Yep. Got fired today. Union shop, bottom of the totem pole, office politics, dropping revenue requiring trimming the workforce. Pisses me off, but hey, that's life in 2013 in America. I would implicate supporters of a particular political affiliation for speeding up the destruction of this nation, and the others for still continuing down the path of destruction, just at a slower pace...but alas, this is not a political post. I'm still pissed.
On a positive note, my new laser from Rick Trent arrived via USPS Priority Mail this afternoon. I am slightly surprised as I expected it tomorrow, but I am not going to complain because I can now relieve some of my anger by burning some stuff!
So, I popped the box down on the bed, and opened it up. Things were packed tightly and neat. I would have no reason to think things could possibly be damaged or destroyed. Here is what was inside:
Now in the above linked pic, you can see the host, glasses, instructions, diode wrapped in the black thing, and battery charger. Next, I unwrapped the host and looked it over. Seems like it'd make a decent flashlight, but that's not what we're here for.
I then started to scratch my head, wondering where the batteries were hiding? I hit the switch on the tailcap expecting the flashlight to illuminate, but got nothing. I then stuck my nose into the box to see if maybe they were taped together and stuck in the bottom of the box....nothing. I will freely admit it took me all of 45 seconds more to think to open up the host and see if they were hiding inside. Yep! Rick packaged the batteries and spacer sleeves into the host, and put little dabs of electrical tape on either end. Now, seeing this, I expected the batteries to be fully charged and ready to go once I removed the tape. Nope. No biggie. I slid out the batts and plugged them into the charger.
Now lets move on to the diode. It was packaged within what appears to be foam insulation for plumbing pipe, taped tightly around a static bag containing the "meat" of tonight's meal.
Carefully unwrapping, I was amazed at what I saw. This being my first >100mW laser, I was shocked at how substantial the heatsink is. This is one big hunk of copper. I also found a small piece of tissue paper wrapped around a second lens. Not sure what this is for or where it came from, as I didn't request it with my kit. From looking at it, it appears to be a 3 element lens.
Unlike I saw in other reviews of Rick's products, I could not find any markings on the heatsink regarding the tested output of the diode. I had requested and paid the little extra for a 3.5, so we'll see whats up when I get access to an LPM over in the FSU physics lab in a few weeks.
I checked on the instructions, and they were the usual warnings, duty cycle, and such. There was a hand drawn diagram on the bottom about how to insert the batteries, which I did stare at for awhile to burn it into my memory. Don't wanna funk this up.
Now for the assembly, I've never had anything like this before, so I did take my time trying to figure out how it all went together. I did not take any photos, as I don't want to spoil it for other n00bs, but I will say it screwed together without issue. I am pleased with the final outcome.
Like I mentioned above, I figured the batteries would be fully charged, which is why they had tape on the ends. I did insert them as shown on the instruction sheet just to catch a peek. Nothing. So yes, they are in the charger as I type this, just waiting for the little light to turn green at which time I will fire her up and take some more photos and continue this review. Hopefully they'll finish before the wife gets home, so I can have it all put away and not have to explain why I bought this and lost my job all at once. Haha!
edit: 18/10/2013
I had the damn batteries on the charger for about four hours, and got tired of waiting to see what this badboy looks like. I inserted the batteries, did a couple test fires, then drove about 1/4 mile from the house to a bridge that gives a bit of open land, well water, to shoot across.
Shoot the moon...
Shot off the railing into the water about 300m away. Can lightly see one of the "idle speed" signs in the reflection..
This one is shooting diagonally across the bridge into the concrete barrier, POI is 25m away. This is one bright sucka.
Wasnt sure if there were any fish down below, or how well I'd be able to see the beam penetrate the water. I was too concerned about flashback to weasel a better angle. The water is regularly 85% clear, and you can plainly see the bottom about 15ft deep during the day.
On the way back, I was sure to do several swerves on the dirt road to kick up some dust. I placed the laser on my roof and here's the result. This is one beautiful beam.
Now, my only items of concern are the power output, like I mentioned above, this one isnt marked like I've seen in other reviews. I have no doubts its more than enough for my needs as it lights up a hole into a white index card fairly easily. Also, the lens seems to fit loose in its threads. This one is a minor annoyance, as adjusting for infinity, the lens it backed out so far it feels like it is about to fall out. I've tested some more and realized there is still 7-10 full turns before it comes free, but just gives an odd feeling to me while adjusting it out. Both lenses fit the same. Both lenses also had some "specks" in them, visible when adjusted all the way in to give a broad weak beam against the wall.
Overall, I am satisfied with the product, and would recommend him.
Oh, and edit2: Here's a quick burn video.
http://youtu.be/QegP5xJHKPE
On a positive note, my new laser from Rick Trent arrived via USPS Priority Mail this afternoon. I am slightly surprised as I expected it tomorrow, but I am not going to complain because I can now relieve some of my anger by burning some stuff!
So, I popped the box down on the bed, and opened it up. Things were packed tightly and neat. I would have no reason to think things could possibly be damaged or destroyed. Here is what was inside:
Now in the above linked pic, you can see the host, glasses, instructions, diode wrapped in the black thing, and battery charger. Next, I unwrapped the host and looked it over. Seems like it'd make a decent flashlight, but that's not what we're here for.
I then started to scratch my head, wondering where the batteries were hiding? I hit the switch on the tailcap expecting the flashlight to illuminate, but got nothing. I then stuck my nose into the box to see if maybe they were taped together and stuck in the bottom of the box....nothing. I will freely admit it took me all of 45 seconds more to think to open up the host and see if they were hiding inside. Yep! Rick packaged the batteries and spacer sleeves into the host, and put little dabs of electrical tape on either end. Now, seeing this, I expected the batteries to be fully charged and ready to go once I removed the tape. Nope. No biggie. I slid out the batts and plugged them into the charger.
Now lets move on to the diode. It was packaged within what appears to be foam insulation for plumbing pipe, taped tightly around a static bag containing the "meat" of tonight's meal.
Carefully unwrapping, I was amazed at what I saw. This being my first >100mW laser, I was shocked at how substantial the heatsink is. This is one big hunk of copper. I also found a small piece of tissue paper wrapped around a second lens. Not sure what this is for or where it came from, as I didn't request it with my kit. From looking at it, it appears to be a 3 element lens.
Unlike I saw in other reviews of Rick's products, I could not find any markings on the heatsink regarding the tested output of the diode. I had requested and paid the little extra for a 3.5, so we'll see whats up when I get access to an LPM over in the FSU physics lab in a few weeks.
I checked on the instructions, and they were the usual warnings, duty cycle, and such. There was a hand drawn diagram on the bottom about how to insert the batteries, which I did stare at for awhile to burn it into my memory. Don't wanna funk this up.
Now for the assembly, I've never had anything like this before, so I did take my time trying to figure out how it all went together. I did not take any photos, as I don't want to spoil it for other n00bs, but I will say it screwed together without issue. I am pleased with the final outcome.
Like I mentioned above, I figured the batteries would be fully charged, which is why they had tape on the ends. I did insert them as shown on the instruction sheet just to catch a peek. Nothing. So yes, they are in the charger as I type this, just waiting for the little light to turn green at which time I will fire her up and take some more photos and continue this review. Hopefully they'll finish before the wife gets home, so I can have it all put away and not have to explain why I bought this and lost my job all at once. Haha!
edit: 18/10/2013
I had the damn batteries on the charger for about four hours, and got tired of waiting to see what this badboy looks like. I inserted the batteries, did a couple test fires, then drove about 1/4 mile from the house to a bridge that gives a bit of open land, well water, to shoot across.
Shoot the moon...
Shot off the railing into the water about 300m away. Can lightly see one of the "idle speed" signs in the reflection..
This one is shooting diagonally across the bridge into the concrete barrier, POI is 25m away. This is one bright sucka.
Wasnt sure if there were any fish down below, or how well I'd be able to see the beam penetrate the water. I was too concerned about flashback to weasel a better angle. The water is regularly 85% clear, and you can plainly see the bottom about 15ft deep during the day.
On the way back, I was sure to do several swerves on the dirt road to kick up some dust. I placed the laser on my roof and here's the result. This is one beautiful beam.
Now, my only items of concern are the power output, like I mentioned above, this one isnt marked like I've seen in other reviews. I have no doubts its more than enough for my needs as it lights up a hole into a white index card fairly easily. Also, the lens seems to fit loose in its threads. This one is a minor annoyance, as adjusting for infinity, the lens it backed out so far it feels like it is about to fall out. I've tested some more and realized there is still 7-10 full turns before it comes free, but just gives an odd feeling to me while adjusting it out. Both lenses fit the same. Both lenses also had some "specks" in them, visible when adjusted all the way in to give a broad weak beam against the wall.
Overall, I am satisfied with the product, and would recommend him.
Oh, and edit2: Here's a quick burn video.
http://youtu.be/QegP5xJHKPE
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