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FrozenGate by Avery

Optotronics RPL-Blue 44mw Review

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Sep 27, 2007
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i noticed i posted an incomplete review of this laser a day before the LPF server crashed recently and now that i have my power meter back, i thought i would post the complete review seen as though it got deleted.

i have to say i got excellent customer service from Jack, he answered all emails quick and in detail as
you would like. but most importantly he allowed me to pay in two installments of $700 then $600
to make it easier for me to pay for this.
sometimes jack gets in some very rare blue lasers which average over 40mw. after someone bought one last month i decided i needed one too but when i inquired about this, he didnt have any left.
of course i could have bought an RPL 30 but i decided to wait a few more weeks until jack had some more over 40mw's in.

this has to be the quickest laser ive ever received from the usa, paid for it on a saturday and by wednesday it was delivered.
my other RPL's took around 2 weeks because customs decided to keep them for a week.

so the laser came in the carrying case inside the usual cardboard box with a little bit of bubblewrap inside the box. Jack also included a bonus 50mw green pointer which was bubblewrapped. (externally looks a little bit like the true 30 from DX)
usually, the carrying case and most importantly the laser inside is bubblewrapped too but on this
occasion, it wasnt. hopefully the foam padded carrying case played its part.
having owned an RPL before i got this, i knew what to expect externally.

also inside the box was an output confirmation sheet and the charger box and adpter and i saw a little note from jack about how temperature plays a part on the output of the blue laser.
my old 20mw blue struggled to reach full power in cold temperature and was temperature-sensitive.

at first i couldnt see a battery, but soon found it inside the laser. i noticed the safety keys dont stay in the tailcap when operating the laser.
i fired it up and first impressions were like whoa, this is absolutely beautiful!!
the beam is alot more noticeable and the dot way brighter than my old 20mw blue.
the 2.5 watt n-light diode is really playing its part behind the high output.

i measured the RPL's output at 42mw over 1 minute and 45mw over 3 minutes, with a peak of 52mw.
the beam diameter at aperture is around 1.5mm and the divergence of this laser is around 1.5mrad.
i can easily see the dot on a building around 100 meters or so with heavy street lighting.
maybe in total darkness i may be able to see the dot atleast 0.5km-1km away.
unbelievably i havent tried lighting a match yet with my blue RPL but i do know it popped a black balloon unaided from 3 feet.

the bonus 50mw green pen averages 74mw over 1 minute and averages 63mw over 3 minutes, with a peak of 79mw.
this greenie can light a sharpied match in a second using a lens and pop balloons unaided.

i used a magnifying glass to check for mode issues on both the RPL and the green pointer many times but couldnt see any.
the beams are very stable in TEM00 mode all the time with a very bright clear dot.
im not so sure about the duty cycle on the RPL, allthough i have ran it over 3 minutes flat and seemed fine.
after using the laser on and off for around 15-20 minutes, you can feel the body start to get slightly warm.

the price for this laser is worth it all day long, you have to see it in person to fully appreciate it, the intensity the blue beam produces is unreal.
overall im very happy with this laser, its my number one laser and i cant stop using it for a few minutes atleast everyday since i got it.
thanks alot jack for hooking me up with what could be one of the most powerful handheld blue lasers in the world.
 

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darklandz said:
i fired it up and first impressions were like whoa, this is absolutely beautiful!!
the beam is alot more noticeable and the dot way brighter than my old 20mw blue.
the 2.5 watt n-light diode is really playing its part behind the high output.

i measured the RPL's output at 42mw over 1 minute and 45mw over 3 minutes, with a peak of 52mw.
the beam diameter at aperture is around 1.5mm and the divergence of this laser is around 1.5mrad.

That's the heart of it! Nice review! +1 Brother! [smiley=laugh.gif]
 
good review, nice pics!!


how did you manage to make the laser fit on the tripod?
 
the laser doesnt fit on the tripod as you would like.
the tripod bracket is almost perfect for the spherical shape of the laser body, so you can place the laser onto it, but it wont be stable by any means.
i wouldnt advise to do this unless your very careful and the tripod is placed on a flat, even surface.
EDIT - the RPL blue can light a match when focused through a lens.
 
darklandz said:
EDIT - the RPL blue can light a match when focused through a lens.

Mine too! Have you tried it from a distance? Pops balloons easily @ 20' when focused.
 
Has anyone tried putting the adjustable cap from their green RPL on their blue RPL?
 
thanks for sharing,

Absolutely stunning laser. You got yourself THE best portable blue laser there is !
 
Razako said:
Has anyone tried putting the adjustable cap from their green RPL on their blue RPL?

No, have you? Isn't each RPL blue set at a certain optimal current, or are they all at '9' or highest? Could you put the non-adjustable from the blue on the green? :-? (I think I'll just not try it ;)).
 
im yet to try distant balloon pops using a lens but theres no doubt it sure will work.
i havent tried the adjustable tailcap on the blue RPL but it should work.
i remember trying the adjustable cap on my old 20mw blue and it worked.
there wont be much difference with the adjustable cap on the blue as the resistance only changes under 1 ohm across the whole of the adjustable levels 1-9.
 





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