Looking for a laser for 600yard application.

[T_Warne]

Why are you unwilling to tell the people who are trying to help you exactly what you are trying to do? Why the secrecy?
Knowing what you are trying to achieve will help us help you. Without it we are really just guessing.

It is a project, whose details cannot be stated. I am not a terrorist. lol. (I assume "stock" meant "stalk").
It is true I am very new to lasers. So, some dumb-questions are partially inevitable. Just ignore my posts
if you don't want to 'babysit'.

 

[paul1598419]

800 mW to 1 watt is a whole lot of power for a first laser. I would also recommend that you get and try a 301 or 303 style laser that can be had on eBay for ~$5.00. These output between 50 and 80 mW which is quite bright. You would then have a real laser to experiment with and could see first hand how much they diverge over a distance. Then, if you needed something more powerful you would, at least, have some real world knowledge about lasers.

 

[Cyparagon]

If you refuse to tell us what the project is, how can you be trusted to execute it safely, responsibly, effectively, or legally? How can we solve a problem without knowing the problem? You are once again asking too much.

A bash.org quote I often invoke:
<glyph> For example - if you came in here asking "how do I use a jackhammer" we might ask "why do you need to use a jackhammer"
<glyph> If the answer to the latter question is "to knock my grandmother's head off to let out the evil spirits that gave her cancer", then maybe the problem is actually unrelated to jackhammers



I'd like to see the community starting to engage the project, rather than the vague, impossible, seemingly-random specifications listed in stupid threads like this.

 

[Encap]

If you refuse to tell us what the project is, how can you be trusted to execute it safely, responsibly, effectively, or legally? How can we solve a problem without knowing the problem? You are once again asking too much.

A bash.org quote I often invoke:
<glyph> For example - if you came in here asking "how do I use a jackhammer" we might ask "why do you need to use a jackhammer"
<glyph> If the answer to the latter question is "to knock my grandmother's head off to let out the evil spirits that gave her cancer", then maybe the problem is actually unrelated to jackhammers



I'd like to see the community starting to engage the project, rather than the vague, impossible, seemingly-random specifications listed in stupid threads like this.

Exactly. Well said.

 

[Immo1282]

well said indeed - if I may, will also add that since a project that's unsafe, irresponsible, or illegal is something that may have a knock-on effect on this hobby or community, such a project is not in our collective interest to assist with.

Whether such a hazardous laser is right for your project is one thing - whether you expect a community of enthusiasts to help blindly with a project that could hurt you or others because we're blind to the nature of it is another thing.

I suppose you might see it as us assuming the worst - but I've not been around long compared to some of the seasoned vets in this thread and I've already seen a number of stupid and dangerous projects suggested that once the poster's intent was discovered the thread was shut down pretty quickly.

 

[smallfreak]

It might ease the burden to use a super strong Laser, if you equip the camera with a narrow band filter that matches the wavelength of the „interesting“ light. With narrow band i mean something like <5nm width centered at the Laser wavelength. You can increase the sensitivity of the camera to at least a thousand times without interferring with „daylight“ as long as you don‘t want to watch the beam crossing the solar disc.

Operating a multi watt (mostly invisible) Laser across a big distance might show up as a security nightmare, depending on the area of operation.

If I have to guess the application, I would think of something like „define a stright path with a laser and have some device follow the ray with high precision“. This can be done by placing the camere INTO the light path, i.e, pick the ray with a mirror to get the full light into the camera. And occasionally let the ray go to the end target to verify that the ray still points the desired direction.

Requires a minimum of power without sacrificing precision.

 

[Nordhavn]

What is your budget?
Does the laser need to be portable or can it run off mains power? (i.e. 208V three phase AC)
Lower divergence means larger beam so you need to rethink how much power. Hint: it's going to be far more than 1W!
If you don't have mid grade electro-optical experience including high voltage power supplies, cooling systems with de-ionized water, fragile optical components, q-switches, etc. then you probably need to hire someone to do this!

 

[lazeristasUVISIR]

then you probably need to hire someone to do this!

+ responding in a manner that the project has some "secrecy" will turn people away. YOU need help. OP, if you can not share information you shall consider hiring consultants and signing NDAs.

Also look at local laws about using powerful lasers outside.