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Thread: Extreme Lasers... good or bad?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Nov 2005
    Posts
    84

    Default Extreme Lasers... good or bad?

    Has anybody worked with this company before? I recently bought an 80mw green from them through ebay for about $200 (a steal).

    Laser was pretty much DOA... very very faint output and irregular dot pattern.

    Their phone goes to voicemail most of the time (during business hours) and emails and messages seem to be answered when they get around to it.

    When I threatened to give negative ebay feedback their response was downright nasty.

    I sent the laser back on 11/21 but have yet to hear anything back from them as to status.

    Wondering if made a mistake...?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    457

    Default

    Fellow I have dealt with in the past had similar problems.

    He tried to get a replacement for the 50 some odd mW laser he got from them. The wouldnt take it back and said "The diode will cost $500 to replace"

    Strange as I remember him paying $300ish for it.

    Sorry to hear about your bad luck, at the very least I hope people learn from people who post experiences like these.

    If you ever get it back tell us how everything went with the return/repair process.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    May 2005
    Location
    Washington D.C.
    Posts
    105

    Default

    Had one, it sucked. Although I thought it was good, when it was my first. But now I know better. The larger ones look to be of Chinese origin, they might be better. The one I had looked like a modded leadlight in a heat sink., it was suppose to be 100mw, but I'm sure it was not.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Florida
    Posts
    802

    Default

    Yeah, Someone gave me one of those to fix
    Turns out.. it was a Leadlight inside.

    And , it was also supposed to be a 100mW unit.
    Humm.. Musta been a pick of the litter of Leadlights.
    You know how rare it is to find a Leadlight that'l do 100mW.
    yeah,.. Thats what I thought.
    At least it had an IR filter on it.
    That diode had to be smokin'
    thats the reason they dont last long.

    Im also guilty of made-up green lasers using Leadlight modules
    in one of our heatsinks...
    But that was to keep-em on the cheap before the over-seas manu's
    came along and flooded the market.
    But I wouldnt take it over 50mW..
    I like to run them at about 30mW for long life..

    My rule of thumb.. Is to run a laser diode at half its capable power...
    Keep it cool..
    And maybe it will last a few thousand hours.

    On getting one replaced... Good luck.
    It would have to be sent back over-seas to get a replacement
    or credit issued to them..
    So, Its not worth their time... To Them.
    The just want cash flow it seems... cant blame them.

    At least if one of ours goes bad.. I wont leave you in the dark !!!
    "My signature has been taken, so Insert another here"
    http://repairfaq.ece.drexel.edu/sam/laserfaq.htm
    *^_^* aka PhiloUHF

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2005
    Posts
    84

    Default Laser finally arrived

    I got through to Extreme Lasers on 12/12. Our conversation went something like this...

    Me: I wanted to check on the status of my 80mw greenie I sent back.
    Them: ok... what laser?
    Me: The one I sent back before thanksgiving... order number ####
    Them: Hmmm... yeah I think I remeber... (shuffling papers)... you said it was misaligned?
    Me: Well, I don't really know what's wrong with it... I'm just guessing it was damaged in shipping.
    Them: Yes, that kind of damage can take a long time to fix. Probably a few weeks.
    Me: A few MORE weeks? Can I just get my money back?
    Them: Yes, but there's a twenty percent restocking fee. Or, if you prefer we can send you a new one for a fee... [something like] a hundred dollars.
    Me: Restocking fee? [expletive] All I want is a working laser as I paid for!!!
    Them: How long did you have the laser before it stopped working?
    Me: It never worked! I unpacked it, plugged it in and the problem was immediately apparent.
    Them: Oh... uh, we should send you a new one then?
    Me: Yes!
    Them: Ok, I'll send one out tomorrow.

    12/15: Laser arrives! Works fine. Very bright. Not packed very well (same as the first one), which accounts for the loss of one of the blades on the cooling fan. Easily replaced though.

    I'll put a review on the Product Review section when I geta chance.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Posts
    25

    Default

    I also have the 80mw version, it was my first laser. I think I paid around 170-180 dollars. I was so excited to get it....I took it with me everywhere. I used it every chance I could. I even bought a DC to AC converter for my car so I could use it on the top of the parking structure after work. That was about 2 years ago... To this day it still works great, although it never was the greatest quality. I must have been lucky.

    After reading Marcooni's post I am a bit concerned. I don't like the idea of running anything at or near its limit. Maybe thats why you don't see the 80mw unit on Ebay anymore?????

    I'll see what happens...

    themadscientist

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Posts
    2,478

    Default

    Is this the outfit in Houston that trades on eBay, and took a year or so before they got round to even declaring the power of the laser in any listing?

    I never bought from them, I got a terrible sense of all mouth and no trousers, they sounded like they liked selling more than they liked lasers.

    I always ask the seller something to see whether they know about, or are passionate about lasers. It's usually easy to spot a box-shifter based on the response you get. Box shifters think that two words are a waste of their time, and it shows in their response.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Posts
    19

    Default

    It sounds like they're still running their operation the same way. I recently bought a "GBS-100" from the off eBay but it most often puts out 40mw of green and has never put out more than 75mw. I never know what it's going to put out when I turn it on. It was packaged badly (rattling around in loose packing) and getting information out of "Jure" is like pulling teeth.

    I have yet to find out what's required to get a specific power level out when I turn it on.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Location
    Norway
    Posts
    1,303

    Default

    be safe... buy from spec on this forum
    and you will have lasers on time.. and 100% working and tested

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Posts
    19

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by liteglow
    be safe... buy from spec on this forum
    and you will have lasers on time.. and 100% working and tested
    Does he sell 50-100mW lasers suitable for holography?

    MaxYZ sells some really sweet modules (and they're nice people) but so far their modules aren't usable for my work. There was a possibility that the extreme laser might work but it's got other problem (not the least of which is their support) that render them unusable.

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