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So I don't know how long this review will be, just because I don't have as much stuff available as I'd like to get info; I am working on getting a nice LPM, a second pair of safety goggles, some filters, etc. etc.
That all being said, I'm just going to start the review.
So when I got back into lasers, I decided that I was going to do right and get a range of lasers, and a range of powers. Obviously I needed a powerful blue laser, and after looking around, Rob (Phoenix77) had exactly what I was looking for.
Here's what he sold me:
The case was mine, and I hacked it up with a kitchen knife to fix the laser, so excuse the lack of it being pretty. I'm still working on getting some nice density foam for my case.
Without huge explanations, here are some more pics:
This is a Cree C6 host, and while I don't know the diode, I'm suspecting it's one of the A130's, or possibly an A140. I don't know for certain however, and I refuse to take this thing apart. I don't want to break it somehow.
You can BARELY see the driver on the inside - Again it's a camera phone until I get a nice cam, so I apologize for the lack of quality with these shots.
This is the threading for the tailcap. There is an oring of sorts, and it makes sure that the tailcap stays on nice and tight.
And of course, no review is EVER complete without beamshots:
One of them is a sky shot, the other is into some deep woods in the back of my parents house.
This host feels GREAT - It's rock solid, and you can tell the quality is there.
I can only assume they're Aixiz lenses, but I really can't say. Because I got it used from Phoenix77, and he doesn't remember exactly where he got it, I couldn't say.
About the dot itself - it's obvious it's a line more than a dot even close up. That being said, it's a pretty decent shape - it's not crazy flat looking like the Arctic.
The divergence isn't as good as I'd like though. Compared to my greenie, the beam gets quite large over a short period. I suspect it's just the lens because I can't get it to focus down any more. The other way makes it look like a flashlight, so I can't get it focused to a single point. I'm sure there is a way, but it's good enough for me seeing as how I don't use it a LOT unless I want to burn something. Then, it doesn't need focusing at all.
About the duty cycle: It gets hot FAST. I can't use it for more than 30 seconds or so before the host starts to get quite noticably warm. I haven't left it on after that, just out of being worried that I'll break it somehow... Most of my cycles are pretty short, being only a few seconds at a time.
It also (and understandably so) tears through my 18650's. I used it for a period of MAYBE 25 minutes off and on, and the voltage went down from 4.2V to 3.65 V which is pretty significant. My 200mw greenie takes at least double that length of time for the same output.
Okay, so that all being said, of course I took some videos too
The first are some basic burning vids, and the last is a night-time beamshot vidio.
First: Obligatory match-lighting video.
Yes, I was startled by the laser at first - I had the goggles on and couldn't see *ANY* beam so I didn't know exactly where the laser would meet the match so when it did, I pulled back a little.
Just some garbage-bag burning. Nothing fantastic really here...
This is the laser vs the laser case foam... Seems like it's always a good candidate for burning lol
This is the obligatory Laser vs CD spindle. I was holding it but I was moving (holding the cd spindle base and phone) so it didn't burn through as fast as it could have, but I think the fact that it melts almost 2mm plastic is awesome enough:
And finally... Backyard night time beamshots with my brother Steve *who you can't see because my camera sucks at night, which really will show HOW bright the beam was*
The video is a little shaky, and I'm not sure why. I wasn't THAT cold lol
That's all I have for now but if I find more things to add (like when I get a LPM) I will
That all being said, I'm just going to start the review.
So when I got back into lasers, I decided that I was going to do right and get a range of lasers, and a range of powers. Obviously I needed a powerful blue laser, and after looking around, Rob (Phoenix77) had exactly what I was looking for.
Here's what he sold me:
The case was mine, and I hacked it up with a kitchen knife to fix the laser, so excuse the lack of it being pretty. I'm still working on getting some nice density foam for my case.
Without huge explanations, here are some more pics:
This is a Cree C6 host, and while I don't know the diode, I'm suspecting it's one of the A130's, or possibly an A140. I don't know for certain however, and I refuse to take this thing apart. I don't want to break it somehow.
You can BARELY see the driver on the inside - Again it's a camera phone until I get a nice cam, so I apologize for the lack of quality with these shots.
This is the threading for the tailcap. There is an oring of sorts, and it makes sure that the tailcap stays on nice and tight.
And of course, no review is EVER complete without beamshots:
One of them is a sky shot, the other is into some deep woods in the back of my parents house.
This host feels GREAT - It's rock solid, and you can tell the quality is there.
I can only assume they're Aixiz lenses, but I really can't say. Because I got it used from Phoenix77, and he doesn't remember exactly where he got it, I couldn't say.
About the dot itself - it's obvious it's a line more than a dot even close up. That being said, it's a pretty decent shape - it's not crazy flat looking like the Arctic.
The divergence isn't as good as I'd like though. Compared to my greenie, the beam gets quite large over a short period. I suspect it's just the lens because I can't get it to focus down any more. The other way makes it look like a flashlight, so I can't get it focused to a single point. I'm sure there is a way, but it's good enough for me seeing as how I don't use it a LOT unless I want to burn something. Then, it doesn't need focusing at all.
About the duty cycle: It gets hot FAST. I can't use it for more than 30 seconds or so before the host starts to get quite noticably warm. I haven't left it on after that, just out of being worried that I'll break it somehow... Most of my cycles are pretty short, being only a few seconds at a time.
It also (and understandably so) tears through my 18650's. I used it for a period of MAYBE 25 minutes off and on, and the voltage went down from 4.2V to 3.65 V which is pretty significant. My 200mw greenie takes at least double that length of time for the same output.
Okay, so that all being said, of course I took some videos too
The first are some basic burning vids, and the last is a night-time beamshot vidio.
First: Obligatory match-lighting video.
Yes, I was startled by the laser at first - I had the goggles on and couldn't see *ANY* beam so I didn't know exactly where the laser would meet the match so when it did, I pulled back a little.
Just some garbage-bag burning. Nothing fantastic really here...
This is the laser vs the laser case foam... Seems like it's always a good candidate for burning lol
This is the obligatory Laser vs CD spindle. I was holding it but I was moving (holding the cd spindle base and phone) so it didn't burn through as fast as it could have, but I think the fact that it melts almost 2mm plastic is awesome enough:
And finally... Backyard night time beamshots with my brother Steve *who you can't see because my camera sucks at night, which really will show HOW bright the beam was*
The video is a little shaky, and I'm not sure why. I wasn't THAT cold lol
That's all I have for now but if I find more things to add (like when I get a LPM) I will
