much MUCH better quality in the build. It feels heavier and more solid in my hand then my other pens, I believe it was originally from laserbtb. Also came a small tripod for holding pens as a total bonus, freebie No complaints there. The original deal was for a diffraction grating, and that is being sorted out as I type this. The main purpose of this part of the review is to express and highlight the extreme ease of dealing with Greenlander, he went out of his way to keep me informed on tracking information and expected arrival dates, etc. Overall awesome and very thoughtful guy. I'd do business with him again anytime.
Here is a beam shot of the pen he sent:
Thirdly, I FINALLY made my own build. Admittedly, I bought the most basic host available probably (501B) and dealing with MrCrouse was also a good experience, shipped my items the day after and I got them within the week. I decided to put a 405nm in it as I had just fried my previous and only 405 at the time, so I purchased one of DTRs 12x 405nm modules w/ 3 element lens and driver set for 450ma. It is supposed to put out ~500mW, and compared to my 400mW before, I believe its on that mark or very close. The beam has much less splash then my last laser, and overall I am very happy. This was my FIRST ever attempt at building anything resembling a laser and I got it done in about 30-45 minutes. Only took that long because I was so scared of cutting wires too short while trying to strip them for connections. I ended up bypassing any soldering and used some heatshrink tubing followed by a small application of electrical tape to assure the ends were sealed. So far I've beat the laser up and shook it around as much as I feel safe doing and its still lasing like a champ, so whatever method I used has worked good for me. I wish I'd taken pictures of the build process for a better review, but alas, next time right?
The one problem I had was cutting the wires on the contact board and the module short enough to fit back in the laser, as you'll see in the picture the module is not entirely flush with the heatsink. But I can live with that and do better next time.. My phone camera does not pick up 405nm very well at all so I am sorry my beam shots are pure shit, but here are the two pics I do have of the laser and its output:
And "beam" shot, though as I said its kind of a shit photo. Sorry
Overall i'm very pleased! I DTR sent me my module literally minutes after I paid him, and while I think I asked for black hosts, I do recall saying something along the lines of "send whatever you got". I ended up with one camo colored host. No clue what to put in that.. oh well, no complaints! Also got a knurled focus knob I didn't ask for which I will use in the future!
Sorry for the low standards of this review, no specific measurements. But this is my first semi-build (connecting two wires) and I promise more comprehensive and informative reviews on my future builds and/or buys. Thanks LPF!
So secondly I made another purchase through LPF directly. For simply shipping costs Tha Greenlander sent me a very high quality <5mW 650nm pen. Compared to my other 650nm pen it is not nearly as bright, but does have better beam specs, a bit less divergence i'd say, and overall a much MUCH better quality in the build. It feels heavier and more solid in my hand then my other pens, I believe it was originally from laserbtb. Also came a small tripod for holding pens as a total bonus, freebie No complaints there. The original deal was for a diffraction grating, and that is being sorted out as I type this. The main purpose of this part of the review is to express and highlight the extreme ease of dealing with Greenlander, he went out of his way to keep me informed on tracking information and expected arrival dates, etc. Overall awesome and very thoughtful guy. I'd do business with him again anytime.
Here is a beam shot of the pen he sent:
Thirdly, I FINALLY made my own build. Admittedly, I bought the most basic host available probably (501B) and dealing with MrCrouse was also a good experience, shipped my items the day after and I got them within the week. I decided to put a 405nm in it as I had just fried my previous and only 405 at the time, so I purchased one of DTRs 12x 405nm modules w/ 3 element lens and driver set for 450ma. It is supposed to put out ~500mW, and compared to my 400mW before, I believe its on that mark or very close. The beam has much less splash then my last laser, and overall I am very happy. This was my FIRST ever attempt at building anything resembling a laser and I got it done in about 30-45 minutes. Only took that long because I was so scared of cutting wires too short while trying to strip them for connections. I ended up bypassing any soldering and used some heatshrink tubing followed by a small application of electrical tape to assure the ends were sealed. So far I've beat the laser up and shook it around as much as I feel safe doing and its still lasing like a champ, so whatever method I used has worked good for me. I wish I'd taken pictures of the build process for a better review, but alas, next time right?
The one problem I had was cutting the wires on the contact board and the module short enough to fit back in the laser, as you'll see in the picture the module is not entirely flush with the heatsink. But I can live with that and do better next time.. My phone camera does not pick up 405nm very well at all so I am sorry my beam shots are pure shit, but here are the two pics I do have of the laser and its output:
And "beam" shot, though as I said its kind of a shit photo. Sorry
Overall i'm very pleased! I DTR sent me my module literally minutes after I paid him, and while I think I asked for black hosts, I do recall saying something along the lines of "send whatever you got". I ended up with one camo colored host. No clue what to put in that.. oh well, no complaints! Also got a knurled focus knob I didn't ask for which I will use in the future!
Sorry for the low standards of this review, no specific measurements. But this is my first semi-build (connecting two wires) and I promise more comprehensive and informative reviews on my future builds and/or buys. Thanks LPF!
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