just recived my alpha 105-questions.

[payj]

So the thing is ridiculous. I'm used to the cheap red ones.

Question does it take time for the laser to "warm up" I tried light a match and it just smoked but would not ignite? On the box my average is about 117mw of power. Maybe it is the coating on the match? Idk. I only tried this one match from the same box.

One thing I noticed is how fricken bright it is. I know its suppose to be bright, but in a fully lit room, shining it at the match hurt my eyes.

btw I am using energizer e2 lithium batteries.



thanks,

Justin

 

[MarioMaster]

some lasers need to be warm to output full power, some don't so you'll have to try and figure it out for yourself. depending on beam diameter you may not be able to light an unsharpied match without a lens, also the matches i have need to have the coating scratched off before they will light. Also, if i think i need goggles for my 35mw green (when burning) then i'm pretty damn sure you need some

 

[Gazoo]

My X105 definitely has a warm up period of around 5 to 10 seconds. It will instantly light a non-sharpied match within 2 feet. And yes, you do need goggles.

 

[payj]

the match I was trying to light did have some sort of heavy duty coating on it. It did smoke though as I said before.

Ya I think I may get a set of goggles lol....

 

[Gazoo]

Yup...and you can get them from Nova. You do not want to damage your eyes and it is too easy to do without them.

If you have a black magic marker, try to sharpie the match then it should light. But seriously you should wait and get goggles first.

 

[payj]

how well do sunglasses work?

 

[spyrorocks]

Terrible. You need real laser goggles.

 

[Gazoo]

how well do sunglasses work?

I suggest you read through the safety section of this forum:

http://www.laserpointerforums.com/forums/YaBB.pl?board=b_safety

In particular this thread:

http://www.laserpointerforums.com/forums/YaBB.pl?num=1183908277

You can not replace your eyes...do not skimp. Get goggles that are made for the protection you need.. : I always wear mine when I am lighting matches and what not.

 

[payj]

ya I'll get a pair before I try burning stuff again. The thing is cool though, it just got dark where I am so I want to see how far I can shine it. Although it is raining so it may hinder its performance? Anyways, thanks for all the help.

-Justin

 

[Gazoo]

It's raining here too. But shining a laser through the rain looks neat...of course keep the laser dry..

 

[payj]

well after playing around with my laser for a bit (at night) I know realize how powerful this thing is.

the whole "insert a key to operate" does make sense with this type of laser.

little story:

So last night I drove to a golf course thats on top of a little mountain I would say 4 miles away from my house. My house sits roughly 1000 feet below it. At this gold course there is a great view of the city I live in and also my neighborhood. Once I got to a good location I got my laser out and tested out its distance. I then called my mom and told her to go outside. I shined the laser to where I thought our neighborhood was and sure enough she could see the laser. I ended up shining it right at her! She could also see the beam itself but said it stopped midway up in the sky? Can someone explain that?

Anyways I thought it was cool that I was able to find my house 4 miles away in the dark, granted I had tall building as references.

-Justin

 

[steve001]

well after playing around with my laser for a bit (at night) I know realize how powerful this thing is.

the whole "insert a key to operate" does make sense with this type of laser.

little story:

So last night I drove to a golf course thats on top of a little mountain I would say 4 miles away from my house. My house sits roughly 1000 feet below it. At this gold course there is a great view of the city I live in and also my neighborhood. Once I got to a good location I got my laser out and tested out its distance. I then called my mom and told her to go outside. I shined the laser to where I thought our neighborhood was and sure enough she could see the laser. I ended up shining it right at her! She could also see the beam itself but said it stopped midway up in the sky? Can someone explain that?

Anyways I thought it was cool that I was able to find my house 4 miles away in the dark, granted I had tall building as references.

-Justin

Using Google Earth and a longitude latitude calculator on the web you can get very accurate point to point distances. Next time take a pic for all to see. A small tripod from Walmart or similar store will be a big help in steadying the laser. Take a looky here. http://www.earthsignals.com/Collins/0036/index.htm

 

[apex007]

I have the enVee from Lucent which is the same as the Alpha. It does take a little while longer to warm up than the pen style lasers. I would attribute this to a larger heatsink and thicker casing which the keep the crystal assembly cooler than on a pen laser. The benefit of this, is a much longer duty cycle. I've kept mine on for over 10 minutes with no problems.

The Alpha is a great laser though, enjoy!

 

[Amnizu]

If you're looking for the best performance out of your Alpha, Nova recommends Duracell Power Pix batteries, as they seem to test highest in their lasers.

 

[payj]

ok so I dont have exact calculations but I would say I am 4 miles away from my house up on a big hill/mountain. I again shined the laser at my house with my friend helping direct me. They turned the lights off and sure enough the laser was very visible and it lit up the kitchen!! COOL! BTW the beam is going through a TON of light pollution. I live in a fairly large city with a bunch of high rise buildings and the laser has to go past that crap before hitting my house.

 

[Switch]

Light pollution isn't exactly gonna stop your beam, or make it dimmer you know :