Now THAT'S one Wicked Laser

JohnTheTexican

JohnTheTexican

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Wicked Lasers now has a 1 watt blue laser that will blind you in a microsecond and set your cat on fire in a flash. XXX How cool is that?

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It comes with this warning:

Warning: Extremely dangerous is an understatement to the power of 1W of laser power. It will blind permanently and instantly and set fire quickly to skin and other body parts, use with extreme caution and only when using the included eye protection. Customers will be required to completely read and agree to our Class IV Laser Hazard Acknowledgment Form.
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that is pretty sick. i didn't see it noted on the site anywhere. hopefully they only sell conus. i would hate to have that get in the hands of the wrong people
 
That's an impressive laser and I can think of some good uses for it in my hands.However
the risk of accidently blinding myself/youself or someone else is real.In the wrong hands it's as dangerous as a firearm IMO.It may not kill you but blinded or on fire with no noise and from I believe from what I read 200 meters it's no joke.

http://www.wickedlasers.com/laser-tech/blue_light_hazard.html
"At this level of irradiance, skin exposure to the intense blue laser light can possibly cause cancer. Do not allow bare skin to be exposed, including your face when wearing safety goggles, to light diffusely reflected from any surface closer than several inches. This laser is a thousand times stronger than sunlight on skin and any type of exposure should be avoided whether it be from the collimated beam or close exposure to its bright diffused reflections.

Blue light hazard can cause BLINDNESS and not just color perception issues. The power of this laser is no joke, at 1W the Spyder III Pro Arctic is a Class 4 Laser. Do not allow unprotected eye exposure to diffusely scattered light from the beam terminating on a wall, the floor or other flat surface from this laser closer than 3 feet. Accidental eye exposure will definitely result in instant retina tissue damage even within just milliseconds of exposure. Direct eye contact with the beam or reflected will cause instant permanent damage and blindness. Sometimes blindness may take a day or longer for the onset. Unlike instant injury from a bright flash of a red or green laser, this effect is cumulative over 24 hours. It is also possible that such an exposure could cause retinal degeneration and even loss of vision later in life.

This is a very serious issue and would like to reiterate that extreme care, proper safety gear and the necessary safety precautions be followed when using the Spyder III Pro Arctic, it is not a toy, it is a high power Class 4 1W laser.In addition, this laser must NEVER be used to play with your pets.Close proximity to the beam's diffused reflection off floors and walls could potentially cause injury and blindness.In general, DO NOT aim this laser on yourself, on your skin, on animals, on others or target moving vehicles and airplanes.

The Spyder III Pro Arctic blue laser should only be handheld by individuals who have appropriate laser safety training and product familiarity in using Class 4 lasers. For more information and guidance please refer to ANSI Standard Z136.1 from the American National Standards Institute on the safe use of lasers."
 
grunt soldier said:
that is pretty sick. i didn't see it noted on the site anywhere. hopefully they only sell conus. i would hate to have that get in the hands of the wrong people
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They're shipped from China to 70 countries around the world, so you can bet if the "wrong people" want 'em, they'll get 'em.
 
I not going to start building until I get my glasses (they're scheduled to ship out the 17th,) I ain't going blind over a toy.
 
It'll be 445nM, like the one in the OP. Output will depend on diode efficiency,and how hot I decide to run it. I think I'm going to initially shoot for 900mW - 1W, but I might tone it down after that gets old. Oh, and yes, it will be handheld with the option of tripod mount.
 
proud2deviate said:
It'll be 445nM, like the one in the OP. Output will depend on diode efficiency,and how hot I decide to run it. I think I'm going to initially shoot for 900mW - 1W, but I might tone it down after that gets old.
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Approximately how much would it all cost?
 
I ordered one yesterday :D

I'm kind of nervous about using it though. Apparently the included eye protection is only good for about a quarter second (direct hit), so you still have to be extremely careful about where you point the thing :eek:
Without eye protection, even reflections from matte surfaces can cause eye damage.

These new laser diodes are just insane. Up until now you had to fork out thousands to get this kind of power in a handheld laser (in the visible spectrum at least). This thing is $200, that's crazy cheap!

I hear Sony is working on a laser projector using 6W diodes... The future is so bright I gotta wear shades; multi-spectrum laser shades that is :p The thought of stupid kids getting their hands on these lasers scares me.
 
ryts100 said:
Approximately how much would it all cost?
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The diode was $50 from a group buy. I bought the host, heatsink, driver, and an AR coated glass lens for $160. Safety glasses were $77, and are absolutely necessary at these powers (if you value your vision, that is.)

A driver will cost you $15-25ish, glass lenses go for $15 at the low end and $60 at the top. Everything else varies wildly.
 
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Ikarus said:
I ordered one yesterday :D

I'm kind of nervous about using it though. Apparently the included eye protection is only good for about a quarter second (direct hit), so you still have to be extremely careful about where you point the thing :eek:
Without eye protection, even reflections from matte surfaces can cause eye damage.

These new laser diodes are just insane. Up until now you had to fork out thousands to get this kind of power in a handheld laser (in the visible spectrum at least). This thing is $200, that's crazy cheap!

I hear Sony is working on a laser projector using 6W diodes... The future is so bright I gotta wear shades; multi-spectrum laser shades that is :p The thought of stupid kids getting their hands on these lasers scares me.
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I still haven't figured out what I'm going to do with one. It seems sort of like owning a .50BMG rifle. They're really cool and all that, but where the heck can you use them? (I've had a Barrett M82A1 for seven or eight years, and I still haven't found a place to shoot it.)

I've also been thinking about liability issues. The manufacturer's in China, so they're effectively beyond the jurisdiction of US courts. But anyone who buys one could be in for a world of hurt if it's resold. I think this would likely be considered an unsafe design, and anyone in the distribution chain could be liable if someone gets hurt. I'd smash one into little pieces rather than sell it or give it away.
 
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If these things can seriously blind someone that quickly then I can't see them being legal for very long. The thought of some stupid kid getting their hands on one of these things is pretty scary. Do class IV lasers require some kind or license or are they at least restricted to 18+ years of age or something?

on a side note the concept is freakin awesome... lightsabers here we come.
 
I've looked for laws on these, but have been unable to find any--at least not relating to who can buy or own one. I suspect that once word gets out, we'll see some legislation, or at least customs interdiction.
 
They fall under FDA regulation. To be compliant, the device in question has to have some sort of lock out feature and a "On" light. This one qualifies.

Of course, all that can change once the soccer moms start shrieking.
 
18 + really sounds like a good idea for this thing. Hell i'm sixteen and i'd still back that. Way too many idiots around at my age. Although it does sound incredible, I like the .50 BMG analogy.
 
Would a laser like this be suitable for burning designs into smooth wood surfaces? Would the reflections from doing this kind of work be dangerous with or w/o eye protection?
 
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