What got you started in this hobby?

[Hiemal]

I'm sure this sort of thread has been done a few times in the past, but for the newer people it might be nice to share your beginnings.

I actually got interested in this through my hobby in electronics... more or less. Figured out what to do, and bought a PHR-803. Killed it and then tried again, killed it again.

3rd times the charm and I built a 445 nm, and a 6x 405 nm build.

That, finally got me started.

 

[Meatball]

Carl Sagan.

Nope... scratch that.

Such bad hair.

 

[RyanElectro]

I started with being active in online communities and PC building. Then one day I saw a few videos of lasers being filmed on Youtube. Fell in love immediately and sought my own first laser. I mean I had 5mW's when I was a kid but those were pansy

Found this site via Google. Read up on the basics and safety then decided to get my first proper laser. I started out asking rhd for one of his lasers, I wanted it cheaper though and asked him if he could beat Lazerer's prices (noob totally unaware of difference in quality). This was when everybody told me to just "build your own". Literally the next day I took the first step of my life to dedicate myself to the laser hobby.

And here I am today, I just finished 2 more blue builds and 1 red build. Twas quite the progress in retrospect but hoping to learn even more

 

[T_Warne]

I blame it all on StyroPyro and his youtube videos...

Thanks Styro! :beer:

 

[ElectroMagneticFreak]

I have always been interested in the process of producing differing spectra of colors in fireworks. Some colors like a very deep blue are hard to produce and many people keep their formula secret! I think my interests in lasers is similar to my fascination with the pure bright colors in fiireworks using specific elements that produce color of a specific spectra in the flame.

I personally wasn't even aware of the amazing world of lasers and had no idea that handheld lasers had advanced to the point of having many new wavelengths as technology and research advanced into new diodes and DPSS colors. I thought only red 5mW lasers existed because that was all I had ever seen up until about 6 months ago!!

I happened to get an amazon gift card for a birthday present and after pondering what to purchase I discovered that there were several colors of lasers available like 405nm blue ray, 532nm green etc and I immediately became fascinated!

I then discovered LPF and began lurking here to read as much as I could before I purchased on amazon. Initially I was overly afraid of green because I had read about IR, and not knowing that it wasn't that big of a deal at lower mWs, I ordered a 100mW 650nm and a 10mW 405nm. Instead of the red laser they accidentally sent me a 30mW green. At first I was upset that I had received the wrong laser until I turned it on outdoors and was blown away by the easily visible green beam that sparkled in the night air. I had no idea even that a beam could be visible without fog, as I had only seen my little 5mW red if there was something thick in the air like smoke or fog. After doing a little more reading on LPF I realized my concerns about IR on a 30mW green wasn't as big of a deal especially since I was mostly using it outdoors.

After that I read more on here and joined a month or two later, and since then I have become very interested or obsessed for that matter with these amazing coherent beams of light and the complexity and process to produce specific wavelengths.

I am slowly learning, and there is a so much to discover for me. I hopefully will try building sometime soon in the future, but until them I am a bit of a collector and am trying to build a basic collection of some of the more common wavelengths to have a "complete set." I hope one day I will be able to enjoy 589nm, 593.5 and 473nm as well! :wave:

 

[Tech_Junkie]

My girlfriend. She found DX one day, and asked me if I wanted anything. I saw lasers, and immediately wanted some. Always liked using light as art, laser shows, ect. Then I saw I could not buy one. Did a Youtube search and found......can you guess.......Kipkay!!! Did some more research and found "what Kipkay doesnt tell you" video. It showed a driver, ect. At the end of the video it had LPFs address. So I logged on here and...the rest is history.

 

[sinner]

Well i think it was styro's "hack a dead computer into a burning laser" and i was like Hell Yeah i have a dead computer, now lets do the hack..
Unfortunately i thought its easy as 1-2-3 as shown in the video, blew up several diodes at first. which is why i learnt it the hard way, googled plenty of how-to's on it but i found different procedures.. Came in here, through google offcourse, finally decided to learn all of it.. Still in the process!

 

[DrSid]

I wanted to have laser as soon I discovered you can have one .. first I've seen panasonic red 1mW pointer for presentation .. for about $100. Unreal for me at that time. Then came the first cheap chinesse reds .. then came DealExtreme with cheap greens and 200mW reds .. then came Arctic .. and then I found about LPF (in comments on WL site) .. and canceled my Arctic order.

 

[bennett326]

cause lasers a fcking awesome thats why

 

[pupsdad]

I had a DVD burner that I did not know what to do with and did a Google search and came across a youtube vidio explaining how to build the drive from items at radio shack, did that got it going and it was big laying on the work bench. Did a litle more searching that led me to modwerx. Bought a drive put it in a housing with a lens took it out side turned it on and it scared the hell out of me. Now I have four finished lasers, have burned up a 405 and a red diode playing around. Part of what I do is try and find diodes, hosts and stuff I get off craigs list garage sales then make it go. I have two lasers I realy like, one I built and one a kit I got from Mohrenberg.