The IR Laser Beige Market 

Always awesome to see unnecessary government intervention makes us go to the chinese market. Its ridiculous

I think the Red Market is a better term for the chinesium unrestricted lasers

I can't thank you enough for not adopting a long and obnoxious intro I have to skip.

I would love to see a crossover event between Hop and StyroPyro. Edit - for those who don’t know the joy of styropyro’s videos, he builds some of the most absurd hobbyist lasers I have ever seen.

Hi Hop, FDA agent here. Thank you for bringing the Laserspeed FL-5 to my attention. I might get promoted if all goes well. Thanks again!

Glad to see that the Food and Drug Administration has authority over invisible laser beams…

The hardest part of NV is explaining to mom where my money keeps going and having to explain what everything does. "So this box shoots invisible lasers nobody else can see?? Why would you want that?" "Only the other scary people with night vision can see, mom." "Ok then, a laser show for your friends and only your friends?" "Yeahhhhh"

I just built my own. Bought a VCSEL and a stand alone Laserspeed FP laser. It took some work to beef up the VCSEL and wire the 2 together, but I can illuminate trees up to 400 yards. The construction is all metal and it holds zero. It also made me aware of how badly we as consumers are getting gouged. The components are dirt cheap.

The first rule of ir light club, you don’t talk about ir light club.

What civilians need is company that will sell 3D printed laser bodies and all the module guts and hi power laser parts that can all be self assembled and self repaired.

"Too concerned about Chinese manufacturing to bring a Bao Feng radio into their home" gave me a smile. I mean, there's a point in there - Several perhaps. But... Start by throwing away your smartphone maybe.

By all accounts the OGL is probably civilian vaporware for 2024 despite lofty promises in 2023. So go ahead, find one of the lasers hop mentions this video, buy it, cry, and then get use to it. That's it bros.

It would be great if the laser modules get better, even to the point where they have to be neutered, but designed in a way that makes it easy to dig into the guts and swap in full power components.

I'm always excited for Hoplopfheil's night vision videos, even as I sit here with my PVS-7's and DBAL I2 with no intention to ever upgrade.

I bought a VIS/IR LAM from amazon a few years ago for about 250 that appears to be using the same parts, especially the tape switch, as the laserspeed. the unit was called the FL3000. I ended up splicing a knock off modlite button onto wiring. I only used about 250 rounds from a MK18 and it held zero, but that volume is negligible compared to a real test.

+200 social credits

I work at a gun range in CA, and a rep from EOTech came in and we started talking and I asked him about the OOGL and he said that there is a civilian version that he has handled and should go for about $1900

You can splice a elecbee M8 3pin female connector (90 degrees preferred) and splice it onto a unity button. It uses small set screws so no soldering needed.

My hopes lie in the upcoming Somogear NGAL with metal housing over plastic

........... the stigma on 18650 batteries is wild. The fact that we have only heard of a few people having them blow up on them with the crowd of people that was caring for them is just a testament to how good they are

I really wish I could jump 10 years into the future and see what the IR Laser market will look like. Right now where in the same spot with IR Lasers were we were with red dots in 2005. At some point were going to look back on things like the Somogear/Lazerspeed things like we currently look back on the TRS-25.

Part of the Holosun gang here. For a non VSCEL, civ powered laser, an LS321 hits my cost/performance threshold.

Two Hop Facts videos in one day? If only Brasslophile released one to make it a trifecta.

I enjoyed the subtle cat cameos.

Thanks for putting these on the FDA radar!

The FL5 theoretically has everything I want on a LAM device and the build quality of the switches and buttons are really the thing holding me back. Hopefully they keep iterating on the design along with their other products... For the brief timespan we have them accessible for purchase.

Thank you, Mr. Hops-a-lot !

It is pretty funny how you can get a Chinese knockoff of a Russian laser like the perst 4 that's far more powerful than anything that should be legal in America for like $40 for less than a tenth of the price of most lasers. Durability and accuracy at times may be questionable, That means the electronics should be cheap, so you're really just paying for the mounting. it does just say that the market is extremely over-inflated. We all know the really cheap stuff is shitty, but it does exist. And because of that, I just don't think quality lasers should be 10 to 25x the cost. The mark up is insane. And I feel like these companies could make a lot more money with more intermediate products with similar quality to a larger civilian group. The limit truly is just the expense of night vision in general. If night vision was more accessible then these would be cheaper.

Your thoughts pretty much mirror my own. I'm pleased with the Fl5 I have but the few tweaks you mentioned would make it pretty sweet. Oh and get rid of the strobe function. I like the vis override but strobes make me feel like I'm living in a cheaper than dirt catalog

I’m holding out for the CTF3, hopefully any week now. 🤞

Honestly, this was a pretty spot on analysis of these laser aiming modules. Especially the last part, there is a chance that they gain traction and end up like Holosun, but if they do then I am sure the government will do exactly what you said. This brings up the question of whether it's best to wait for further product refinement, or buy now.

I will never need an IR laser but you did a really good job getting the information across in this video.

I bought an SMS IR laser and IR illuminator unit for $150, and so far it's been solid. the layout and tape switch are a little jank, but it's a killer deal for the unit.

we just need an LS321 with a VSCEL illuminator. idk what's stopping Hsun, give with the lumens, nerds.

I have been pleasantly suprised with the HS1 IR + either a SF Vampire or Inforce WML IR. That's my go to inexpensive combo on shorty guns that don't see rifle distances. My MPX is very happy with the WML/HS1 combo. IR laser offset to passive dot is a bit of an issue, but for the use case distances in 9mm, it works well. I would like to try the Laserspeed or Phantom Hill (especially a Phantom Hill Kiji setup) though.

I purchased my DBAL-D2 a few days ago. I’m waiting on it to come in the mail. I think it’s the best bang for your buck in the current LAM market

D2 illuminator has been very nice for me. Can't see needing anything more for most use cases.

Im doing a night shoot on the 8th to test it, but I am pretty pleased and impressed with my new somogear ngal. Another channel showed it shutting off under fire, I havent had that issue. Only real mod so far is I didnt like the stock thumbscrew so I swapped it out with 10-32 hex nuts. I cant see any loss of zero or anything so far, but I havent put enough rounds through it yet

I have a somogear ngal(potted pcb)I just bought and have shot with twice so far and it’s held zero and I’ve had no issues.That’s just my experience with it though

Blessed are we having 2 videos from hop in a single day

Love your videos, keep up the good work!

I am soooooo glad I got a full power Perst 3 when they were like $850

I have a feeling that the wide variety of ratings on the somogears are in part because they seem to make iterative changes without a "gen 2" or really even announcing it. The only time they ever seem to have announced something was the "improved polymer body" after Sassfacts' mount broke.

We need a civ legal laser module with a modular driver and diode that you can swap out with a module and diode sold separately that bump the power up

I just ordered the SMS XK68 IR. The few initial reviews are very promising, and they are dirt cheap(relatively). Worth the risk compared to a somogear or others.

Thanks for the info

So, I suppose we are ignoring custom built lasers :) For those unaware, lasers are surprisingly easy to make with modern technology. We actually had to completely rebuild a laser in my undergraduate research lab which was UV class 4 laser for experiments. I think it was 1~1.5 watts. I was told it could burn you, but I didn't bother testing it. We had all sorts of janky safety measures as well as janky way of ignoring the built-in safety measures. Physics is fun. Be scientists kids

I also spoke to a Holosun rep at an expo I attended last month. I asked when they’re finally going to release a VSCEL laser and he said Shot Show this year.

Hop, I think it'd be dope of you went over all of the red dot footprints available for pistols and what they look like. It'd really help the beginners.... and me

I've got 3 of the laserspeeds, and they're cleaner than my persts that were double the price.

Halloween doesn't end in Y, mr Hoplopheil. Good to see you break tradition

That new somogear all aluminum NGAL clone is lookin super interesting rn

I know it’s not the same for lasers but for sights at least, but Holosun has really grown on me they are starting to find themselves as my go to.

In short the IR market in the US is a wild and unfair place

Leave it to Hop to find me the sketchy laser company’s that could my Terminator 1 visible laser sight 45long slide dreams come true.

One Hundred Concepts small light caps fit the laser speed FL5. Ranger bands as far down the light and laser heads as you can get them and shock cords hooked in the back on the battery cap and illuminator dial.

I now have over 1000 rds on a Somo PEQ 15 with no issues. I had a couple bad ones that the laser would kick off under recoil but one went to my sons 22 416 clone and his airsoft gat. I have a newer NGAL Somo but only a few hundred rounds on it.

My SOTAC Perst-4 looks really good on my airsoft AK 105

The peq2A def hit the old memory box

invisible sight also deserves looking at if they are in fact real and able to deliver.

a great interesting video have a good one Hop.

10:05 My brain goes from full gray-ish laser autism to full "KITTY!!!!" in the blink of an eye.

That free-float function haha I lost it

BEST FIREARMS CHANNEL ON RU-vid!!

Isn’t that the benefit of somogear as you pointed out with your salt peq15 comment. You run it hard you will still break it and lose that 1600+ you put into it with no support. Somogear is airsoft grade because China says it has to be otherwise they will be in legal hot water in China. That doesn’t stop them from doing real steel testing with Americans to improve and find breaking points. The laser speed may have addressed some concerns like the illuminator (all my somogears have been fine on centering when focus with minor shift) but I just lost co-alignment of my lasers after a couple thousand rounds at this point. As always. Great info.

really got my hopes up thinking you were gonna review somogears new alluminum body NGAL. the peq 15 holds up great to 556 recoil as long as its potted. havent been banging it around too much so cant say anything about the durability of the body yet. if the NGAL is a winner its gonna go on my primary and the peq will go on a backup rifle or airsoft gun

I got that stupid cheap SMS laser IR unit and I am surprisingly impressed by it. I would love to see you do a video on it.

I bought it on your recommendation. I have the DBAL & a Holosun already never bought a full power peq on ebay or dbal .. I wanted to but the price was to high instead of buying a $2000 dollar laser I bought a $2000 dollar gun or $2000 dollars of ammunition. Because the black market price was just to high. My PVS 14 & civilian lasers are all I need unless you want me to use an IZLID to vector airstrikes. I just bought a Laserspeed FL5 on your recommendation. Update: I place my order on the 21st of Nov and it arrived on the 30th Way ahead of their scheduled delivery date. Put some 123's in it waiting for the sun to set. I think it's going on an MP5 at 3 o'clock position it just makes sense.

Wadsn raidx laser for about 200 bucks is awesome. It holds zero for 556, metal construction, and you can give lasic to people a county over. Don’t know how their illuminators work but the mawl knockoff looks convincing.

I bought an LS-M3 earlier this summer, it's a solid unit. Just chunky.

Iv had great luck with the Viridian HS1 IR. It's got a goof battery but other than that I like it. Gets the job done on the cheap and it's held up to my abuse for 2 years now

Oh, big laser! Are you from Texas? Yes! With big battery! I see. The barrell is big too)))

She lazer on my speed till I somogear.

75th ranger 2 bat here, you’ll be shocked to learn that you don’t really need a laser that goes out beyond 100 yards and you’ll absolutely shit your pants to find out that you actually don’t even need one beyond 100 FEET! Quick target acquisition with a laser aiming module is really only useful in an urban environment. As for brightness levels just get better NVGs. Buying nerfed products sucks but knowing what and how they’re used is the most important part of gear ownership.

Wish you tested the Somogear NGAL

Any thoughts on Invisible Sight? Seems to be a "upgraded" version of the Somogears but advertised and warrantied to hold zero and also co-align the IR/vis lasers.

Been waiting for this video

I was literally just in the middle of watching your video on the B.E. Meyers Kiji

Considering the market sucks noodles, I'm just gonna do the age old strategy of "Wait it out and let others waste their money first".

As usual the day after I buy something hop comes out with a video tearing it apart lol

USNV DesignatIR is the Goldilocks for me... Very happy with mine.

I came here with Hope only to find Hop.

Some 18650s are longer than others die to having an inbuilt overcharge protection circuit. The laser probably has issues with either that circuit or the additional length

The peq2 is probably the worst product to buy from somogear. As far I know they haven’t been updating them like their peq-15 or NGAL. I have their early model peq-15 and also their current updated model with a “more durable” housing. The main differences between them are. 1. The new model has coalign vis and IR laser 2. The New model has a much wider illuminator 3. The new model doesn’t shut off from recoil ( 5.56 so far ). With the older model I had to put a few o-rings in the battery compartment to stop this from happening. The older model wasn’t potted. The new one is. 4. The new model appears to be just slightly heavier than the old one. I’m not sure if it’s due to the potting compound or a different housing material they’re using. Wether or not it’s “more durable” remains to be seen. I broke the windage knob for the illuminator on the old one so we’ll see.

Oh there most certainly IS a black market for lasers. I've only recently become aware of it myself, but it basically boils down to having someone with LE/MIL credentials buy a full power unit from the manufacturer/retailer for you & then you pay them for it & get the laser. Needless to say it's expensive, fairly risky & (I'd imagine) rather difficult to find someone with the right credentials that'd be willing to basically put their career on the line for something like this. I've also heard of LE/MIL guys that will use thier credentials (for a fee) to help get full power gray market lasers like peq15's back to the manufacturer to get serviced if they're broken. Same deal, as they're basically selling thier credentials to help us poor civs out. At least that's what I've heard/read about on facebook. For the record, I've not attempted either method myself.

The real solution is to modularize the laser diode components, so you can sell the laser housings with civ legals diodes then just swap out the diode to whatever you want. I don't think the FDA regulation apply to the components, it seems high power IR diodes are readily available.

Hey. Its famous RU-vidr Hop!

Glad I bought some zenitco gear when I had the chance.

You ever consider starting your own ir illuminator company? U have good insight and feel for what we need.

Just to be clear there are potted and non potted somogear devices. The potted ones are the ones ppl typically talk about for shooting "real steel”

We just need holosun to make a laser with a vecsl illuminator.

I only do passive aiming because I just don't want to point out where I'm at.

production of the dbal i2 ending is such a tragedy. Gonna cling on mine for dear life forever now.

Hop… are you secretly Canadian. Your switching between metric and freedom units in the same sentence warms the maple syrup pumping through my veins.

Someone has to throw together a guide on modifying them for full power output. Maybe even eyeball melting levels of power output perhaps maybe.

*purchases $22 eBay Green Aiming Laser module, removes "doubler crystal" and epoxy pots unit back together* Most cheap green lasers are just IR lasers with a crystal that converts IR to visible...and the little eBay Aiming modules seem to hold zero ok... *chomps crayon* Aint Tacticool, but maybe useful in a pinch..

I wonder how soon they might update the unit. ie buy now while you can vs wait. Still using brasses hs321 and a somo.

Dunno man, my deal A3 illuminator was ok, but the laser was so anemic I literally could not see it on the hi/hi setting. So the lasers ARE an issue too

interesting video.

Okay off topic, but how does Luke like the LC Charger setup? I've been thinking of getting one as a neat little NV capable PDW esque gun. The setup I was thinking of ultimately going for would be similar to what his looked like. It's not concealable like the TP9 that Brassfacts loves but it's still pretty small and handy, at least I would think