Just got my Arctic S3, have some questions.

BLuFeNiX · Apr 8, 2012

Hi everyone,

I just got my first real (>5mW) laser yesterday. It's the S3 Spyder III Arctic. I have a few questions about safety and practices.

First, let me say that I always wear the laser shades when operating the arctic, but is it safe for me to do the following?:

* point the arctic at non reflective surfaces (white walls, wooden floor, cardboard, paper, etc) while in low power mode, without wearing the laser shades
* seal a cut on my arm by burning it shut with the laser (I've heard of this somewhere, but suspect it's not a good idea)
* view the beam (not the dot) of the laser in full power mode without laser shades (For example, pointing it into the sky after checking for aircraft)
* If viewing the beam in full power mode is not safe, what about low power mode?

Thanks!

lman · Apr 8, 2012

Every answers is no.

BLuFeNiX · Apr 8, 2012

Thanks for the quick response. I'm trying to get a training lens (that the older arctics came with) so I can use it in combination wit low power mode. I've read that this will bring the apparent output power to around 50mW. Would any of my aforementioned scenarios be safe at 50mW?

lman · Apr 8, 2012

BLuFeNiX said:
Thanks for the quick response. I'm trying to get a training lens (that the older arctics came with) so I can use it in combination wit low power mode. I've read that this will bring the apparent output power to around 50mW. Would any of my aforementioned scenarios be safe at 50mW?

You can view 50mw
With out getting much eye damage, but is it really to be blinded in one eye because of a laser?

BLuFeNiX · Apr 8, 2012

Okay, I get the point. Is there anything I can do to bring the output power down to absolutely safe levels?

Ghostchrome · Apr 8, 2012

lman said:
Every answers is no.

You need to read more. :beer:

lman · Apr 8, 2012

Ghostchrome said:
You need to read more. :beer:

No it is not safe what if he doesnt see a aircraft and acidentaly hits it, then he puts everyone on the aircraft in danger. And as for the fourth question it is still 200mw in low power mode would you look at a 200mw laser without safety goggles?

Ghostchrome · Apr 8, 2012

lman said:
No it is not safe what if he doesnt see a aircraft and acidentaly hits it, then he puts everyone on the aircraft in danger. And as for the fourth question it is still 200mw in low power mode would you look at a 200mw laser without safety goggles?

The question was if it is safe to view the beam of his Arctic., not if it is a good idea to shoot it up into the sky...

But yes, viewing 200mW beam is also fine. Like I said before:

Ghostchrome said:
You need to read more. :beer:

lman · Apr 8, 2012

Ghostchrome said:
The question was if it is safe to view the beam of his Arctic., not if it is a good idea to shoot it up into the sky...:

he asked if he could point it in the sky.

Ghostchrome · Apr 8, 2012

lman said:
he asked if he could point it in the sky.

justinjja · Apr 8, 2012

* point the arctic at non reflective surfaces (white walls, wooden floor, cardboard, paper, etc) while in low power mode, without wearing the laser shades

If low is 200mw then no, not really safe

* seal a cut on my arm by burning it shut with the laser (I've heard of this somewhere, but suspect it's not a good idea)

not a particularly good idea, would probably be quite painfull.

* view the beam (not the dot) of the laser in full power mode without laser shades (For example, pointing it into the sky after checking for aircraft)
* If viewing the beam in full power mode is not safe, what about low power mode?

As long as it isn't snowing full power should be fine.

It's illegal to hit a plane with a laser so be carefully.

RyanElectro · Apr 8, 2012

You could seal a cut with a 445nm blue laser but expect an ugly scar vs. letting it heal on it's own. Also, it will be terribly painful as it takes quite some time for a 750mW to actually seal a cut.

lman · Apr 8, 2012

BLuFeNiX said:
pointing it into the sky after checking for aircraft

you can never be 100 percent sure it wont hit an aircraft.

yathern2 · Apr 8, 2012

BLuFeNiX said:
Hi everyone,

* point the arctic at non reflective surfaces (white walls, wooden floor, cardboard, paper, etc) while in low power mode, without wearing the laser shades

Indoors, you should always wear glasses with high power mode. I'm not sure exactly how strong low power mode is, but you can probably get away without using glasses. Just be smart.

BLuFeNiX said:
* seal a cut on my arm by burning it shut with the laser (I've heard of this somewhere, but suspect it's not a good idea)

That's up to you to try. Doesn't sound like a good idea to me, and likely to give you scarring.

BLuFeNiX said:
* view the beam (not the dot) of the laser in full power mode without laser shades (For example, pointing it into the sky after checking for aircraft)

Of course, that's practically what portable lasers like this are meant for. Just be VERY VERY careful not to shine it anywhere near an aircraft. The more trouble we get with things like that, the more likely lasers will get some tough legislation.

BLuFeNiX said:
* If viewing the beam in full power mode is not safe, what about low power mode?
Thanks!

In low power mode. I'm assuming you will barely see the beam anyways. But yes.

MadEye · Apr 8, 2012

lman said:
you can never be 100 percent sure it wont hit an aircraft.

Yeah, you can never know what your reflections are doing!

As long as there is no Aircraft, the chances to hit one are pretty... low...

BLuFeNiX · Apr 9, 2012

Thanks for all of your input, everyone.

yathern2 said:
I'm not sure exactly how strong low power mode is, but you can probably get away without using glasses. Just be smart.

I read somewhere that the low power mode of the arctic brings it down to about 20% of its max (from about 1000mW to between 150-200mW).

yathern2 said:
Just be VERY VERY careful not to shine it anywhere near an aircraft. The more trouble we get with things like that, the more likely lasers will get some tough legislation.

Of course. I don't make it a habit of shining into the sky. I always check for aircraft, and if I'm not sure then I assume it's not safe. I prefer to terminate the beam into a lofty tree branch by my house.

Just to let you all know, the reason I was wondering about low power mode without laser shades is because I like to use it as a light-pen of sorts. I covered my living room wall with glow-in-the-dark face paint and it works quite well as drawing board.

Just got my Arctic S3, have some questions.

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