Any ideas why the laser dot would look like this?

[Lasermancer]

Hey guys here’s a pic of the dot from one of my lasers at around 30 feet away the dot is completely centered up close but looks weird from far away. Keep in mind the bright part on the left is where the actual dot is and the rest is light leaking out the side.

 

[RA_pierce]

You need to give us more than a crappy photo of a blue blob in the void if you want help.
Maybe try telling us about what kind of laser it is, what lens is in it, etc.

 

[Lasermancer]

You need to give us more than a crappy photo of a blue blob in the void if you want help.
Maybe try telling us about what kind of laser it is, what lens is in it, etc.

Sorry about that my phone camera is terrible at picking up the dot correctly without it looking like a giant blue blob so I had to lower the brightness. However the laser is a sanwu pocket laser 492 nm 100 mw and it has a standard 3 element lense. I will try to upload a better picture but that is honestly one of the best ones I could get.

 

[Unown (WILD)]

I see no problem. Another paranoid thread about nothing. What thread will you make next? "My laser get's warm when I run it for a long time. Is this normal?" Or maybe "I keep tripping over my own shoe laces. Should I tie them?"

 

[Lasermancer]

I see no problem. Another paranoid thread about nothing. What thread will you make next? "My laser get's warm when I run it for a long time. Is this normal?" Or maybe "I keep tripping over my own shoe laces. Should I tie them?"

Dude can you please stfu if you’re not going to say anything helpful. Ive heard you were banned from here anyways and are using stolen accounts.

 

[Unown (WILD)]

I might "stfu" if you made a meaningful thread instead of trolling the forum. I used to be banned but I never stole anyones account nor did I make accounts just to troll. Since you think you know so much about me why not delve into who you are?

 

[RA_pierce]

Is this a new occurrence or has it been like this since you received it?

The first thing to check is whether the lens is dirty.
Any visible smudges or debris?
I would check both surfaces of the lens.
Next I would inspect the laser diode window. If that's dirty, it would affect the beam much more and produce noticeable diffraction patterns.

If you can't see any dirt, try giving it a cleaning anyway. Using clean compressed air (like the canned air blowers - definitely not your mouth) try blowing both surfaces of the lens (if both are accessible - if not, just whatever you have access to).
If that doesn't change anything, try using a clean cotton swab with a gentle solvent to wipe the lens. Check again to see if anything changes.
A cleaner made specifically for optics is best. If you have access to a laboratory, 100% ethanol, or even better, methanol, is great.
Do not wipe the lens with hard pressure. Doing so can scratch the lens, especially if there is dirt on the lens.

BTW, I don't mean to be rude, I just tend to be terse and dry in my responses.

 

[RedCowboy]

Yep....some crapola dried on his lens.....I bet that's the problem.......well that and how it became " soiled " in the 1st place.

 

[Lasermancer]

Is this a new occurrence or has it been like this since you received it?

The first thing to check is whether the lens is dirty.
Any visible smudges or debris?
I would check both surfaces of the lens.
Next I would inspect the laser diode window. If that's dirty, it would affect the beam much more and produce noticeable diffraction patterns.

If you can't see any dirt, try giving it a cleaning anyway. Using clean compressed air (like the canned air blowers - definitely not your mouth) try blowing both surfaces of the lens (if both are accessible - if not, just whatever you have access to).
If that doesn't change anything, try using a clean cotton swab with a gentle solvent to wipe the lens. Check again to see if anything changes.
A cleaner made specifically for optics is best. If you have access to a laboratory, 100% ethanol, or even better, methanol, is great.
Do not wipe the lens with hard pressure. Doing so can scratch the lens, especially if there is dirt on the lens.

BTW, I don't mean to be rude, I just tend to be terse and dry in my responses.

Thanks a lot man this was the exactly the reply I was looking for. Not sure when this happened, I’ve only had this laser for a couple days and this is the first I’m noticing it. I do see a bit of dust on the lens forsure and I will try to blow it out gently with my air compressor. However I’m a little nervous to stick a q-tip down in the laser, I wouldn’t want to misalign or scratch the lens.

 

[Philipnzw]

In my experience, that's just how a laser looks after some dust or particulate gets stuck to the laser diode window/lens. I clean my laser lens on a semi regular basis but it often gets dirty again. There's a small road (with high traffic) nearby and sadly dusty air is a norm. (You might be surprised how easily the lens gets dirty, but it's absolutely normal)

User RA_pierce pretty much summarized it all. Check your lens/Diode window for dust. Then clean em with optical grade cleaners, as the quality of solvent is also another important factor. I personally use 70% IPA, but the higher the concentration the better, as they usually evaporate off in a clean way.
The more diluted solvents tend to leave streaks or marks on a surface, after they evaporate. Wiping with a microfiber cloth usually gets rid of those nasty streaks and marks. With higher concentrations of solvent, this is less of an issue.
Using a light touch is a must, as you can easily scratch the lens. If you ever clean the diode window, you have to be EXTRA gentle, as those little windows are made of extremely thin glass.

 

[Lasermancer]

In my experience, that's just how a laser looks after some dust or particulate gets stuck to the laser diode window/lens. I clean my laser lens on a semi regular basis but it often gets dirty again. There's a small road (with high traffic) nearby and sadly dusty air is a norm. (You might be surprised how easily the lens gets dirty, but it's absolutely normal)

User RA_pierce pretty much summarized it all. Check your lens/Diode window for dust. Then clean em with optical grade cleaners, as the quality of solvent is also another important factor. I personally use 70% IPA, but the higher the concentration the better, as they usually evaporate off in a clean way.
The more diluted solvents tend to leave streaks or marks on a surface, after they evaporate. Wiping with a microfiber cloth usually gets rid of those nasty streaks and marks. With higher concentrations of solvent, this is less of an issue.
Using a light touch is a must, as you can easily scratch the lens. If you ever clean the diode window, you have to be EXTRA gentle, as those little windows are made of extremely thin glass.

In my experience, that's just how a laser looks after some dust or particulate gets stuck to the laser diode window/lens. I clean my laser lens on a semi regular basis but it often gets dirty again. There's a small road (with high traffic) nearby and sadly dusty air is a norm. (You might be surprised how easily the lens gets dirty, but it's absolutely normal)

User RA_pierce pretty much summarized it all. Check your lens/Diode window for dust. Then clean em with optical grade cleaners, as the quality of solvent is also another important factor. I personally use 70% IPA, but the higher the concentration the better, as they usually evaporate off in a clean way.
The more diluted solvents tend to leave streaks or marks on a surface, after they evaporate. Wiping with a microfiber cloth usually gets rid of those nasty streaks and marks. With higher concentrations of solvent, this is less of an issue.
Using a light touch is a must, as you can easily scratch the lens. If you ever clean the diode window, you have to be EXTRA gentle, as those little windows are made of extremely thin glass.

Thanks for the info man I only have 70 percent iso rn so I hope that’ll work fine. Sorry if this sounds stupid haha but where is the diode window located on a laser pointer? If I unscrew the entire top cap with the lenses the diode is right underneath but there’s no little piece of glass over it.

 

[Unown (WILD)]

Thanks for the info man I only have 70 percent iso rn so I hope that’ll work fine. Sorry if this sounds stupid haha but where is the diode window located on a laser pointer? If I unscrew the entire top cap with the lenses the diode is right underneath but there’s no little piece of glass over it.

You don't even know that? geez

 

[RedCowboy]

I'm going to give a safety tip, make sure to remove the batteries before looking for the window or looking into the business end of your laser.
The window is on the laser diodes can if it has one, your image looks like a sharp 488nm, it should have a window can.

The window is the little round thing where the light comes out.

 

[Lasermancer]

You don't even know that? geez

Yeah dude we all started somewhere. You’re such a fucking dickhead no wonder why you got banned.

 

[Lasermancer]

Thanks for the info man I only have 70 percent iso rn so I hope that’ll work fine. Sorry if this sounds stupid haha but where is the diode window located on a laser pointer? If I unscrew the entire top cap with the lenses the diode is right underneath but there’s no little piece of glass over it.

Just realized it’s there’s super thin glass didn’t even see it till the light hit it at a perfect angle.

 

[Lasermancer]

I'm going to give a safety tip, make sure to remove the batteries before looking for the window or looking into the business end of your laser.
The window is on the laser diodes can if it has one, your image looks like a sharp 488nm, it should have a window can.

The window is the little round thing where the light comes out.

Thanks for helping out man just realized it was there I couldn’t see it till I got the light from my phone to reflect back off of it.