My First Ever 445nm 1.5W Build :D

[xXxGUITARISTxXx]

First of all, I give props to Mohrenburg, DTR, and Garoq from Survival Lasers

I finally built my own laser (and YES I have protective goggles: ) and I am astounded by the finished product! I have purchased many lasers, and I finally decided to learn how to build one I currently do not have an LPM to officially check the output but I am guessing 1.5W?

This build included:
M140 445nm diode (DTR)
3 Element glass lens (DTR)
C6 host (Moh)
Moh's round driver @ 1.62A (Moh)
Extended copper heatsink (SurvivalLaser)
Extended blue anodized focus ring (SurvivalLaser)

Total cost: ~$130 :beer:

I was very surprised when I first turned it on! It worked perfectly, and it only took me about 15min to disassemble everything and solder the leads together. It is visible in the day, a blade at night, and it burns well! I am guessing around 1.5W with the 3 elements lens driven at 1.62A, but I hope to get a precise measurement someday.

Anyways, here are the pics

The laser with a GITD lens cover

Close-up view. Here's the copper heatsink and the blue focus ring.

Close-up view when the laser is turned on

Beamshots!
Inside (no fog)

Inside (no fog)

Outside (clear sky)

Sorry, about the picture quality. All I had at the time was my cellphone, but I'll try to get HQ pics.

Enjoys and give feedback

 

[DarkSide]

Nice work, and it powered up on the first attempt. Many more to come im sure.
A year or 2 ago you may have caught some flack for 1.5w for your first build. Im sure some builders here are testing at or above 3w? It does pose new problems with current drivers, and various components..
Those in the know speak on this please?

 

[xXxGUITARISTxXx]

Nice work, and it powered up on the first attempt. Many more to come im sure.
A year or 2 ago you may have caught some flack for 1.5w for your first build. Im sure some builders here are testing at or above 3w? It does pose new problems with current drivers, and various components..
Those in the know speak on this please?

Thanks, it worked like a charm on my first attempt! This has become a hobby, and I will be building many more lasers in the future

 

[The Baron]

I'm building my first laser right now too
It is going to be a 445 in a JayRob MagLite@1.75A. It will have everything I can possibly have added on so the total cost will be a little over $300. I have an eagle pair because it will be outputting well over 2W with the G1 lens and I want to be able to see later in life lol. It won't be done for over 2 weeks because I need to wait to get my next paycheck though :evil:

 

[DarkSide]

I have seen Jayrobs maglite and its worthy of the name, Beast! Its one of the few hosts available that can provide power and cooling performance necessary for the high output diodes now available , and higher. Hopefully sooner than later i will add one to the collection. Post some pics when shes ready..

 

[The Baron]

I definitely will! I just wished there was a way for me to get my money now THEN work for it lol. I would have my laser in no time!

 

[xXxGUITARISTxXx]

Haha, good luck with your build! My next build will be a 600mW 405nm With this host and a copper heatsink, I still cycle it with 60 sec on/60 sec off just to be safe. So far, this laser runs like a beast.

 

[The Baron]

Yeah for my next laser I am going to go with a 405 at 750mW in a magic stick host. It is going to be awesome!

EDIT: I'm trying to +rep you but I'm on my phone lol. I'll do it tomorrow on the comp

 

[xXxGUITARISTxXx]

Haha thanks! And nice! What diode are you gonna use? I'm guessing DTR's S06J driven at ?A with a g1/2 lens? Haha. I want to build a stronger 405nm without burning out the diode

 

[cilegray]

Yeah for my next laser I am going to go with a 405 at 750mW in a magic stick host. It is going to be awesome!

EDIT: I'm trying to +rep you but I'm on my phone lol. I'll do it tomorrow on the comp

Do you mean 750 mA ? You can't really predict your light output beforehand, and 750mW for a 405 is pretty much at the top of what's possible

 

[Tech_Junkie]

Im sure some builders here are testing at or above 3w?

Not yet. You need an extremely efficient diode, and a G2 lens to get ~2.8W if you're lucky. Unless you go multi diode.

I'm building my first laser right now too
It is going to be a 445 in a JayRob MagLite@1.75A. It will have everything I can possibly have added on so the total cost will be a little over $300. I have an eagle pair because it will be outputting well over 2W with the G1 lens

You can build one way cheaper. Just do some homework. And once again you will need a decent diode to push over 2W.

Decent size flashlight $30
Dual drivers $30
Heat sink $30
Diode $50
Lens $50
Batteries $22

Cheaper if you shop around.

 

[The Baron]

I'm going to use a 12x diode with a g1 lens. I don't know how many amps I will be setting it to yet, but I want to be getting an output of around ~750mW. I will get my diode from rocket689 and ask him to test the diode for me so I know what current I will be needing. As far as the pricing goes on my current build, I am already aware that there are cheapways options but I would prefer going with the Maglite anyways.

 

[cilegray]

I'm going to use a 12x diode with a g1 lens. I don't know how many amps I will be setting it to yet, but I want to be getting an output of around ~750mW. I will get my diode from rocket689 and ask him to test the diode for me so I know what current I will be needing. As far as the pricing goes on my current build, I am already aware that there are cheapways options but I would prefer going with the Maglite anyways.

Good luck with that. You're going to need it. 750mW from a blueray is probably going to SIGNIFICANTLY reduce the life of your diode... and eventually kill it.

 

[The Baron]

I know that...
I just think it is worth it.

 

[xXxGUITARISTxXx]

Yea, good luck with the build though! Hopefully there will be an efficient diode for you by that time. 750mA will fry most blu-ray diodes at the moment

 

[Garoq]

~650mW at 450mA with a G1/G2 lens is more realistic.