- @Beaver, they're all the same. Nova X series, CNI black/gold, DL viper... all the same laser, each company just calls it something else they think sounds cool. Most are just resellers.
- @Gazoo. IMO, pictures are the absolute worst type of power meter. A little fog, a little dust in the air, a longer exposure, etc. I swear I can make a 1mW red look brighter than an RPL 300mW green in pictures with minimal tweaking.
- @LarryQ. I dunno about the alcohol dissolving the glue. I've heard of that, but never had a problem myself. Generally, unless the alcohol can hurt a coating, alcohol is highly recommended for cleaning lenses. I personally use either 91% or 99% isopropyl, or 95% ethanol (everclear 190) for lens cleaning.
- Also @LarryQ. Thanks for trying to watch out for us with the serial number test. Unfortunately I've seen CNI use both red and black sharpie for their serial numbers though, so there's nothing wrong with that yet.
- @Josh. I can tell time and $ are in issue, but if you're willing to cover an extra few dollars worth of shipping, you can send me the unit via 2-3 day priority mail. From there I can test the laser on my equipment and provide a power output graph for your customer. If nova said 113.4mW, its very likely the tests will affirm a number close to that, and you're more than likely getting >$150 for a confirmed >110mW CNI unit with case. Please let me know what you think.