No all that much. Per year, maybe 15-20 separate uses of about 5minutes total on-time each.
I know you said you’d prefer 18650 but for light use a 2xAAA laser should be fine and most places seem to charge more for 18650 lasers.
For a visible beam at night you want at least 30mW.
$30 for 532nm 50mW at laserbtb.com/productshow.asp?id=83
fixed link
Btw the link is broken but I found the one you are talking about.
Are these known to be of good quality? The site isn’t fully working for me on my work computer so i can’t see what shipping runs.
I’m afraid I haven’t kept up with who’s the best sellers these days. There are a few other BLF members here that are from LPF and will give good advice. Some will probably chime in.
Laserbtb at least use to be very good quality. And you could request an IR filter.
Hi!
Do you know, what the efficiency of one of that cheapo green 2*AA Laserpointers is?
Because if I put my one (I think I bought the 20mW Version from DX) on my bench power supply at 3.1V, it shows me over 1W of consumption, but burns nothing.
Do you think it’s save to use this thing with 4.2V (a 14500 + Dummy) for a longer time?
I tried it with that - 1.5W consumption. It gets warmer - but will it survive?
L4M4, its a green laser? How much current does it use when running on 2xAA?
Some cheap devices count on the limited current ability of the batteries. Run it from a bench power supply and it may run harder than its meant to.
Yes, it’s a green one.
I tried to test that - but it’s not possible for me to get one of my DMMs correctly mounted to that thing…
Try with the 2xAAs in a separate battery holder. I suspect it will use less current powered with the batteries.
Most inexpensive green lasers produce green 532nm by starting with 808nm infrared and passing that light through crystals to get green. This process is inefficient. And if the crystals are poorly aligned it can be very inefficient. Lots of power in, very little green out. DX would not be a reliable place to buy lasers at all. The actual power of your laser could be anything.
Sorry for more Off Topic Pilotdog. :~
If you can just double your budget, you may be glad you did.
You can get this Blue 445nm at 1000mW or 1W that looks like
Arnold’s Gatling gunin Terminator for the following price. Look at his
reviews - pretty high %. You’d just have to get some $11 new batteries instead of the 18650’s.
Or if HAVE to stay with the 18650’s, here’s one right in your budget, in red:
http://www.aliexpress.com/snapshot/6724412625.html?orderId=67691782650574
Or yep, green IS the easiest to see. At 100mW, Here it is in your budget and with 18650: http://www.aliexpress.com/item/COOL-OXLasers-SPECIAL-OFFER-100mw-532nm-Mini-green-laser-pointer-focusable-green-laser-torch-burn-matches/2044101393.html?spm=2114.31010208.4.23.7JmF8x
BTW, green is about 10x more powerful and easier to see than red and blue, given the same power in mW.
My 301 from Gearbest is pretty awsome for $7...
18650, green, also available in red and blue (blue on order now), several different SKUs available for different prices, some advertised as burning.
I still haven't been able to start a fire, buthave gotten wisps of smoke from a match head.
Ok, this maybe not be a budget suggestion. But i like to find where the limits are.
This guys store sells some of the craziest strong lasers money can buy.
And you are a accomplished modder pilotdog, so i know you could build something that burn stuff with components from there.
One good example is the 9mm 445nm laser diode that can be run up to 5W :bigsmile: ………. the X Drive seems to be the better of the driver options out there.
Hehe, i will just say, that i will never build or play with lasers, i know myself i like to build it as “hot” as i know how, BUT i also know i am not careful enough to use them safely. So NO lasers for me 
I have a 1w blue Tmack laser, cost me about $250, can burn things, hardly ever gets used. Runs off a single 18650. The novelty wears off quickly and you can only use it in short bursts. Lasers can’t get hot like modded lights can, it damages them, only 30 second bursts.