A question from a newbie...

[Paul]

Hello all...!

First of all thanks to all contributors to this forum for making it a very interesting forum! I have learned a lot already by just reading..

I have been interested in lasers for the last 20 years or so but never got around getting the equipment etc.. But that is about to change!

I need a bit of advice regarding my first steps into this world...
I am looking to buy or build my first projector. Since I am pretty good mechanically and with electronics too I was initially considering building everything but the scanners myself. But if I start to add up all the things needed I might be better off buying my first projector and modifying it later on.
What I am considering is one of the following options, or maybe something completely different if you guys have a good alternative!

- A laserworld RS-OEM projector without laser sources, and buying the lasers + optics myself from a reputable company. The projector would cost me 850 euros + shipping. But then I need to get the lasers which will add at least 1000 euros to the cost (estimate)...
- A laserworld RS-500RGB which would cost me 1800 euros + shipping...
- Starting from scratch building my own table, and getting all the hardware separately... This will cost me most likely ~3000 euros for a RGB setup

Since I have read a lot of stories and seen the movies about the lasers of laserworld I am a little bit reluctant to buy their complete sets. But it might be the best way to start out... I like the idea of having an enclosure with a lot of hardware already built in, but then again the flexibility of building everything myself with standard components might be more fun...

On the choice of laser power; Can somebody give me the power ratios of an average RGB setup? So if I pick a 250mW 532nm source, what would be the normal power be for the red and blue lasers?

I am open for all suggestions. I do not have a budget in mind at this moment. I am the kind of person who prefers to spend a little bit more to get something good instead of something average...

Thanks for your advice!

Paul

[Carl B]

Hi Paul

Welcome to PL. If you do decide to go down the self build the first thing is can you fill in your location details so we can point you to your local dealer for your laser goodies. If you are in Europe as I suspect then Rob (Stanwax) is one of the PL members that sell some great Laser products in fact he can provide everything you would need to build a complete RGB system.

Your going to love this hobby despite the expense.

Carl

[Paul]

Hi Carl,

Actually I am based in several locations in the world!
I spend about 6 months a year in Argentina (where I live now), a few weeks a year in The Netherlands (where I was born) and the rest of the time I am sailing around the world... Mostly I am near the US at that time...
So for me it is not really important where the supplier is located..!

I just found some threads on the RGB ratio, so that question has been answered..

[Carl B]

Sorry, I just assumed that you were in Europe as you mentioned Euros in your first post. O well. As for Laserworld, with the reviews of some of there gear I've read on hear I would avoid them too. You'll get a lot more pleasure from building your own system and a greater knowledge of how these things work.
Unfortunately I have yet to build my self an RGB system. only got a couple of green units I built my self.

Carl

[Paul]

I like the idea of building something myself, maybe just using a "prefab" enclosure... All the sites I have found so far selling laser parts do not have prefab enclosures. I can easily get a nice piece of aluminum to use as table, but I want to prevent accidents with rays ending up in eyes. Do you know where to get nice prefab enclosures?

[Carl B]

Try PM'ing QUAZZAR. He was selling some prefab cases some of which would be ideal for an RGB setup. He was reselling them for someone else.

Carl

[gottaluvlasers]

hey paul. WELCOME WELCOME WELCOME!!!

as far as sources for lasers....definitely talk to Rob (stanwax) he is probably your best source for the gear given your current location. as far as enclosures...i can supply you THESE for now. although, an RGB above 600mW or so may be dificult in the size pictured. check with....crap...i think "insanity" on here he had some beautiful cases available also.

if your location gets closer to the U.S. any time soon, i would be happy to give you some pricing on lasers or other gear.

feel free to ask any questions you may have to ANY of us though!

-Marc

[zerowaitstate]

Great to hear you taking steps in the land of lasers, I went down your path and purchased a Chinese projector, this was a bit of a punt but the potential saving in my mind were worth the risk, I have had to replace the blue diode twice and two sets of scanners. through the experience of doing this i feel i would now be confident to do a build of my own ( i would opt for an analog set up with CT scanners) - this is an expensive habbit.

Just prior to Christmas i was in the same boat as you considering the laser world projectors how ever the Australian dollar weakened and it became a harder sell ( to my self). There has been some pretty damming reviews of laser world behavior recently re EBAY sales.

I would personally be hard pressed to buy one of thier systems unless i was persoanlly picking it up and had facilities to measure output on the spot. You may find buying directly from them IE not via ebay more expensive but you get what you pay for.

One last thing to mention is that they also have the option of purchasing the case as an OEM i'v ogt a feeling it was around - 700 Euro - 644 GBP - 949 USD - 1352 AUS. + shipping of course.

I have an email still from the 50 K scanners i purchased (running at 19 K atm) required swapping or supplied mirrors to get 50 K which i was reluctant to do after posting on the board here.

[buffo]

Hi Paul! Welcome to PhotonLexicon.

You mentioned that you are sometimes near Ft Lauderdale... It's unfortunate that you just missed a laser enthusiast's meeting that we held in Tavares, Florida last weekend. It would have been about a 4 hour drive from Ft. Lauderdale. Still, if you'll be in the Florida area again, let us know and maybe we can set up a mini-meet.

As for buying a laserworld projector, I'd have to agree with others here in advising you against that... We've seen a *lot* of unhappy laserworld customers lately. (We even had one at the last laser enthusiast's meeting! djmatt brought his unit with him, and he was quite upset when he found out that it wasn't making even 1/2 of it's rated power.) Search the forums and you'll find plenty of threads talking about the problems with Laserworld projectors...

Adam