What can I do with a 5mW industrial Ne-He laser?

aryntha said:

Man. I thought nobody would mention that guy ever again. But Titor only deals with the bendy, floppy sort of light.

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I only mention him, because he came up today at work. Oh.. the good 'ol days, eh?

OT, but - I used to listen to Art Bell all the time on long cross country tirps back then.. I remember part of me hoping that maybe, maybe Titor was legit ... Of course all of his predictions turned out to be bunk but it'd be a helluva thing to meet the guy behind the hoax at this point.

well although it's off topic, he did mention that parallel universes could be as far off as a blind golfer on a football field.... one never knows.... (it's still fun to wonder!)

I would love to have one, you are lucky you found one for $5 at a garage sale.

You can find functioning HeNe Lasers on eBay at a good
price if you keep your eyes open for them..(but not for $5.00)..

Jerry

Yeah it was a best garage (well actually basement) sale I've seen. Guy had ton of ancient electronics, computer parts, camping gear, etc. I also got ultrasonic distance meter for $5 as well
This laser is turning out to be more expensive than I original thought. Since I got it and came to these forums, my interested in laser got turned up a lot. I've ordered a 100mW green laser from China, bunch of soldering supplies, goggles, and a $70 Electronics learning lab from Radio Shack... And I think I'm just getting started

jmgallego said:

We live in Eureka :yh:

(Get it? Eureka, as in the TV show) :crackup:

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if it were eureka it would be some sort of sonic pulsar device, and theyd be giving them amy.

Bratan,

I am sorry to say, but you are now "hooked". Welcome to the colorful world of lasers!

Bratan said:

Yeah it was a best garage (well actually basement) sale I've seen. Guy had ton of ancient electronics, computer parts, camping gear, etc. I also got ultrasonic distance meter for $5 as well
This laser is turning out to be more expensive than I original thought. Since I got it and came to these forums, my interested in laser got turned up a lot. I've ordered a 100mW green laser from China, bunch of soldering supplies, goggles, and a $70 Electronics learning lab from Radio Shack... And I think I'm just getting started

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I just knew there had to be someone else besides me that watches Eureka :yh:

iwannapony said:

if it were eureka it would be some sort of sonic pulsar device, and theyd be giving them amy.

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Bratan, that's awesome, finding something liket hat that jumpstarts an entire hobby. Be sure to let us know what you build (and find in that town of yours!) And there are plenty of people here to help you.

I just went to 10 garage sales today, after thinking about this, this week. Nothing! Nothing at all! Blah.

That's a steal for 5 bucks. HeNe lasers are not very powerful, the biggest ever made were ~120mW and those were about 6 feet long and quite rare. 0.5-3mW tubes are the most common. They were used in barcode scanners, early laserdisc players, aiming beams for medical lasers, and many other uses. I still have a 10mW head but the potted brick PSU died. I've got a working 2mW yellow HeNe and would like to find a green one at some point. Also a 2mW red head and PSU, and several 1-2mW compact tubes from barcode scanners. The power is low, but the beam quality is virtually unbeatable. Diode lasers can't even come close, except for DPSS. When I got my first laser around 1990 (from an old supermarket barcode scanner), HeNe was the only game in town that a hobbyist could afford. I've been hooked ever since. Diode lasers were around, but mostly IR. A 2mW red diode cost over $300 in the early 90s and they would blow if you looked at them funny.