Laserglow 175mw or Optotronics RPL 165?

[windstrings]

I have posted this on another forum too in hopes of an answer, but

I am really getting confused here and so far I have not gotten any returned emails or feedback concerning this issue.

I"m debating over the Aries 175mw thats rated with a typical peak output of 215mw for 629.00 or to add another 120.00 and get the Optotronics RPL 165 with a peak of 225mw?? All things being equal, I would be paying for the larger diode, LiIon battery and charger I suppose.

The Optotronics has a 2.5 watt diode verses the 1.2 watt of the aries.. I'm not sure I'm seeing the "benifit" of all that diode since the peak is virually the same.

I have conceded to the fact that I do not want something as gargantua as the hercules even though I'm sure its a stellar performer.. I cannot carry something that big.

Both of these lasers in question are virtually the same size.

***One real concern I keep bumping up against is thier own review that speaks of the units shutting down within 50 seconds or so with thier RPL 260?

Below are quotes from thier own review link from thier site....
http://ledmuseum.candlepower.us/sixth/rpl-260.htm

Since this is a high powered laser, I would recommend a duty cycle of no longer than 37.5%. That is, 30 seconds on, and at least one minute off to allow the "guts" inside to cool down. This is not stated anywhere, but is my own recommendation.

This laser has an automatic thermal protection circuit; if the laser is operated continuously for ~50 seconds, the beam power output will drop sharply; to perhaps 5mW. When this happens, turn the laser off and leave it off for at least one minute to allow it to cool, then you can turn it back on.
When timed with a clock with a second hand on it, this thermal cutout engages in exactly 67 seconds. The ambient temperature for this test was 81°F (27.2°C).

A laser of this quality and with such a heat sink should "not" be shutting down!..... the laserglows boasted of running 200 days consecutively and even thier power ratings are over 10 minutes rather than 20 seconds as the Optotronics unit.

Surely this "overheating" issue has been corrected.. I understand now that units over 250mw have fans "which I don't desire either" as it will be noisy and only pull by battery down more.

the other concern I have on the review is the statement that:

CURRENT CONSUMPTION: Was asked not to measure

I cannot find anywhere on the Optotronics site about any graphs that show thier runtimes or any boast of how long they run, nor is it mentioned in their Faq page?

This is quite a concern that needs to be addressed.

I hope in my ignorance I have not stirred the mud, if so I will edit this post to correct any irregularities or inaccuracies.

I am only seeking the truth so I make a good purchase.
I would have kept all this private, but no one will return my questions?.. maybe its the holidays???

I quite frankly would rather have the same size unit with the bigger diode and LiIon battery if everything else is reasonably equal, but something doesn't add up here in my calculations?

Does anyone have any reviews of the Optotronic units??? Can you tell me how long thier duty cycle is? Are they "continuous output" units as laserglow boast their 6 hour runtimes?

I wouldn't even bring this up but I've seen post of other folks asking the difference between the two and replies saying that "Optotronics" was the best handsdown?

Can someone please enlighten me here?

I don't want to make a purchase I will regret later because I was misinformed.

 

[bootleg2go]

Hi Windstrings,
The RPL is adjustable and allows the current to be adjusted for optimum output depending on the charge remaining on the battery, temperature and individual laser characteristics.
The RPL is also an inch or so shorter than the Aries or PPL.
The reason I told the reviewer of the RPL, to not attempt measuring current on the device is that the laser is a high current, very low impedance device and even the added resistance of an ammeter or current sense resistor would greatly affect the power output and skew the results. I measured current using a LeCroy DC current probe which does not affect the circuit in anyway. The current draw of the RPL at it's highest current setting (level 9) is 2.0 amps and about 1.0 amps at level 1 (lowest setting).

The run time of the RPL has been increased and now can run for 2-3 minutes before shutdown and cooling is needed. Many times the lower power RPL units can run longer.

I think the RPL is capable of much longer run times, but that the manufacturer is being much too conservative in setting the shutdown time.

I expect some RPL owner to mod their RPL and remove or extend the shutdown time and post the mod here. I know they are capable of 100% duty cycle until the battery is discharged (30-40 minutes) as I have a few reports from users whose laser can do this.

Laserglow boasts of many things and I could as well since these kinds of comments are very hard to prove.

I'm really still excited about the RPL and think it's the best handheld product out right now.

If you really need 100% duty cycle and only require an average output of 165-175 mw, then the RPL with it's 2.5Watt diode (80,000 hour MTBF) diode may be more diode than you really need.

A better choice would be the PPL-165 as it is pretty much the same size and design as the Aries, except it has adjustable output. It has the same 100% duty cycle as the Aries as well. I don't have any in stock, but I'm expecting an order to arrive today and their may be a PPL-165 or two in this order.

Advantages of the PPL or RPL over the Aries line is that the divergence is much better on the Optotronics lasers, no products get sold to customers with a divergence that is greater than or equal to 1.2mrad. In the case of the RPL, the divergence is typically 1.05mrad and many times even less; this greatly increases light concentration (burning power) over longer distances.

Another advantage is if the laser is ever in need of repair, the only shipping cost incurred by the customer is back to Optotronics located in the US, not international shipping costs and customs worries or charges.

This morning I'm reducing the cost of the 6 month warranty as well.
One other thing, if you choose the PPL or Aires, you will want to use NIMH cells in these lasers as normal alkaline batteries will only last about 5 minutes before output power begins to drop as C cells were never meant to provide an amp of current.

The most valuable and best advantage of buying an Optotronics laser is our customer service both before and after your purchase. All of our testimonials are from real customers, many of them are also CFP forum members as well.

Feel free to email us again if you have more questions, or provide us your phone number (don't post your phone number here) and I'll call you to answer any other questions personally.

Thanks
Jack

 

[windstrings]

Thanks Jack for your reply. I have heard nothing but praise about the units, yet the review did confuse me.

I am surprised the ampmeter would pull virtually anything at all as they are usually quite efficient at not losing power in their measuring... I can see if they were "stealing" current from the laser circuit itself, but it should be tapped in near the battery, "before" all the assciated losses so as to be taking current straight from the battery rather than the circuitry of the laser itself.

I also assumed since he was playing with the 260 model, that there may be a fan involved which IMO would skew the readings far more than an ampmeter would ever hope to. If nothing else, it would make the laser appear its using more current than it really is and make it look ineffecient, so I understand the logic here.

I do think its wise to up your warranty as this shows manufacturer confidence in thier own product.

I also read it drops to about 5mw just before it cuts out after around 50 seconds.... is this programmed into the failsafe circuitry or is this just what happens as heat takes control?

I'm trying to figure why the PPL would run so much longer than the RPL unless its due to the 1.2W diode not generating the heat and battery current as the 2.5 would. Also, I can imagine that the one LiIon battery may be adding heat to the equation... but I don't know.

You do indeed have an edge on your mrad rating as that is one of your strongest virtues... I understand no one knows what it will actually be till they get thier laser... just somewhere under 1.2, but thats not bad and I'm sure does a good job to cut, dice and slice! LOL!

I would certainly like to hear from folks who own these units for feedback on how the like the runtimes.
Hopefully they will chime in to confirm.

I currently own a pen laser and am hoping to get away from the threat of overheating with the added heat sinks on these types of units.

thanks again for your input.. my questions were in no way mean't to cast any negative unwarranted ideas about your units.

I've learned I am not unique.. If I have the question, chances are, many others are asking it too and are maybe not comfortable asking so just go elsewhere to claims of greater fame.
These forums are good for clearing the air and removing unfounded fears as well as bring up concerns to be addressed and improved upon.

I do like the compactness of the RPL units and I agree about the NiMh battery usage holding up much better under load than alkalines... they almost match Lithium "non rechargables". They come close enough, its not an issue is the added advantage of having recharg is wanted.

Looks like someone could just "add" a Lithium along with a spacer to acheive the same results... I wonder if thats what they basically did to acheive the RPL capability to recharge?

Anyway....

Thanks again for your time and input.