SoL 4: IMMA FIRING MAH LAZOR

I recently attempted to build a burning laser out of scrap parts from a DVD burner and some components I found online.  After some research, the general online consensus was that a 6 volt power source with a voltage regulating circuit would adequately drive and protect an 180mw laser taking from said burner. Unfortunately, throughout the course of the build, I ran into multiple problems First, the DVD diode I extracted was rimmed with extra solder, which made it nearly impossible to fit into the aixiz laser housing that I had purchased. After a lot of scraping and sanding, I managed to get it into the housing using a vice. After that ordeal that took about 2 weeks, I screwed up and broke off the negative pin of the diode. Spending another hour soldering it on, I finally got everything seemingly ready. The components started to come in, but I am still missing a couple 47uf 37 volt capacitors to finish the driver circuit.

The point of the driver circuit is to control the voltage going into the diode. If I put 6 volts directly into the diode, it would burn out almost immediately due to the fact that even DC currents have voltage spikes. The main component would be a LM317 voltage regulator and a 100ohm potentiometer. The potentiometer serves as a variable resistor for the circuit, adjusting brightness of the laser (and also the current going into it). Unfortunately I now hit my final bug, which was not being allowed to use the laser, as it could potentially harm my eyes. Hmpf, maybe I’ll find some other use for it in the future.