daguin
0
- Joined
- Mar 29, 2008
- Messages
- 15,989
- Points
- 113
After I sent my Laserbee LPM to Kenom to be reviewed and "purtyfied" (Thanks Kenom), I thought about what I did and did not like about the unit. My main problems with the unit were the size of the read-out and the size of the "thermopile." I figured with Kenom activating the backlight that the read-out would be OK, but that tiny target for the laser was still going to be a problem for me. So off to eBay I went, looking for a thermopile.
I found an auction for a Scientech 360001 thermopile head and won it (sorry Kenom). :-[ I decided on this one because: 1) The number of thermopiles being offered was VERY limited. 2) The bid amount it was reaching was good compared to the used equipment sites. 3) Scientech has a great reputation. 4) The thermopile was a HUGE 1 inch in diameter! ;D ;D ;D
At the same time I was bidding on a Scientech 365 power meter. This is a great meter, but it is WAY more meter than I need. Since it was really just that it was sexy looking and I was already bidding on a head to go with it, I was unwilling to bid what it was really worth. As a result of that, I lost that auction. :'( I thought, "No biggie", I'll just recalibrate my Laserbee meter to the new thermopile. Then I go an email. :-?
Th email was from the guy who had won the Scientech 365 meter. He said that since he had won the 365 that he now had a Scientech 362 that he would not need anymore. Would I like it for a song and a dance? I sang AND danced. The 362 is an analog (needle) type meter, so it isn't as "sexy" looking, but it is just as reputable.
Both of the units arrived yesterday (Serendipity? Is that you?) So here they are:
Yes. that's a Kenom Kryton in the picture for scale
Here you can see the size of the thermopile (with the Kryton for scale)
I ran all of my lasers through the meter this morning. The greens and the reds read fairly consistent with the readings I got with Scopeguy's Kenometer. They were consistently reading 2-3mW higher with this meter, but that's not a problem. For those of you keeping track, my second Dildalaser (with freshly charged Ultra-fires in the tube) peaked at 240mW and then quickly settled down to 205mW.
There was a significant difference when I measured my blu-rays. My Lasershopuk that measured 11mW on the Kenometer, measured 15mW on the Scientech. The Milos that measured 24mW on the (Kenometer), measured 30mW on the (Scientech). The 6X that measured 95mW (Kenometer), measured 115mW on the Scientech! At this point, I have no explanation for this difference.
The unit is much more responsive than either the Laserbee or the Kenometer. I am able to easily see the peak wattage and the small variations in power. When I was measuring my 2mW yellow, I could watch the variability in the power of this crystal set. They are a bit unstable With the scale set to 3mW, I had to keep my hands away from the thermopile. It was actually measuring the heat being given off by my hands!! I am a bit older than many of you. I was reared in an analog world. There is just something more "comforting" in being able to watch the needle swing There is a connection in the back of the unit to hook up an analog recorder to the unit, but I haven't figured that out yet.
All-in-all I am VERY pleased with the outcome of this. Everything is large enough to easily see and/or hit with the laser beam. The unit is very responsive. It will measure from below 1mW to 10W of laser energy! And I got it all for less than $200 (including shipping) ;D ;D ;D
Now I just need to get/make a stand for the thermopile.
Peace,
dave
I found an auction for a Scientech 360001 thermopile head and won it (sorry Kenom). :-[ I decided on this one because: 1) The number of thermopiles being offered was VERY limited. 2) The bid amount it was reaching was good compared to the used equipment sites. 3) Scientech has a great reputation. 4) The thermopile was a HUGE 1 inch in diameter! ;D ;D ;D
At the same time I was bidding on a Scientech 365 power meter. This is a great meter, but it is WAY more meter than I need. Since it was really just that it was sexy looking and I was already bidding on a head to go with it, I was unwilling to bid what it was really worth. As a result of that, I lost that auction. :'( I thought, "No biggie", I'll just recalibrate my Laserbee meter to the new thermopile. Then I go an email. :-?
Th email was from the guy who had won the Scientech 365 meter. He said that since he had won the 365 that he now had a Scientech 362 that he would not need anymore. Would I like it for a song and a dance? I sang AND danced. The 362 is an analog (needle) type meter, so it isn't as "sexy" looking, but it is just as reputable.
Both of the units arrived yesterday (Serendipity? Is that you?) So here they are:
Yes. that's a Kenom Kryton in the picture for scale
Here you can see the size of the thermopile (with the Kryton for scale)
I ran all of my lasers through the meter this morning. The greens and the reds read fairly consistent with the readings I got with Scopeguy's Kenometer. They were consistently reading 2-3mW higher with this meter, but that's not a problem. For those of you keeping track, my second Dildalaser (with freshly charged Ultra-fires in the tube) peaked at 240mW and then quickly settled down to 205mW.
There was a significant difference when I measured my blu-rays. My Lasershopuk that measured 11mW on the Kenometer, measured 15mW on the Scientech. The Milos that measured 24mW on the (Kenometer), measured 30mW on the (Scientech). The 6X that measured 95mW (Kenometer), measured 115mW on the Scientech! At this point, I have no explanation for this difference.
The unit is much more responsive than either the Laserbee or the Kenometer. I am able to easily see the peak wattage and the small variations in power. When I was measuring my 2mW yellow, I could watch the variability in the power of this crystal set. They are a bit unstable With the scale set to 3mW, I had to keep my hands away from the thermopile. It was actually measuring the heat being given off by my hands!! I am a bit older than many of you. I was reared in an analog world. There is just something more "comforting" in being able to watch the needle swing There is a connection in the back of the unit to hook up an analog recorder to the unit, but I haven't figured that out yet.
All-in-all I am VERY pleased with the outcome of this. Everything is large enough to easily see and/or hit with the laser beam. The unit is very responsive. It will measure from below 1mW to 10W of laser energy! And I got it all for less than $200 (including shipping) ;D ;D ;D
Now I just need to get/make a stand for the thermopile.
Peace,
dave