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Looking for a daylight outdoor pointing device

wus

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Jan 29, 2019
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Hi everyone here, I'm Wolfgang from Munich, Germany. On a recent trip to Papua to photograph birds of paradise and other exotic wildlife, one of the birding guides used a green laser pointer to show me where in the bush or up in a tree he saw "the" bird. Very useful! Without the pointer, I wouldn't have seen several of the birds. The green point was well visible despite bright tropical sunshine up to distances of maybe 50 or even 100 meters (estimated).

Unfortunately he did not speak English well, so he did not understand my question which output power his laser pointer has. From reading here in the forum, I got the impression that 100 to 200 mW should be needed in this scenario.

Can someone on here please confirm this, or correct the number?

I would like to have such a laser pointer, but as far as I know, German legislation allows laser pointers only up to 0.5 mW.

Is anyone here aware of any exception? I don't want to break the law.
 





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I believe Germany's laws on lasers are the same as the EU ones - that is, there's no illegalities with ownership, but buying domestically is restricted. Additionally there are penalties for misuse, but they will fall under other laws regarding assault & endangering other people if you're caught pointing a laser at any people or property that's not yours, or god forbid an aircraft.

A class 3b green laser is what you're looking for for daylight pointing where you can see the dot. The beam will not be visible in daylight for any reasonable power. The human eye is most sensitive to green light, so a lower power will be equally as visible as a higher power red or blue laser.

Since importing lasers is not restricted the same way as buying domestically, you will be limited to 5mW if you buy from within Germany/EU, but you can import a much more powerful laser if you so choose. Expect long shipping times, but you'll get it eventually

A good starting point would be the mass-produced chinese "301" style 532nm DPSS lasers. These usually output between 50-90mW and can be purchased for around 10EUR. You can find these on multiple sites usually.

Be very careful with lasers - You should never point a laser at your eyes, anyone else's eyes or any reflective shiny surfaces if there's anyone else around and you're not wearing appropriate laser-safety goggles. Sunglasses/Welding Masks are NOT laser safety goggles and will not protect you.

I know you've posted your location in this thread - but if you intend on sticking around on the forum, have a good read through the Sticky threads & once you're done there, post a thread in the Welcome section with your location in the title i.e. "Hi from Munich, Germany" and a little bit about you. This helps all the experienced members answer your questions & will get many more on side :)
 
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Try this :

th
 

wus

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Thanks for your comprehensive answer, immo1282!

I looked for the welcome section or thread, but did not find it. Do you have a link for me?
 
Joined
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Thanks for your comprehensive answer, immo1282!

I looked for the welcome section or thread, but did not find it. Do you have a link for me?

https://laserpointerforums.com/

Click the link above then click " Welcome " then click the big red " post thread " top right and post your hello in the " welcome " section, just say whatever you want.

There are daylight visible lasers and green is the most visible per mw, but only you are responsible for knowing your local laws and please be safe when lasing, any laser over 5mw is an eye hazard.
 
Last edited:

wus

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Sorry I was writing from a smartphone. Now I'm on the computer and agree, here it's hard to miss. I posted in the welcome section now.

I read up a bit more, learned - among others - that green lasers often emit IR as well, and that the IR beam is wider than the visible green, and therefore a danger. I'm very determined to use a strong green laserpointer only where it is safe, nevertheless I'd feel better if the IR were filtered out. So I will look for a pointer with a built-in IR filter.

Also, from reading and following links I got the impression that such small but high powered laserpointers can't be used continuously. For use as a pointer this is quite irrelevant, but I'd like to be able to use it at home with a filter / diffuser cap that splits up the beam to project a starry sky or other pattern onto the room ceiling. Can small, pen-style laser pointers with this output power (200 mW) be used continuously (until battery empty), or would they overheat and damage themselves?

Is it possible - or not recommended - to use NiMH batteries in laserpointers designed for 2 AAA's?
 
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Even in unfiltered 532nm lasers the IR content is very small when compared to the the overall output power. It does diverge more quickly than the collimated visible beam, so it rapidly loses any ability to cause you harm. I would not be too concerned about it as your real danger comes from the visible beam.
 




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