100mW?

[Southpaw]

hey i just got 2 lasers today - a green and a red. both of them say 100mW, but my green pops balloons in under 2 secs while my red one does not... at all. Also, i go into a dark room and shine it, my green one is very powerful with a strong beam and dot. while my red has about half the dot with just a barly visible beam.
I'm just wondering if the output power is less on the red, or the red is actually like that

 

[billg519]

Green is far more visible to the human eye than red.
Reds burn dark colored items best, may not affect a light colored balloon.
You can only properly compare the two with a laser power meter.
Ability to burn or pop balloons also depends on collimation, can you adjust the focus on these lasers? If not, shine the red through a magnifying glass and see how it burns at the focal point.

I trust, that at these power levels, that you own goggles appropriate for these wavelengths?

 

[Southpaw]

i cant change the focus on the laser, and it was a sharpied balloon, so it was a darker colour, but the red one still wont pop it. I dont have a power metre, is there any way to check with out one?

 

[L@z3r]

I dont have a power metre, is there any way to check with out one?

Yes. There is something called the " Skin burn test" Sharpie a dot on your arm, and shine the laser at it. if it stings like hell, then its at leat 50mw. If the laser will light a match then it is indeed 100mw.

 

[LRMNmeyer]

[quote author=Southpaw link=1233368738/0#2 date=1233371394]I dont have a power metre, is there any way to check with out one?

Yes. There is something called the " Skin burn test" Sharpie a dot on your arm, and shine the laser at it. if it stings like hell, then its at leat 50mw. If the laser will light a match then it is indeed 100mw. [/quote]
You can light matches with a well focused 30mW, so that isn't accurate.

 

[daguin]

There is no way to tell without a meter. Don't burn your arm.

Peace,
dave

 

[Ace82]

Green is far more visible to the human eye than red.
Reds burn dark colored items best, may not affect a light colored balloon.
You can only properly compare the two with a laser power meter.
Ability to burn or pop balloons also depends on collimation, can you adjust the focus on these lasers? If not, shine the red through a magnifying glass and see how it burns at the focal point.

I trust, that at these power levels, that you own goggles appropriate for these wavelengths?

+1

 

[Southpaw]

haha i tried putting it on my arm, and it stings quite a bit. i havnt tried that with the red one tho, but i just took it into a dark room and there was no beam what so ever while the green was huge! ill be posting pics or video's over the weekend