Arthur Posted March 30, 2008 Posted March 30, 2008 Has anyone any idea what sort of laser beam would burst a balloon at 20 metres. Would it be safe in any use of the word!?! Really I doubt that these keyring laser pointers would do the job!
0nE.sh0t.kIll Posted March 31, 2008 Posted March 31, 2008 I've searched Youtube and found many videos of lasers popping balloons in the past.
mormanman Posted March 31, 2008 Posted March 31, 2008 I heard of like yellow and purple lasers but I don't know if they really exist and how powerful they are.
crazyboy25 Posted March 31, 2008 Posted March 31, 2008 I heard if you eat pop rocks and then drink coke a small black hole is formed in your stomach which has the gravity of 1,00,000,000,000,000 suns killing you instantly then sucking up the whole universe. That is just about as relevant as what you said. Stop post whoring and if you don't have anything to say SHUT THE HELL UP. Jeez you have more posts then most people on this forum and have been here for quite a while too but I still see you posting stuff like "can I use steel balls in my ball mill" and "Does anyone know how to make snap pops?” Seriously.
mormanman Posted March 31, 2008 Posted March 31, 2008 I heard if you eat pop rocks and then drink coke a small black hole is formed in your stomach which has the gravity of 1,00,000,000,000,000 suns killing you instantly then sucking up the whole universe. That is just about as relevant as what you said. Stop post whoring and if you don't have anything to say SHUT THE HELL UP. Jeez you have more posts then most people on this forum and have been here for quite a while too but I still see you posting stuff like "can I use steel balls in my ball mill" and "Does anyone know how to make snap pops?” Seriously. What the flip? Why does it matter if I have one of the most post one the forum? The topic is about lasers and thats what we are discussing. I haven't talked about steel balls as media since I first joined this forum. And who doesn't like snap pops? I've never met a single person in my entire life who doesn't like snap pops. Most of my comments have a question to go with it. That is what a forum is suppose to do, perpetuate the conversation. So crazyboy are you like PMSing, guys get it too. <--- that may have sounded rude but I'm serous
Mumbles Posted March 31, 2008 Posted March 31, 2008 Some of the first lasers used rubies. That statement is also relating to lasers but is in no way relevant. There is a big difference. This is what crazyboy25 was getting at. The amount of posts doesn't matter much at all, it is what you say within them. There are only two people on the forum with more posts than you. Thesidewinder, and myself of course. I think you will find very few to argue that, while we have many posts, that nearly all of them contain relevant and good information. My post count is somewhat artificially inflated due to the admin stuff I have to do, but still without that I would still have a massive number of posts. I love pyrotechnics, love talking about pyrotechnics, and like to help when I can and spread the information I have collected. His main complaint, and not completely unfounded at that, is that when you decide to post it often has little relevance to what is being discussed or in no way shape or form is helpful or adds to the conversation in any meaningful way. The purpose of a forum is to stimulate intelligent discussion and spread information about a particular subject. Questions can indeed do this. Asking a question that can easily be looked up or found does none of those things however. Related, but not specifically brought up, is the need to go back and re-clarify your questions. You do ask questions, and some of them are good questions. Often you provide way too little information and you then have to make two or three more posts just to provide enough information in order to be able to give an adequate reply. If you have nothing to say on the matter or add to the conversation, there is no shame in staying quiet, and just following along. Not posting when not needed can give a sense of maturity and knowledge to someone. Think of it as your good posts not being dilluted by the poorer. Reading along will help you to learn. Read more about the subject on google. Then if there is still something you don't understand is the time to ask. There is a difference between asking a question because you don't understand, and asking a question because you're too lazy to look it up yourself. For instance, I am sure you are familiar with FrankRizzo. I'd say we can all agree he is overall a pretty helpful guy, as well as being pretty smart in many subjects. (Don't let it go to your head ) You don't see him posting all the time, just where relevant and he can add to the conversation or help someone. Well unless he's posting about beer and then he gets all goofy. This is somewhat along the lines of a girl I went out on a date with last night. She talked all night, but never said a thing. Other reasons are involved, but I'm not going out with her again. Remember quality over quantity. Anyway, can we please get back to the topic at hand. I understand that emotions spill over from time to time, but I don't want to pollute arthur's thread.
Arthur Posted March 31, 2008 Author Posted March 31, 2008 Thank you asilentbob Those are overbudget, unfortunately. And bring all sorts of UK regulatory problems. I didn't realise that as on their site they offer a 100 - 300 mw laser for popping dark coloured balloons. Anyone who takes Youtube as pure fact runs risks, some are good science and some are good editing, Some are fun crazy and some are plain stupidly illegal.
WarezWally Posted March 31, 2008 Posted March 31, 2008 @ 20m I would say at least 150mW of 532nm with decent beam specs. If you want something cheaper you could always pull the laser out of a DVD burner and make a 300mW red laser for under $50. http://www.dealextreme.com/products.dx/category.911
asilentbob Posted March 31, 2008 Posted March 31, 2008 I've wondered about using the diodes in CD and DVD burners... I have a half-working DVD+-RW drive around here somewhere... Found it in a computer on the side of the road... Will read SOMETIMES but wont write due to some error that I don't think is related to the laser diode.
BPinthemorning Posted March 31, 2008 Posted March 31, 2008 Use it. I made a DVD burner laser. Let me assure you that it cuts through plastic, instantly pops balloons, and I don't want it pointed anywhere near me.
ST1DinOH Posted March 31, 2008 Posted March 31, 2008 a cheap gas station novelty laser pointer is no where near the power you need to do what youwant. if you want to be able to pop balloons/burn black trash bags/light matches with a laser you need more power the link a silent bob provided is one of the better laser sites out there. there may be cheaper but wicked lasers is a great site and has a long list of happy customers. i know quite a few people with higher powered lasers, they all purchased them from wicked lasers and havn't had a single problem. if you are serious about it get one from them, you'll be happy you did. i am thinking of getting a low end laser effects system, from what i understand the cheap ones still give you nice displays and are great for throwing effects into your pyro smoke. also...just a side note. lasers work best on dark material...the balloon would need to be black, just as the trash bags and the match heads. black absorbs more of the light energy which gives you the desired effect. hope this helps.
justanotherpyro Posted April 1, 2008 Posted April 1, 2008 You have to be very very careful with the removal of the diode from the DVD burner. Static electricity has a tendency to kill them also. I have ruined several of the cheap 5mw diodes trying to extract them and its amazing how sensitive they are. Using static guard on your clothes prior to extraction might be a good idea. http://www.instructables.com/id/Laser-Flas...Hack!!/ Gotta love instructables.
asilentbob Posted April 1, 2008 Posted April 1, 2008 Unfourtunatly I suck with soldering so badly that I probably fried the diode... I'm going to have to wait until I can go buy some conductive wire glue to find out either way... May have to go to some junk computer store and try to find a cheapo DVD burner if i fried this one...
BPinthemorning Posted April 1, 2008 Posted April 1, 2008 Ya, but the polarity is easy to understand with a online guide.
justanotherpyro Posted April 1, 2008 Posted April 1, 2008 The main problem that I gathered from the posts on instructables was the issue of voltage regulation. Its not really worth going through the effort to do this all just to fry the diode after a few hours of use. I would experiment first with some of those dollar store laser pointers first until you get the hand of working with the finicky little diodes.
ActionTekJackson Posted April 1, 2008 Posted April 1, 2008 Ok... first, don't try and make one from a burner until you've done a bit of research, unfortunately its not as simple as pulling the diode and hooking it up to a power source, even if you got the polarity right. You have to know the diode specs, some diodes require power in a certain frequency, others can take both. Most can take both and if you do frequency the general rule is the higher the voltage the lower the frequency. What tha means is, if you have a 100mW max steady output laser, you will usually supply 3v max in a steady current for a constant beam of 100mW at whatever wavelength, that same diode may also be able to pump out 200mW at 3.5 or 4v if the power is only applied for so long(nano or miliseconds) with the same running time as off time in intervals. hope that made sense. Basically like an on off switch but to do it right it has to be chip controlled to be fast enough. All this and voltage regulation is usually done by an axis module, if you're good at soldering and can follow directions well you can always make your own. PM me if you want links for directions on that. Also, If you do decide to pull a diode, be sure to wear a grounding strap, this is almost a must! It also depends on the color of the laser, for example I have a 100mW green laser that is absolutely amazing, I mean I'll probly go blind in a few years if I keep looking at the dot on the wall it shines... It will burn tape and other dark things, such as etching the black plastic on my calculator (hours of entertainment, with a headache if you're not wearing protective glasses). However, it will not pop a dark blue baloon, black it might haven't been fortunate enough to come across any black baloons randomly. Now, I also have a 150mW red laser, this too will cut black tape, but slower, it will etch plastic as well, but not as fast. It also doesn't give you a headache to look at the dot, don't get me wrong the sucker is bright, but the point is, it has a higher mW rating, but appears to have less power. This has to do with the light wavelength. Green is a higher wavelength, so in a sense you're packing more light onto and object in a certain amount of time, than you are with the red. That may not be a very accurate scientific explanation but I think its easier to understand that way. And to answer a post earlier, yes there are purple (violet rather) lasers and yellow lasers, and blue lasers, etc. Violet lasers can be found in blueRay players (haven't heard of anyone wasting the money on a bluRay burner just for the laser yet though), yellow lasers can be found in diodes as special order, but are more common as a HeNe plasma type laser, blue lasers are diodes but are simply rediculously expensive (pretty sweet looking though), the ultimate is white, while most of these are combined laser beams of the primary colors there are a couple plasma whites in research, they pretty much rule. Now, the cheapest, best "cutting" laser you can find is a CO2 gas laser, this emits an ultraviolet beam, which is extremely dangerous not only because it burns like mad, but very hazardous to your eyes, you MUST wear eye protection with these and be well versed in proper safety procedures. CO2 lasers are measured in Watts instead of mW just for a comparison. You're still looking at $1k or so for one of these... on a side note, if you live in the us, do not buy any premade lasers (diodes complete with axis modules, casings, and betteries) from outside the US that are over the 5mW US regulations. Customs will take your laser. I lost $100 that way... Damn gov. You can buy diodes with just the axis modules however, always ask for the shipper to leave out laser rating specifications in the shipment itself, this may help. Be sure to get that information another way though its good to have.
GalFisk Posted April 2, 2008 Posted April 2, 2008 Good post ActinTekJackson. CO2 lasers are IR, not UV though (but they kick major ass nonetheless). Do you have a link or something to the true white laser research? A google search was unusually unhelpful.Maybe your laser will pop a balloon if you draw a black spot on it with a marker, worth a try.
asilentbob Posted April 2, 2008 Posted April 2, 2008 http://www.altair.org/CO2laser.htmlhttp://www.altair.org/labnotes_laser.html#cavities(clearer pic, scroll down) These CO2 laser plans, while a pain in the ass without machining equipment are the simplest I have ever seen. It seems like a very good design. The mirrors are probably the hardest parts to get. I have a short length of pyrex I could use for the inner tube, but I'd prefer to go with quartz glass tubing anyways. Actually aside from the inner pyrex or better glass tube, fat specilty made washers with drilled gas in and out, mirrors, and insulators... everything else is home depot type stuff... well... aside from the gas mix, hv source, and vac pump... The gas in and out ports would be tricky to drill on a small thin pieces of metal as shown, but if you used bigger pieces, perhaps cast from aluminum or brass then drilled for stabilizing rods... Then drilled your gas in and out holes and taped them for like 1/8" NPT for instance going to a hose barb or something... it would be more convenient. Perhaps a few more years down the line... Maybe set up a box and just toss things into it that I find that seem like they might be helpful for such a project... Great... Just got myself started on yet another project... damnit...
ActionTekJackson Posted April 2, 2008 Posted April 2, 2008 http://www.altair.org/CO2laser.htmlhttp://www.altair.org/labnotes_laser.html#cavities(clearer pic, scroll down) These CO2 laser plans, while a pain in the ass without machining equipment are the simplest I have ever seen. It seems like a very good design. The mirrors are probably the hardest parts to get. I have a short length of pyrex I could use for the inner tube, but I'd prefer to go with quartz glass tubing anyways. Actually aside from the inner pyrex or better glass tube, fat specilty made washers with drilled gas in and out, mirrors, and insulators... everything else is home depot type stuff... well... aside from the gas mix, hv source, and vac pump... The gas in and out ports would be tricky to drill on a small thin pieces of metal as shown, but if you used bigger pieces, perhaps cast from aluminum or brass then drilled for stabilizing rods... Then drilled your gas in and out holes and taped them for like 1/8" NPT for instance going to a hose barb or something... it would be more convenient. Perhaps a few more years down the line... Maybe set up a box and just toss things into it that I find that seem like they might be helpful for such a project... Great... Just got myself started on yet another project... damnit... haha, sounds like a redneck CO2 laser, nice! And yes you are correct GalFisk, CO2 is infrared, not sure why I was thinking UV, maybe because the plasma in the laser tube is a light violet color? Anyway, most white lasers are mixed gas lasers, usually krypton and a couple other gases, can't remember. Unfortunately all I could find again was a picture of a white lab laser here http://www.newport.com/images/web250w-EN/images/297.jpg there's also this which is an RGB laser which is simply three lasers all set to shine in the same spot where there is a high quality fiber optic cable which takes the whole thing as one laser beam and it exits white. If someone feels generous enough to donate a blue laser I'd be happy to build an RGB white laser and show the process ;-)
caleb Posted April 6, 2008 Posted April 6, 2008 50mw+ i reckonI only got a 5mw but it can still go 2-3 and even 4 km away, i see it on the mountain in the distance. The green beam is also visible and is very bright.I got mine off Ebay and it cost about US$10 for laser and another $10 for postage to Australia from Hong Kong.I am hoping on buying something over 50mw and probably from ebay.mw=miliwatts
ActionTekJackson Posted April 7, 2008 Posted April 7, 2008 50mw+ i reckonI only got a 5mw but it can still go 2-3 and even 4 km away, i see it on the mountain in the distance. The green beam is also visible and is very bright.I got mine off Ebay and it cost about US$10 for laser and another $10 for postage to Australia from Hong Kong.I am hoping on buying something over 50mw and probably from ebay.mw=miliwatts Caleb, you should definately look on google for how to modify your lasers. I know for the green lasers the diodes in the 5mw can do alot more than that, more like 25-50mW which isn't half bad... For the nice ones there is an adjustable potentiometer on the driver board that you can turn, I believe, all the way to the right (clockwise) to allow full power to the diode. Others there is a resistor that can be burnt with a soldering iron, pretty much just hold the iron tip directly on the restistor, not the soldered ends, we want to keep it attachted and connected. This should allow full power to the diode as well, beware, however, that if you do this, you will need to limit the running time. A normal 5mW laser you could leave running till the batteries die, if you try and do that with the modified you will burn out your diode... Anyway, google laser hacks and open yours up to see if it can be done. If you don't think you can open it without breaking it, then just don't do it.
caleb Posted April 15, 2008 Posted April 15, 2008 50mw+ i reckonI only got a 5mw but it can still go 2-3 and even 4 km away, i see it on the mountain in the distance. The green beam is also visible and is very bright.I got mine off Ebay and it cost about US$10 for laser and another $10 for postage to Australia from Hong Kong.I am hoping on buying something over 50mw and probably from ebay.mw=miliwattsCaleb, you should definately look on google for how to modify your lasers. I know for the green lasers the diodes in the 5mw can do alot more than that, more like 25-50mW which isn't half bad... For the nice ones there is an adjustable potentiometer on the driver board that you can turn, I believe, all the way to the right (clockwise) to allow full power to the diode. Others there is a resistor that can be burnt with a soldering iron, pretty much just hold the iron tip directly on the restistor, not the soldered ends, we want to keep it attachted and connected. This should allow full power to the diode as well, beware, however, that if you do this, you will need to limit the running time. A normal 5mW laser you could leave running till the batteries die, if you try and do that with the modified you will burn out your diode... Anyway, google laser hacks and open yours up to see if it can be done. If you don't think you can open it without breaking it, then just don't do it. i have thought about it but i dont want to reck it yet. do u have a 5mw that you have modified, how did it go. +i was thinking of mking my own with a dvd burner and building my own driver board but id like to keep my eyesight a little longer.
WarezWally Posted April 15, 2008 Posted April 15, 2008 potmodding lasers doesn't work today (even when it did you would be luck to get more than 10mW out of them) the manufactures have caught on and put the worst diodes in for 5mW pointers so they are already running at their full potential.
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