First laser, what cheap goggles will protect me?

[Wikwoo]

So I found a really good deal on a 1w green laser from AliExpress, and I've been wanting to get into lasers for a long time so I bought it, and now I'm wondering what sort of safety goggles I would need. I also am wondering if just looking at the dot will hurt my eyes without goggles. Keep in mind I'm not looking to spend much and my only experience with lasers is a cheap 5mW pointer so try to keep things simple. Thanks in advance :yh:

 

[Apocalypse]

So I found a really good deal on a 1w green laser from AliExpress, and I've been wanting to get into lasers for a long time so I bought it, and now I'm wondering what sort of safety goggles I would need. I also am wondering if just looking at the dot will hurt my eyes without goggles. Keep in mind I'm not looking to spend much and my only experience with lasers is a cheap 5mW pointer so try to keep things simple. Thanks in advance :yh:

First of all, welcome to the forum. It would be nice if you would add a bit more information about yourself such as who you are and where you're from.

Secondly, you should probably read up on laser safety here.

To answer your question, the short answer is yes, looking at the dot will damage your eyes without goggles. Here are goggles that protect against blue and green lasers. This is the minimum protection I would recommend, the cost of goggles is infinitely less than the cost of your vision.

Also, what is your good deal 1W green laser? Is it a 532nm or a 520nm? I'm also not sure of the reliability of the lasers made by Chinese companies.

 

[Wikwoo]

Yeah, I don't know if I trust "Lomon" either, but here's the link [RedStar] 1000mW Green laser pointer Lighting match Red laser pointer stars Multifunction 303 laser retail packing with 18650-in Laser Pens from Computer & Office on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group I don't think it actually says what nm it is (although I'm assuming it's 532)

 

[crazyspaz]

That'll be more like 100mW (.1W) IF you are lucky. More realistically will be around 50-80mW. Simple red/orange uvex glasses will offer pretty decent peotection for cheap. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003OBZ64M/ref=oh_o00_s02_i01_details. If you search "uvex" at the bottom of the page you will see several threads on them. They aren't laser safety certified, but for a few bucks they offer a surprising amount of protection. Just remeber they won't block the IR from that laser, so still be wary of reflections and such.

 

[Wikwoo]

Well, if it's anything less than 1000mW I'll be filing a dispute with AliExpress. It says that one of the grounds for dispute is that the item wasn't what was advertised. So I hope that they would actually refund me and not be shady about it.

 

[Pi R Squared]

A 1000mW green laser will cost you $500-$1000, this laser is just typical Chinese bullshit, they make ridiculous claims all the time. You shouldn't buy cheap lasers on AliExpress and you are always taking a risk if you buy a green laser that cheap. The 532nm lasers break easy to begin with, when you buy a really cheap one like that it may be DOA or can quit in a few days and will break if you drop it or if you put the battery in backwards. Don't expect too much, that laser uses a cheap DPSS module that could be anything from 5mW - 100mW. If you already ordered it let us know what you think of it when you get it, it will almost certainly have a visible beam. Be sure to charge your battery before using it, Li-Ion batteries normally ship uncharged.

Alan

 

[Wikwoo]

I thought it might be too good to be true. Well I already ordered it so we'll wait and see, 20 bucks is still pretty good for 100mW as long as it doesn't break right away. I have another Chinese laser that's 5mW and it barely works, I have to twist the battery compartment around just to make it turn on and most of the time it doesn't do anything. Hopefully it won't be the same thing here. I wonder, do I still need safety goggles for 100mW or is it safe as long as I don't point it at reflective surfaces?

 

[Trendkilla254]

I thought it might be too good to be true. Well I already ordered it so we'll wait and see, 20 bucks is still pretty good for 100mW as long as it doesn't break right away. I have another Chinese laser that's 5mW and it barely works, I have to twist the battery compartment around just to make it turn on and most of the time it doesn't do anything. Hopefully it won't be the same thing here. I wonder, do I still need safety goggles for 100mW or is it safe as long as I don't point it at reflective surfaces?

Do you need eyes? In all seriousness, yes you need goggles/glasses if over 5mw. If used outdoors and away from people/aircraft/ufos/animals/cars/police(because they don't count as people right?[insert sarcasm])/reflective surfaces... maybe not. You should not even turn on that laser until you have spent several hours reading safety information as well as laser laws. Seriously, 5 years $250,000.00 fine for lasing an aircraft. Assault/wreckless endangerment if pointed at a person. Child endangerment if you let a child use it and they get injured. Quite a few reasons why you should take quite a bit of time to research the hobby.

A 3-Watt for 10 bucks!!! I bet this is totally legit

 

[diachi]

I thought it might be too good to be true. Well I already ordered it so we'll wait and see, 20 bucks is still pretty good for 100mW as long as it doesn't break right away. I have another Chinese laser that's 5mW and it barely works, I have to twist the battery compartment around just to make it turn on and most of the time it doesn't do anything. Hopefully it won't be the same thing here. I wonder, do I still need safety goggles for 100mW or is it safe as long as I don't point it at reflective surfaces?

At least you didn't spend a lot of money on it.

But still... Same laser: High Power Military Laser 303 532nm Green Starry Light Zoomable Laser Pen Lazer Pointer - 1 x 18650-8.72 and Free Shipping| GearBest.com

You'll be safe outdoors at 100mW, indoors it's a little risky without goggles. If you are *very* careful you'll be OK. Don't go pointing it at planes/trains/automobiles/animals/peoples windows/people if you are outdoors... Or indoors for that matter.

 

[Pi R Squared]

I thought it might be too good to be true. Well I already ordered it so we'll wait and see, 20 bucks is still pretty good for 100mW as long as it doesn't break right away. I have another Chinese laser that's 5mW and it barely works, I have to twist the battery compartment around just to make it turn on and most of the time it doesn't do anything. Hopefully it won't be the same thing here. I wonder, do I still need safety goggles for 100mW or is it safe as long as I don't point it at reflective surfaces?

I paid only $11 for one that only lasted 10 days. Well there will be disagreement here about the safety glasses, be aware that if you take a direct hit in the eye that it will do permanent damage, other than that it should be ok to not use them if you are careful to avoid an accident, watch out for mirrors and any glass and don't drop it or have it roll off a table and flash you in the eye. Don't look directly at the dot up too close or while burning anything, I doubt it can burn but you might try it, it might burn black plastic or pop a black balloon. You should be able to tell if the dot is too bright to look at, just don't shine it at something 2 or 3 feet in front of you without the glasses.

I see you are from Manitoba, you may be the only one, feel free to post here if you want: http://laserpointerforums.com/f57/countries-lpf-where-you-94536.html I am trying to make a list of where our members are from, am not bothering to list cities.

Alan

 

[Wikwoo]

Oh.. wow that is the same laser. Do you think I should cancel the order and just save up for a legit 1w? Also do you know if LuckLaser is a legit site or a ripoff? It looks very Chinese to me.

 

[Wikwoo]

I feel like I really jumped the gun on this... I think I might cancel the order and just save up for the laser that I wanted originally, the WickedLasers Arctic Spyder 3, 1.4w version.

 

[Trendkilla254]

Oh.. wow that is the same laser. Do you think I should cancel the order and just save up for a legit 1w? Also do you know if LuckLaser is a legit site or a ripoff? It looks very Chinese to me.

I feel like I really jumped the gun on this... I think I might cancel the order and just save up for the laser that I wanted originally, the WickedLasers Arctic Spyder 3, 1.4w version.

Don't double post please. Use the Edit button. It increases post count and clutters up the forum. It is also against the rules.

Also don't buy from WickedLasers. I would recommend canceling the order ASAP. I would then spend as much time as possible reviewing safety and reading through the trusted sites/vendors forum post. There are several threads that talk about why not to go with WickedLasers. There are also SEVERAL threads about which company to go with. There are also threads about building lasers vs buying lasers and what you can expect.

TLDR - Yes you jumped the gun. Start from the beginning with research. Don't buy WickedLasers.

 

[Benm]

Indeed, just get that $21 aliexpress laser. It will not be 1 watt, it will probably not even be 0.1 watt unless you are really lucky, but it's not a huge amount of money lost. It actually could be a decent laser if it was sold as a 50-100 mW model.

I'm not sure what the practical policy on refunds is. I suppose you do not have a laser power meter, but you might have a multimeter to check the input current on the thing. That probably is so low that it hardly takes 1 watt out of the battery so could never provide 1 watt of light even if 100% efficient.

It could take a bit over 1 watt input though, and the vendor might claim that the rated power is input rather than output similarly to how the power of lightbulbs is normally declared. They would not technically be wrong in that case, though it is misleading as lasers are commonly rated by optical output power.

 

[Apocalypse]

I feel like I really jumped the gun on this... I think I might cancel the order and just save up for the laser that I wanted originally, the WickedLasers Arctic Spyder 3, 1.4w version.

You might want to consider getting a 1W+ 520nm diode and building your own laser if you're really into green. You can find them here. A 532nm DPSS 1W laser will cost you a lot especially if it's a handheld. If not, you can get a 465nm blue diode.

~20$ isn't much though. I would keep the order if this is your first laser. If you have never seen a green laser over 50mW I think you'll still be impressed even if it is way under 1W, at least I was when I got my first 200mW 532nm green module. You can then consider if you want to get the 1W+ version.

 

[autonomousperson]

Dont forget to get glasses that protect against IR. Its likely a cheap DPSS laser without IR filtering. The power of the IR may even be higher than the green. It 100% is not a 1w laser like everyone here is saying. I learned the hard way when I paid 20$ more for a "10w" green laser. Remember that anyone can slap a label onto a laser.