Optronics RPL-260

[nc987]

Just got a Optronics RPL-260. This thing is advertised at 260-280 mw. Up until this point my experience has been limited to a 5 mw and 40 mw greenies from Atlasnova which I have been very impressed with. I have a few questions.

I have always been really nervous to use anything above 5mw indoors where reflection is an issue so my tests with this laser thus far have been limited.

I can tell you right off the bat this thing is obviously much brighter than my 40mw. I can see the beam in a mildly lit hallway clearly, the beam is very tight. My 40mw laser will pop balloons that I have sharpied a dark spot to. I have been frequenting these forums for sometime now and read stories and watched videos of people lighting matches, burning news papers, etc. I have tried both so far with this laser and have been unsuccessful in each. Again I havent tried too long as I dont like using this thing indoors, the reflection off the match alone was very very bright.

Is there any type of test to give me an idea of how much power this thing is putting out. Also what type of eye protection do you guys recommend?

Lastly, the charger is confusing. I have both Batteries in it charging right now and it has had a red light for a few hours. If i take out a battery the light turns green, if i put it back in it stays green. If i unplug it and plus it back in the light goes back to red and stays red.

Can someone point me to the optronics webpage for this laser? I can find barely any information on it online. Thanks for reading this and any help would be much appreciated.

 

[stevetexas]

http://www.optotronics.com/products.php

Jack is the man with all the answers. His "name" is bootleg2go. Send him a PM. He is very responsive and his lasers are top notch. If he sold you an RPL-260 I'm sure it will light matches EASILY.

also, make sure you change your sig line to add your new laser!!!

 

[Daedal]

well... i'm not sure, but with a simple multimeter and a photocell from radioshack you can contruct a makeshift laser power meter. Photocells give off current, so check the current of the 40mW greenie, then that of the RPL-260. That should give you an idea

--DDL

 

[bootleg2go]

Just got a Optronics RPL-260. This thing is advertised at 260-280 mw. Up until this point my experience has been limited to a 5 mw and 40 mw greenies from Atlasnova which I have been very impressed with. I have a few questions.

I have always been really nervous to use anything above 5mw indoors where reflection is an issue so my tests with this laser thus far have been limited.

I can tell you right off the bat this thing is obviously much brighter than my 40mw. I can see the beam in a mildly lit hallway clearly, the beam is very tight. My 40mw laser will pop balloons that I have sharpied a dark spot to. I have been frequenting these forums for sometime now and read stories and watched videos of people lighting matches, burning news papers, etc. I have tried both so far with this laser and have been unsuccessful in each. Again I havent tried too long as I dont like using this thing indoors, the reflection off the match alone was very very bright.

Is there any type of test to give me an idea of how much power this thing is putting out. Also what type of eye protection do you guys recommend?

Lastly, the charger is confusing. I have both Batteries in it charging right now and it has had a red light for a few hours. If i take out a battery the light turns green, if i put it back in it stays green. If i unplug it and plus it back in the light goes back to red and stays red.

Can someone point me to the optronics webpage for this laser? I can find barely any information on it online. Thanks for reading this and any help would be much appreciated.

Hi nc987,
Did you buy this RPL off of E-bay or some other website?

I ask because if it were purchased from Optotronics, you would know our website and how to get in touch.

Contact me by PM or email with your real name and RPL serial number so we can look up it's history.
I've had a few instances of people buying our products on E-bay, with the buyer either not getting the instructions that show the true tested power, or getting copies of them with the output power rating duped using photoshop. After I looked up the serial number on these, they usually were originally sold at a lower power rating and have passed through several owners.

 

[nc987]

PM Sent. Thanks for the info.

I stung my hand with the beam and just popped a balloon from over 20 feet away so this thing is the real deal so far....

 

[SenKat]

To light matches with ANY laser - you have to have a steady hand - put the laser down on somehting, propped so it doesn't roll, then move the match into the beam - like with a pair of "extra hands" - the little aligator clips on the magnifying glass type of thing - it will work MUCH better that way - I found that my hands shake when I try to hold anything steady - dang old age creeping in I guess - but have no issues when the laser is still, and you move the match into the beam......

 

[Kenom]

Based on what I've seen of this laser and other posts I've read, is it safe to assume that this is a very good quality laser. I've got a burning need for more power (tim allen) and this one sounds better priced than the Aries or Hercules that I would truly like to get.

 

[bootleg2go]

I've been working with nc987 by pm to solve his issues.
He bought the laser on E-bay.
It is a real RPL-260 (with that rating) and was originally sold back in August of 2006.
It sounds like it working well for him now.
I do agree with SenKat;
Unless the divergence, power and the power density(beam diameter/closeness to the match) are great enough to instantly ignite the match in a few milli-seconds, then both the laser and match need to be held very steady so that the beam does not move in relation to the match or other target.

I don't believe in using a black sharpie or focusing lens on balloons or matches, thats not the Optotronics way. I think using them is sort of cheating and if they are needed, then you don't have a high enough power density to begin with.

After all, if you need a lens or other things to get the power density high enough, why not save some money and just get a lens and use the sun to pop your balloon or light your match.

Well, I've gone off on a tangent again haven't I.

Take care

 

[bootleg2go]

Hi SenKat,
I was just reading other threads and saw a post that said you "sharpie everything".
My previous comments were not to bash you in anyway and I didn't see this until thread until just now.

Please don't take it personally, I hope you know I wouldn't do that to you.

ps, when are you going to do that full review of the optics kit?


Jack

 

[SenKat]

Hey Jack - no offense taken by ANY means of the imagination ! :rock:

I do not own an optotronics laser, so I "pre-sharpied" a huge box of matches - I actually have not ever sharpied any balloons - but am sure others have. I DO have to do a full review of that optics kit - it is WAY LONG overdue ! The only problem I have is, I am not sure where to start ! I hope to find some time this weekend - depends on the weather......my daughter will want to live at the pool if it's nice

 

[Aseras]

i'm quite certain that my rpl will smoke, or pop anything that isn't reflective or white.

That said.. Jack can you look into the history of my rpl as well? http://208.219.69.31/laser/rpl.pdf

that's the cert sheet that came with it. My own testing across a couple power meters I have put it right around the 269mw reading. I've seen it go as high as 350mw for nearly a minute and then settle out to 280. I also ran it the other night, testing for almost 20 minutes before it started to cut out on me, and right up until the end it was still smoking the black rubber mat at the end of my lab as a backstop.. nearly 20 feet away.

 

[mikebrooke]

First things first, I purchased a 300Mw from Optotronics last year with the object of using it as a wild animal deterrant. (I am in the UK but have a farm in Kenya , where hyenas and other beasties constantly maraude) As soon as it arrived in the UK my wife had hysterics, it's too dangerous etc etc ,on and on ,and on , ad nauseum! (by this time I'd decided to keep it in the UK) After stupidly trying to sell it on this board I thought F......it we WILL send it to Kenya. Long story short, this is THE deterrent. Along with a powerful flashlight (waiting for a Barn-Burner as well) they 'don't like it up 'em'! I reckon we've saved a few of our livestock using it. Thank you Jack at Optotronics..I will listen in future to your advice. By the way for you firemongers..this will set fire to dry bush at 10 meters!

 

[nc987]

After a few days with this thing im very impressed. DId the balloon test and it popped 5 balloons in a line in about 10-15 seconds. Popped another one from over 20 feet away. I originally bought it on Ebay to make a trade with someone for some nightvision advertised as generation 3. Unfortunately the nightvision only came out to be Generation 2, so I kept the laser.

On ebay the laser was listed as Optronics, not Optotronics. Notice the spelling difference, this is why I was unable to find the website or any information on this laser.

I havent been on CPF for awhile and when I was I had been restricted to mostly the flashlight forums and my Atlasnova lasers, which are great lasers. This RPL is just something else. Not quite sure what I will use it for but its defintley got the wow factor when the friends come over.

What eye protection do you guys recommend for using a laser like this indoors?

Thanks for the help bootleg, youve been very helpful and I think you just got yourself a new customer for any future laser purchases when I need my next Deathstar laser. For now this and my other little greenies will do.

 

[Aseras]

EEK... you have an rpl and no eye protection?

You NEED it with the RPL unless you are somehwere where there's no chance of a reflection. even looking at the dot of my rpl for a second gives me spots in my vison longer than a camera flash.

If you can afford it get some OD3 or better laser glasses. wicked's are $50 but you need to wait and Jack has some on his site for $48.

For my stuff at home I now have several pairs of these http://www.toolbarn.com/category/laserglasses/ for $10, they are stronger than my OD6 glasses, so it's very good protection for green. The downside is they are so good you might not even think your RPL laser is on... There's nothing but the tiniest dot thanks to the rpl's impressive beam specs.