its like christmas in forum form

[spokanedavid]

hello everyone
id like to say this is the best place i have ever been for laser info and i have recently been inspired to start on the path alot of people here haveand build some of my own lasers. By the way any suggestions on what to do while waiting for parts from china

 

[iFoSh]

practice soldering haha...im working on that now too

 

[awlego]

Read, read, read... the more you know about lasers and how to handle them BEFORE you get your hands on them the better. It will save you time, money, and provide immense entertainment

 

[iFoSh]

^^^It will save an eye too

 

[Coherent Light]

welcome to LPF.

 

[Morgan]

Welcome to LPF. I like the title of this thread! Nice.

Have a good loo around and plan your first build by looking to see what others have done with the same equipment. Settings; batteries; lenses etc...

Plenty of guides around to in many sections. I tried to put a few together in the link below and goninanbl00d has done some more indepth reading too.

Practical time fillers are, as iFoSh wrote above, practice soldering; and as awlego wrote, read, read, read. Also, strip some old DVD rewriters and dig out the diodes from the sleds. (You can usually scrounge at least a couple of broken ones from PC repair shops.) Likely no-one will have a clue what the diodes will be as there are plenty out there we just don't use because they're puny. However, your hands will start to learn and get a feel for the parts and tasks you'll be asking them to carry out later.

Good luck and the waiting for parts to get on really sux!

M

 

[Elektrotechniker]

Practice soldering and find a girlfriend( if you don't have one yet ) ^^

 

[spokanedavid]

thanks guys

like i said this place is very rich in information im trying best to absorb it like a sponge.
i have a couple of basic tools and protective glasses i have a couple of 30mw 532 greens i have purchased from amazon and a couple of small red pointers i play with my dog with.
i havent got much exp soldering but i have a couple of friends that work for a rechargeable battery maker here in town that solder all day and are more than helpfull

oh yeah and i also have a gf so according to silvershot i should at least get on that soldering

 

[Elektrotechniker]

thanks guys

like i said this place is very rich in information im trying best to absorb it like a sponge.
i have a couple of basic tools and protective glasses i have a couple of 30mw 532 greens i have purchased from amazon and a couple of small red pointers i play with my dog with.
i havent got much exp soldering but i have a couple of friends that work for a rechargeable battery maker here in town that solder all day and are more than helpfull

oh yeah and i also have a gf so according to silvershot i should at least get on that soldering

Soldering can be a piece of cake if you have the right tools. For example, for small drivers( flexdrive, microboost ) that fit pen-style hosts, you need a thin solder wire. Also I would suggest studying some basic electronics if you plan to be a "builder". You really need to know as much as you can about capacitors and diodes. There are tons of stuff you can learn in this forum. Just spend some days reading And above all, mind the safety issue first. You only have ONE pair of eyes.

I almost forgot, welcome to the forum bud!