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5mW visible beam...

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AjentX

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so ive read more than one place on here that you cant see a 5mW beam.. yet my DX 5mW i can see during the day with the lights on.. (inside) and really well during the night (outside/inside) so my question is.. is this much stronger than the advertised 5mW and i should stop playing with it (till i get goggles) so much.. or can you sometimes see a 5mW?.. again just dont wanna go blind.. lol  :p ::) ;D

(or make others blind for that matter..)
 





Razako

Razako

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AjentX said:
so ive read more than one place on here that you cant see a 5mW beam.. yet my DX 5mW i can see during the day with the lights on.. (inside) and really well during the night (outside/inside) so my question is.. is this much stronger than the advertised 5mW and i should stop playing with it (till i get goggles) so much.. or can you sometimes see a 5mW?.. again just dont wanna go blind.. lol :p ::) ;D

(or make others blind for that matter..)
Click to expand...
You can easily see a 5mw GREEN laser's beam depending on the conditions. It's a 5mw RED that you can't see.
 
diachi

diachi

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I can see a 5mW green beam no problem. Though yours might be more than 5mW, it really depends on the conditions.

-Adam

Damn bet me to it !
 
A

AjentX

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ahh ok lol just making sure didnt want to be playing with like a 15 or 20mW just willy nilly.. pointing at cats and babys or whatnot..

thank you :)
 
brtaman

brtaman

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Actually, it might very well be 15-20mw maybe even over. The QC on DX lasers is horrible at times. (anyone remember the DX green goggle review? ;D)

I remember reading a post by a member who tested his 5mw on an LPM and it was in 30+mw region. So, if you wanna be safe perhaps send it to a trusted member with an LPM in your area and be sure, a cats vision is not worth the postage IMO.

BTW: WTH you doing pointing any laser at a baby!?!?!?! :eek: (should I assume it is a joke?! :-X)
 
Razako

Razako

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brtaman said:
Actually, it might very well be 15-20mw maybe even over. The QC on DX lasers is horrible at times. (anyone remember the DX green goggle review? ;D)

I remember reading a post by a member who tested his 5mw on an LPM and it was in 30+mw region. So, if you wanna be safe perhaps send it to a trusted member with an LPM in your area and be sure, a cats vision is not worth the postage IMO.

BTW: WTH you doing pointing any laser at a baby!?!?!?! :eek: (should I assume it is a joke?! :-X)
Click to expand...
Pretty sure it was a joke. Still even if it is a bit overpowered you should be fine. Just don't hit anyone directly in the eye with it and you'll be fine. Goggles are a waste for 20-30mw. You won't be burning anything and visibility is the only reason to have a 20mw laser.
 
brtaman

brtaman

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Yeah, I was 95% sure it was a joke. ;)

But, with all the idiots giving this hobby a bad rep, a headline like "Monster blinds 6 month old, with dangerous ebay laser, BAN IMMINENT" would sadly not surprise as much as it should.
 
A

AjentX

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oh i agree.. there are to many people that have these things that shouldn't be allowed to.. but i guess thats how the world works.. :-/
 
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Andrewajt62

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The DX lasers are most likely overpowered, but even in 5mW the the beam can be extremely visable like a thin light saber (if the conditions are right, bot that you need incense sticks though). My Radioshack 5mW greenie can be seen really good in the dark and a weeny teeny bit if there is a little light.
 
randomlugia

randomlugia

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It's probably about 10mW if you can see it in a lit room. Also, you can get 30mW LPMs off of Ebay that hook up to a DMM for about 20$.
 
Xplorer877

Xplorer877

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Depends on how dusty your house is. :p If you wanna be technical you can only see a laser beam due to debris in the air. It wont be visible in a vacuum. The Star Wars movies are totally unrealistic for this reason. :D
 
J

jwc

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Xplorer877 said:
The Star Wars movies are totally unrealistic for this reason. :D
Click to expand...

Among others, I hope... :)

I have 2 green lasers: a NewWish laser from DealExtreme (SKU 91) and a "knockoff" brand from eBay. The one from DX outputs 55mW of green and IR and therefore has a very bright beam. The knockoff puts out more like 10-20mW of green+IR and the beam is definitely not visible in the night sky. It's slightly visible indoors, though.
 
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opto_kev

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even in some laser shows, u can see the beam of a 5mW. if your house is foggy.....
 
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Low-Q

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If it's not already mentioned; Cheap greenies have a lot of 808nm light output too. Most of these lasers have no IR filter at all. Hence you can measure more than the stated 5mW. However, if you can see the beam indoor, at mid day!!! Man, that must be more than 50mW GREEN. I have a permanent blind spot in one eye, in the center of the vision due to an accident with a 15 - 20mW greenie I once had. The red coloured retina inside eyes absorbs the green light more than well, and causes damage at 5mW as well. Many believes that a 10mW red laser makes the same damages as a 10mW green - that is not true. Retina is red and is reflecting the red light quite well instead of absorbing it.

I can't burn my skin, even with my DIY 1W 808nm laser (Maybe 750mW with optics), but a 150mw greenie does that more than well.

Low-Q
 
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