Concerns about 532nm Wicked lasershades + reviews

[zerafiel]

I have acquired 3 different sets of green laser protection glasses for 532nm:

Wicked Lasershades (red 532nm)
Nova Shields Sport (orange 532/473nm)
Red Laser glasses (red 532nm)

I am somewhat concerned about the amount of green light that is let through by Wicked Lasershades (532nm) Shining a weak DX true 30mW directly at it, a significant amount of green spot can be seen compared to the Nova and the Red shades.

While this allows me to see the beam spot better at distance. For close up burning I am afraid that specular reflections might be somewhat dangerous. I am convinced almost 1-5mW of green is being leaked through the green Wicked shades. Whereas when I use the other two shades, the dot is still easily visible and very little green passes through.

So is it suppose to be such that there is so much green passing through Wicked shades?? Do they only guard against temporary exposure and still rely on blink reflexes? Currently for close up work I use either the Nova/Red as they provide me more security with visibility. Whereas for further distances, the Wicked shades are good if I want to see a bright dot.

Comparison of VLT:
The Nova shades offer the best vlt with a noticeable orange tint.
The Wicked Shades and the Red shades offer comparable VLT with the Wicked shades having the slighter edge. Wicked have a very slight orange but mostly red tint while the Red glasses have a red tint.

Usability:
The Nova shades are the least user friendly for me because I wear glasses. Ok ear piece.
The Wicked shades are ok but still unwieldy to use over my glasses. Crappy earpiece
The Red shades are the most usable and fit over my glasses easily. Ear piece also seats comfortably. Using a 100mW green, all three provide great visibility of the dot at distance. with the wicked being the brightest.

Usage:
I find myself having to take off my glasses when using both the Nova and the Wicked shades which is NOT a good thing and makes my eyes tired. And I have to keep adjusting the earpiece for the Wicked shades depending on whether i am wearing glasses or not. With glasses on the Wicked shades do not provide me full coverage and light can leak in.
For the Red goggles, I can easily wear them over my glasses with full coverage. They served me very well with my DX200 before my nova and wicked arrived.

So all the goggles have their advantages and disadvantages and I am really not sure which I would prefer to use. I am curious as to how you guys like your goggles as most people here seem to be very happy with their wicked and NES shades (same design). I actually find myself gravitating to using the Novas simply because their VLT is so much better and I have to take off my glasses when using the Wicked anyways.

For ~100mW I'd really recommend the Novas(good vlt, cool design, expensive) or the Red glasses(good protection, practical design, cheap, ok vlt). For say a DX 30 up to a say x-65, perhaps Wicked(brighter dot, ok design, ok vlt, expensive, less safety) might serve well.

Here are some pictures of a DX30 on weak alkalines through the various glasses:
(Sorry for the poor focus for the 2nd and 3rd pics)

Wicked

Red

Nova

P.S. I really don't need 3 pairs of green protection. I might sell 1 or 2 pairs and if anyone is interested PM me.

 

[pseudonomen137]

Re: Concerns about 532nm Wicked lasershades + revi

Nice review. Personally I find the lasershades to be the best though. Sure, they let some green through, but the OD is still high enough that its safe to use them with hundreds of mWs of green, if not a watt. While the Nova goggles (that WL used to sell) offer a higher OD, they make the spot of even an RPL 300 nearly invisible! When you can't see where you're aiming, the temptation to remove the goggles to see what you're doing is... dangerous. Honestly, I can't see what good the NL goggles would be unless your objective is to protect yourself while haphazardly showing off the beam to other unprotected people around you.

 

[zerafiel]

Re: Concerns about 532nm Wicked lasershades + revi

Thanks for the input Pseudo, if you say the Wicked shades are safe up to a watt despite the green going through then I feel safer using it already.

I can see where you are coming. At longer distances, the Nova and Red reduces the visibility of the beam spot BUT it is still visible to me on white surfaces. I also prefer the Wicked Shades at longer distances to see a brighter spot. Long meaning not outdoors many miles but many feet indoors.

But I am still concerned the Wicked shades will not be able to take a direct hit or reflection and will have to rely on blink reflex, whereas the Nova and Red have much better OD.

So I guess the Wicked Shades for the laser holder and the Nova/Red for the onlookers who might be subject to direct hits. I for one feel that I will not be stupid enough to take a direct hit while handling the laser. Reflections are another matter though.

For close up I still recommend the Nova/Red over the Wicked. The dot will be extremely clear even for low powered greens. Whereas a high powered green might give too bright a spot when using Wicked shades. Just my opinion.

Do people have any problems with glasses getting in the way or do you guys all have perfect eyesight?

Another point of interest:
I wonder how the NES shades would fall among these three pairs. I hear they are 3-5OD with slightly less VLT than the Wicked shades. That might put it in the same category as the Red I have or slightly better. What about the tint of NES shades? And how much green do they let through compared to Wicked shades or NL?

 

[me_too_lazy]

Re: Concerns about 532nm Wicked lasershades + revi

very nice comparison shots
I prefer the wicked's too
seeing the dot is pretty important
not being able to see the dot was the main reason i got rid of my pulsar + red elites

 

[zerafiel]

Updated pics

Laser used: X-85 on out of box eneloops
Distance: 1 feet

Wicked >> that's anywhere from 1-4mW of green!, good vlt, orange red tint

Red >> estimated OD5-6, pretty good vlt, red tint

Nova >> OD6 rating, excellent vlt, orange tint

I may be putting up 1 or 2 of these up for sale in BST soon since I do not need so many shades for green. Feel free to pm me any offers.

Condition:
Wicked: preowned, great condition, light blue microfiber cloth
Nova: like new, black microfiber cloth
Red: like new, excellent condition

I am also willing to trade my Wicked green 532nm lasershades for Wicked red 650nm lasershades if anyone is interested.

 

[sambo5472]

Re: Concerns about 532nm Wicked lasershades + revi

Just a quick question. The red shades u mention are those the shades u can buy at diy stores for enhancing the beam on a red laser? Cause they sell these in a store near me for 9.99 euro, wich is very cheap compared to the goggles u can find on the net. In most cases 9.99[ch8364] wont even cover the shipping cost.
The reason i ask this is cause i thought to myself if those filters are red the must block out green, and having some extra goggles laying around is always a good thing. Although this seems very logic to me and i am quite sure i'm right, i don't wanna buy it and come home with it and discover it's useless. So are those red goggles u revieuwed the ones for enhancing a red beam.

 

[timelord]

Re: Concerns about 532nm Wicked lasershades + revi

I wouldn't put my trust in those DIY type shades to protect your eyes sambo, I don't think they filter out the right nm range that 532nm emits. They'd be good for astronomers to protect their dark adapted eye when popping in a lit house for coffee

 

[Shilood]

Re: Concerns about 532nm Wicked lasershades + revi

I thought the nes_shades were red enhancement goggles, designed to make red beams contrast better against backgrounds, and that their OD at 532nm was high enough to use them as green laser goggles (though they're not CE rated.)

Forgive my ignorance if I'm wrong there. (From an Elvex CR rep: The LG-06 Red does not offer any protection and is purely for enhancement reasons." The nes_shades may not be Elvex LG-06's, but they look the same. FWIW, I am using nes_shades for green and wickeds for red.