r/lasers

hello

I'm searching for a laser that is powerful enough to burn wasp nests or light fuses. I would prefer if it looked like an actual laser blaster if possible. I have found some on sites where the scores are very low about it being a trusted site. Does anyone know where I can find one from a legitimate retailer?

Hi everyone, I am looking for a way to expand the size of the dot produced by a 1 milli watt green laser pointer.

Ideally I’d like to make the dot 3 inches in diameter

I’ve seen expanders available on line but was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on how to achieve this.

Thanks.

I bought an xtool F1 lite from my brother he had working on his windows computer. I went and downloaded the software to my own personal computer logged in using his credentials and I can’t get it to connect. I’ve done the troubleshooting that xtool provided and it gives me 3 errors: drivers, (which I installed when open the xtool software and check the setting) faulty cable (but the laser knob has a white light on) and device not found. Does anyone have any clue what I’m doing wrong.

Hi,

A few months ago I ordered a SanWu laser but it got rejected by EU customs. I eventually got a partial refund from SanWu but I'm not willing to renew the experiment: likely it would get sent back again, and I was far from impressed by SanWu's communication and customer service.

So... I'm still looking for a laser "toy". I am aware of eye safety and I will be ordering quality safety goggles and I won't do stupid things with people around. I want a laser that will let me burst toy balloons, possibly ignite matches, this sort of stuff.

I am comfortable with a soldering iron and I've built/modded a handful of standard LED flashlights before. Do you folks have advice for me for a DIY build? Could a Convoy host work, and if yes, which one? Could a flashlight driver work generally speaking? What emitters would you recommend (I guess the answer to this question would then direct me to the proper voltage for the driver)? Do I need to think about anything else?

If you have resources to share, I'd be happy to hear them. Perhaps I just don't know what keywords to look for, but I am not finding much so far sadly.

Thank you.

Anybody in Canada, have experience with any Omtech? I’m looking into getting a laser machine to expand my print business and found that a CO2 is better than a diode.

I don’t wanna buy xtool at all although it’s appealing because of the air filter et al. With the understanding that a CO2 is best in the long run, I’m encumbered by: garage not heated, headache about exhaust and ventilation in the basement, could someone please help with the right path to take?

I currently print on apparels, drink wares, have a large format printer for roll up banners, stickers, etc and want to expand and be able to do laser myself instead of outsourcing.

I need help finding a library that allows me to connect an AvaSpec-ULS2048CL-EVO spectrometer from Avantes to a python script to get live readings from it.

So far I found avaread which allows me to read files from the Avasoft 8 software. But that would require me to save a file each time I need to make a measurement and then run the code which would be inefficient because I need to make a lot of measurements just to get one result.

Is there any other way to connect the spectrometer to my code? or has anyone tried anything similar?

I frequently go camping at festivals or other large events. I have this idea that if I had a laser that shined straight up in the air I could use it as a beacon to find my spot and/or help other people find me. Some of these festivals are huge.

So......

My (tentative) goal is a laser in the 532-555 nm range. Ideally I'd like a small unit that is battery powered and will run for hours on a single battery. I am thinking a class 2 ( < 1 mw ) will be enough and keep it relatively safe. Naturally I would mount it high up to prevent curious people from looking directly in to the emitter.

I am handy with electronics, soldering, etc, I am mostly looking for general advise and even a recommendation on components.

Edit: I should note, it is fine if it only works at night.

Hi,

I was just outside a hotel building when I was struck by a green laser. I noticed a green light on my face, suddenly it became extremely intense, I closed my eyes and yelled.

I looked up trying to find out who was doing that and saw him, yelled at him and he casually walked away from his balcony.

After a minute or so he kept shining his laser pointer around again, but he remained in the back of his balcony.

I already noticed the man a few days ago pointing his laser at people.

Took a photo of the balcony location.

How dangerous was that? My vision feels mostly fine right now, although my left eye felt a little "off" for a few minutes or so.

I was taught that these things are dangerous, hence why I am asking.

* I was about 5 m away from the laser

* I felt very intense light

* It was a green laser pointer - a lot of those get sold in the area by random little streetside stores