Hi there guys, first post, more of a general "looking for info" etc. post
So i was in china and i bought a laser with bright "danger" printed on it (its a red laser, claims 650nm +-10 nm WL) and reads "maximum output <100mW
Ive played with laser pointer toys before when i was a kid, but this thing is POWERFUL. I didn't realise what the hell it was until i started playing at night time and i realised (esp cause its a bit smoky here in shanghai) i could shine the thing all the way to the god damn sky
Literally there wasn't a building i could see far enough away that i couldn't shine it at almost, the smoke lighted the thing and it just seemed endless
As soon as that happened i started reading safety on it and now i treat it as if im holding a handgun and i pretty much have batteries out of it all the time
The main thing im trying to do is identify the laser. The warning sticker labels it as a class 3, and earlier when playing around with it, at point blank range it burns through a black bin liner (pretty thin) (even though the laser point is about 5mm, it only burns through the centre 1.5mm, it takes about 2-5 seconds to burn through), however it has never felt hot or anything like that when held on my skin (boy do i feel stupid for running this thing over bare skin and pointing it at myself and other people during the day)
Ive been looking at prices over the internet for 100mw lasers, and im seeing prices of hundreds of dollars, i bought this thing for the equivelant of 8 dollars!
Given the information i have a strong feeling the laser i have bought is no where near 100mw (but still deserves the same safety respect for any laser pointer of class 3!)
Given what ive said, is anyone on here able to classify how strong the laser might really be?
Its always been a pet fantasy to own a laser that i can literally point at the clouds in the sky, but at the same time i don't want that at the expense of having to treat the thing like a handgun, and a potential insta blinder (im told that for something as powerful as this, by the time the laser has passed your eye its too late)
There were also lasers that said <50mw which were green and had an attachment that made a cool looking tesselating pattern for sale also (same price give or take haggling) , so im guessing that the laser i own is somewhere between 50-100mw?
Would a 100mw laser burn my skin if i pointed i at it? I havnt tried popping baloons yet but how strong a laser would you need to pop baloons?
Also given th eprice i paid for this thing, really is it possible for it to be that powerful? They are so expensive on the internet (i did haggle a lot to get it to that price though)
Thank you for any help/info i can get, it would be really useful, and also any additional safety tips and stuff (this thing doesnt even have a frickin safety switch.. i kinda wish it did, or at least a de-focuser or something that i can turn >_>)
So i was in china and i bought a laser with bright "danger" printed on it (its a red laser, claims 650nm +-10 nm WL) and reads "maximum output <100mW
Ive played with laser pointer toys before when i was a kid, but this thing is POWERFUL. I didn't realise what the hell it was until i started playing at night time and i realised (esp cause its a bit smoky here in shanghai) i could shine the thing all the way to the god damn sky
Literally there wasn't a building i could see far enough away that i couldn't shine it at almost, the smoke lighted the thing and it just seemed endless
As soon as that happened i started reading safety on it and now i treat it as if im holding a handgun and i pretty much have batteries out of it all the time
The main thing im trying to do is identify the laser. The warning sticker labels it as a class 3, and earlier when playing around with it, at point blank range it burns through a black bin liner (pretty thin) (even though the laser point is about 5mm, it only burns through the centre 1.5mm, it takes about 2-5 seconds to burn through), however it has never felt hot or anything like that when held on my skin (boy do i feel stupid for running this thing over bare skin and pointing it at myself and other people during the day)
Ive been looking at prices over the internet for 100mw lasers, and im seeing prices of hundreds of dollars, i bought this thing for the equivelant of 8 dollars!
Given the information i have a strong feeling the laser i have bought is no where near 100mw (but still deserves the same safety respect for any laser pointer of class 3!)
Given what ive said, is anyone on here able to classify how strong the laser might really be?
Its always been a pet fantasy to own a laser that i can literally point at the clouds in the sky, but at the same time i don't want that at the expense of having to treat the thing like a handgun, and a potential insta blinder (im told that for something as powerful as this, by the time the laser has passed your eye its too late)
There were also lasers that said <50mw which were green and had an attachment that made a cool looking tesselating pattern for sale also (same price give or take haggling) , so im guessing that the laser i own is somewhere between 50-100mw?
Would a 100mw laser burn my skin if i pointed i at it? I havnt tried popping baloons yet but how strong a laser would you need to pop baloons?
Also given th eprice i paid for this thing, really is it possible for it to be that powerful? They are so expensive on the internet (i did haggle a lot to get it to that price though)
Thank you for any help/info i can get, it would be really useful, and also any additional safety tips and stuff (this thing doesnt even have a frickin safety switch.. i kinda wish it did, or at least a de-focuser or something that i can turn >_>)
