New Guy questions.

[Snake Eyes]

Hello all.
I've been lurking throughout this forum every so often for the last couple of years, and I finally decided to join up since I was a bit intimidated at first with such a huge knowedge base in this forum,and absolutely no clue as to direction. I figured there was no way to have my questions answered if I dont ask them first.
A little about me. I'm a tinkerer, and no stranger to a soldering gun. most of my projects built are too simple to even mention, suffice it to say that I would love to delve into lasers as much as most of you have, unfortunately its way to costly for me because when I screw up, it doesnt cost me much but blowing out an odd LED bulb a time or two. When it comes to lasers, it would kill me to ruin diodes, drivers, modules, or any other parts, considering the cost and my inexperience.
So, on to the questions...
First off, I'm familiar with Dealextreme, but have found the existence of dealers of lasers from overseas ( I'm in the US) thru this forum. is there a thread that has names of dealers that still export >5 mw lasers? I have a couple of 200 mw what ones that I picked up about 2 years ago, but sadly that company no longer ships to the US.
Secondly, is there a thread that shows the customer satisfaction with said companies? I looked at tmart, and oxlasers for instance, and they have stuff I want, but it seems that they dont have their "stuff" together...
For instance... OXLasers Newest underwater focusable 1W 445nm blue laser pointer free shipping - 1W BLUE LASER - Laser Pointers Catalog - Blue, Red, Green Laser Pointer, Powerful Lasers - OXlasers China
Header says 1W 445nm laser, but description says 100mw green.

Finally, I want a particular laser built, and since I dont have the know how, is there a list of members that I could ask and have the skills to build it, without being frowned upon because of my lack of knowledge in this field?
Thanks to all for reading my long winded introduction.

 

[Fenzir]

Welcome, Snake Eyes!
I, myself am a tinkerer. I built many small LED things too, before I got into LDs(Laser Diodes).
Fishtank lights, LED cubes, car fender lights, light art. It was pretty cool. And the knowledge of the soldering gun will go a long way here .

If you're looking to make a laser on a budget, You can get a new wish pen host for $5 or so, a module for $4, a PHR 805t diode for $10 and a driver for $10 or so. That was my first build. Still keep the laser around

Exporting >5mw lasers... hmm... o-like, rayfoss, dinodirect, tmart, ahappydeal and many others.

Yeah, websites like that with the mislabeling of things, they usually don't have the best products. You can always find a four leaved clover in them though...
I know on Dino Directs website it says a 808nm laser has a visible beam. Nope

There are a few members that are often on the "Laser Chat" IRC channel, and if you use the search feature, there is probably a thread discussing your question or inquiry already, if not, starting a thread isn't frowned upon, as long as it's senseful!

Mibbit IRC client widget

is the LaserChat link. I avoided making a bunch of threads with the help from the people in there.

 

[Snake Eyes]

Thx for the welcome, Fenzir. I'm thinking about going bass akwards on this. I want a specfic build, not something i can do myself without the experience. I do plan on getting into my on builds in the near future, but what I need right now I havent come across as covered in the forum... though I will admit its impossible to read through all threads.
Before I get flamed on what I need, let me preface by saying that the laser I want is highly impractical, if not just plain silly. So I dont wish to get flamed too bad.
I'm looking for a 1W+ 445nm blue laser in a small housing, specifically one for a gun mounted laser sight. preferably using a rechargable C123 battery. I've come across a couple of lasers from tmart that might work when it comes to the host, but since I am unfamiliar with the inner workings from one laser to another, I dont know if the electronics can be switched.
This housing shows that its boviously adjustable for windage and elevation:
Aggressive Green Laser Sight with Gun Mount Black JG-016 - Tmart.com
but is too long to serve my purposes.

These lasers look much better and are more suited for my purposes, but I'm not sure if they are adjustable for windage and elevation. I do see some markings on the front, but I cant tell if thats for focusing or something else.

130mW 532nm Green Laser Sight with Gun Mount Black A10 (1*CR123A) - Tmart.com

and

200mW 532nm Green Laser Sight with Gun Mount (1*CR123) - Tmart.com

I havent even found where just host bodies like this are available, so any input would be greatly appreciated.

BTW, I am a bit familiar with led flashlights, and learning more about them. I have a few I bought from DX, and wondered if some of the modes they have can be implemented with lasers? For instance, can the fast strobe mode normally found on some of their lights be implemented on the 1W blue laser?
I sent an email to tmart, and await a reply as to their policy on sendind >5mw lasers to the US.

DX doesnt send The high power lasers here anymore, and the ones i got a while ago were from Davismicro, which I believe are now ahappydeal.com, and they dont send them to the US anymore either.

One more thing... Can someone more knowledgable check out the pics on this laser? it looks like a 405nm, though they advertise it as a 445. Is Oxlasers reputable, and do they ship to the US? The price is a little high compared to the prices some of the members here have, but I do like the housing, and it says its waterproof. BTW, I'm thinking about picking up on Garoqs deal. Especially if I can find a gun mount laser host I can put it in.

 

[lasersbee]

Try looking in the Buy/Sell/Trade section of the
Forum for members that offer Laser Builds..

BTW... If your are planning to buy anything on the
Forum.... PLEASE read this first...

6 Steps To Prevent You From Getting Scammed



Jerry

 

[Snake Eyes]

Thanks for the tip, Jerry.
BTW, Is there anywhere in the forums I can look for more info about the aforementioned laser hosts designed for gun mounts, or does anyone have on that could shed some light on it?

 

[ShortyInCanada]

Just for clarification, LED flashlights and lasers built into the shell of one have nothing to do with each other other than the casing or "host".
Not very much is transferable between them. The electronics, the theories concerning the power, and such all are enough different to be better classed as "not the same."
At least for a beginner. After a while and a more in depth understanding you can come back and tell me how and why I am wrong.

And for a gun-sight type mounting of a 1W 445 ?!? That's not a good idea. The divergence of most 445's would make it unsuitable for targeting. Using the 445 would be the weapon for the shorter distances and beyond that range the beam spread that makes it less of a weapon is the same reason for why it can't be used for a sight.
Check into it more to find out.

To find out more about a supplier try entering their name into the search function and reading up what has been said.

Other than that, welcome to LPF and have fun here.