Kaidomain 50mW CR2 - inital review

[Benm]

I guess these are attractive to re sell or even dropship (though ebay doesnt allow that i think). You can probably sell them for $100 to inexperienced buyers, but on the other hand it can also be a fair deal if someone tests them first before selling them on.

As for the 30 mW from DX: http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.7883

This laser is different from the KD50 and should have its own discussion/review thread. Though the case is similar, its internals are not - You can clearly see that the laser diode is mounted to the case with direct contact there (3rd pic from the top at the left), which i think is a better way of doing things. It also has a different circuit board (with a pot) and presentation case.

Perhaps i'll order one of those too, despite its lower power rating for the price it still seems like a good deal.

 

[john_lawson]

I just recieved mine yesterday 26mW really weak but you get what you pay for feels great shuts off if you screw it in all the way ,a little tweaking its -ok now i'll give it a 7 out of 10 overall nice unit not good for the pocket button will turn on accidenly if not carefull

update stupid me IgorT reminded me to put in a fresh cr-2 in rechargeable
wow output almost doubled 48-53 mw to a 9 out of 10

 

[freshert]

i bought the laser from demosworld on ebay and it said it was 50mw... i cant seem to post a link for some reason :-/ anyway i paid a total of $58 australian dollars including shipping and shipping insurance, hope i didnt get scammed with rubbish :'( NOTE:he doesnt seem to sell the model laser i bought anymore, i think he ran out or something...

 

[ixfd64]

I'm hearing many mixed opinions on this laser. I've heard that this laser breaks easily, but I've also heard reports of it performing above spec. In general, would you guys say whether this laser is good or not?

I'm too lazy to read through all 18 pages. ;D

 

[IgorT]

Well, i like it very much. I bought three, and two were real preformers, while the third worked fine for a while, but probably became misaligned while i was removing the glue. I also ordered a fourth for my friend and will measure it, when it arrives.

All of them seem to have small contact problems between the switch and the body, but they can be solved with some cleaning and maybe some soldering. If you're worried about breaking it, don't take the head appart and only use 3V rechargable CR2s (green, also available on KD).

This laser is almost free for what it provides. Even if it only puts out 30mW it's still worth the money. If you want to make sure you get a good one buy two.

For more info (fixing, cleaning, soldering) you are going to have to read the thread.

 

[Benm]

This laser is almost free for what it provides. Even if it only puts out 30mW it's still worth the money. If you want to make sure you get a good one buy two.

I'd agree on that - there seems to be the occasional lemon with these lasers. Even at double price, a single good one is worth the money.

If your other option is buying a pen-style laser of similar power running on 2 AAA's (like the DX30 or DX50), i'd defenitely pick one of these over it. These are just more stable, though that probably has more to do with the better battery than with anything else.

 

[ben74]

is it possible to take out the driver diode and optics and use the case for something different and still be abel to use the green laser module

 

[john_lawson]

;D ;D : ;D GET IT GET IT GET IT

 

[IgorT]

is it possible to take out the driver diode and optics and use the case for something different and still be abel to use the green laser module

It is possible. The laser module and the "driver" PCB come out in one piece. Look at the pics in this thread.

We talked about putting in a red just a page or two ago. But there would be problems with the electronics. The body itself would provide great heatsinking, but you couldn't put in a 317 driver, since there is not enough place for two batteries, and you couldn't use an AMC (at least not easily), since it would require to isolate the AixiZ module with the red LD from the body, and you would lose heatsinking, which would be a shame in this massive body.


What would you like to use the case for?

 

[IgorT]

yea for the price I say get It if it would've had a little more power I would keep it looks like a resale to me -nice box though GET IT GET IT GET IT

What kind of battery did you measure the 26mW with? The included primary cell? They are rarely full when you get the laser.


I would suggest trying the green 3V rechargable Li-Fe-POs. I just measured mine with the included battery, and guess what, it puts out 26-27mW. But if i put in the 3V rechargable, it immediatelly jumps to 62mW, even tho it's not full right now.

These batteries seem to give it just the right amount of current, so that it's powerfull but still safe. Don't use the blue 3.6V Li-Ions tho. I killed one thi way. But fact is, that the included cell is simply not enough for it.


BTW, the green RCR2s are slightly shorter, but in your case, this would be a good thing, as it would seem there is too much pressure on the diode through the driver, causing a slight misalignment and the green "turning off". I noticed something similiar in all three of mine - pressure on the driver would change the brightness a little. Need to make a permanent fix of some kind, even tho the surviving one is quite stable now, after some mechanical adjustments (moving the laser module higher into the head, by adjusting the rings)..

 

[john_lawson]

whow this this this is twice the power i put some rechargeable green cr2
not for sale anymore this thing rocks just went up to 48 mw thanks igort

 

[Benm]

I still think its a shame to use the body for someting else where there is no electrical contact between diode and casing. The problem is just that there isnt enough voltage room to set up proper regulation for a red diode at decent current. Reds usually take up to 3.0v at decent power (i.e. driven hard but not crazily so), batteries sag to 3.5v or so that point leaving only 0.5v for regulation.

One very interesting route to explore is keeping the case neutral, installing the battery in reverse, and then power the diode with a buck/boost switching regultor. My experience with those is limited however.

 

[IgorT]

whow this this this is twice  the power i put some rechargeable green cr2
not for sale anymore this thing rocks just went up to 48 mw thanks igort

Glad to have helped! I know that 26mW looks pathetic compared to 50, so i know how you feel now. And i'm glad to hear other peoples measurements, to get a feeling of how these lasers behave on average and if i should buy more. Tell me one more thing. Does yours increase in power, when you leave it on, or does it slowly drop?


BTW, next time make sure you give more info on what exactly you're doing, so there is less guesswork.
The green 3V cells seem to keep the laser at just the perfect current. More current (from blue 3.6V cells) doesn't increase the power (the crystals are probably saturated), but can potentialy damage the laser. But the green cells are perfect, and keep the power surprisingly stable.

 

[IgorT]

I still think its a shame to use the body for someting else where there is no electrical contact between diode and casing.

I agree. If you have to isolate the module, you can just as well use an 1AA flashlight host.

I thought two 1/2AA batteries would fit into the KD50.. Well, they do, since they're a little bit thinner, than the CR2s, but not with the driver and the switch. The driver would have to be moved into the head completelly, and the switch would have to be shorter.

But i know what i'll do with my two dead ones.. Rain from DX just told me he tested six DX200 according to my instruction, and is sending me the one, that doesn't mode hop after a minute and a half. So the KD50 bodies will go to very good use. Can't wait!

One very interesting route to explore is keeping the case neutral, installing the battery in reverse, and then power the diode with a buck/boost switching regultor. My experience with those is limited however.

I was thinking about using the LM3410, but that one also doesn't allow having the laser module grounded. It would work for greens as it is tho..

Phenol did some modifications to his, and made grounding the module possible, but it means even more components on an already crowded PCB. If it was turned into a double sided PCB, the size of the original "driver", it would be a great wonderfully efficient universal driver tho.

Since i have a bunch of the ICs and the coils it wouldn't hurt to try to draw the modified board as well. The only reason i'm not using this driver more is because i switched to flashlight hosts...

 

[Benm]

You are transplanting the DX200 guts into the KD body?
If they acutally fit easily that could be an option for my dead KD as well (i have a somewhat dodgy DX20 that performs well but only regulated current and decent temperature).

I'll try to replace the MCA first though.

 

[IgorT]

You are transplanting the DX200 guts into the KD body?

Yeah.. And there i was thinking i talked too much about this particular plan..

When i first took appart the KD50 i noticed, that the laser module has the exact same shape from the outside as the DX200, even tho it's much different on the inside. The upper ring will screw on the top and the lower ring will push it up into the head.

Even the PCBs have the exact same size and the button in the same spot. The DX200 is gonna be amazing in the KD50 body! Especially being current regulated with two AMCs powered with a 3.6V CR2 Li-Ion. If i can find a metal tube, that would fit onto the module, between the two rings in the head, the heatsinking would be just perfect!

Since Rain followed my testing procedure exactly this time, he had to test six lasers to find one, that would pass the test (the others were probably mode hopping and/or dimming). But it means i will have a great starting base for this "mod"... Now i just have to try to convince him to do the same test with the replacement for other DX200 i returned.


Before i killed the two KD50s, i wanted to transplant them into the DX200 body, as they would have enough heatsinking there as well. But now i'm just gonna use those bodies for my blue rays, by shortening the battery tube and putting in three 1/2AAA Li-Ions. I think i have enough green lasers for now.. Especially since my CNI150 just arrived.