strong (certified?) ARG safety glasses

[trencheel303]

Hi

looking for some decent quality high OD safety glasses for use with my 445nm as I had a bit of a close call last night. Was merrily melting plastic on an old blackberry (as you do) and caught quite a strong reflection on the left eye - considerable "flash" on the eagle pair which took me by surprise. No harm to vision at all, no flash blindness, everything in 5/5 working order (the glasses did their job) but the comparative brightness of the flash had me wondering if OD4+ is really enough. I need a second pair of glasses anyway for guests so I was thinking of getting these: Visible : ARG - Blu Ray, Argon, Blue, KTP

I'm lead to believe these are certified, the real deal, and by the looks of it they provide very good protection also with a great VLT, way better than my current Eagle Pair. (understandable, as they also block N IR)

it's also quite likely I'll be getting these too: Eagle Pair® 190-400nm & 580-760nm Laser Safety Goggles
as I currently no red blocking protection & those glasses will serve any yellow laser I may buy in the future.

All comments welcome. I don't mind sinking the dough into keeping my eyes and those of a potential guest safe.

 

[ARG]

I am ARG and I endorse ARG filters.

I have ARG goggles and they are, as you said the real deal. They are CE and ANSI certified lab grade goggles and have saved me from a direct 5W hit.

They have a good VLT and you can easily see what you're working on with them on

 

[trencheel303]

Hello ARG, and thanks.

Are those Goggles I listed ok then? I've heard people around here talking about OEM goggles, but I don't know if they mean the company "oem laser systems" or literally just "original equipment manufacturer". If you can get back to me on that I'll pull the trigger tonight.

 

[Tmack]

Check up on Noir Lasershields. A member just pulled some od7 shades for $80 directly from them.
I bought a pair of Noir from a member and they are amazing. OD7 and 35% VLT. Very easy to see through the light orange tint.

 

[trencheel303]

Thanks tmack, can you give a link?

The oem ones I looked at were 50%vlt at almost od8 for roughly same price.

 

[Tmack]

Geez. Well there you go then lol.

The Noir I got were a very good version hitting lots of wavelength but they retail at $210. I was happy to pay $50. I think a handful of members have them after the little sale from 'operator'

 

[trencheel303]

Damn. That's expensive. I think I'll pull the trigger tonight on these.

Damn my credit card is gonna hate me this month, good job I had a clear out and managed to raise some cash...

 

[MattM15]

Yeah I just picked up the NOIR ARG lenses for $86 including shipping. Not a bad price to pay when it comes to protecting your eyes gotta get style 34

 

[Tmack]

Yeah. That style is the best they offer by far. It makes me not mind wearing them

 

[MattM15]

Yeah they're almost like oakleys

 

[ARG]

Hello ARG, and thanks.

Are those Goggles I listed ok then? I've heard people around here talking about OEM goggles, but I don't know if they mean the company "oem laser systems" or literally just "original equipment manufacturer". If you can get back to me on that I'll pull the trigger tonight.

Those are where I got mine from

IIRC laserglow also sells goggles with the same filters, though less styles to choose from.

 

[Bionic-Badger]

ARGs are excellent, and probably the most versatile pair you can own until you need protection from red. You can also buy them from Aixiz, but they're US-based.

Also check on eBay for some surplus "argon laser goggles" (e.g. this). Sometimes you can snag a cheap pair that'll do the job.

 

[trencheel303]

thanks for the suggestion on Argon goggles. I'm dubious though as none that I can find state what protection they offer at 445nm. Although the protection at 488nm on most of them is OD 15 which is incredible. I don't know if I could put my trust in second hand goggles either not knowing how many times they'd been hit and potentially degraded, and not knowing how well they deal with 445nm. Wish I could though... it'd save a bit of cash!

I'm not having a great deal of luck at the moment with OEM's website, they don't appear to be taking orders. There's no "buy" or "add to cart" button anywhere. I would rather like the style 60 goggle but alas they won't take my money...!

LATER EDIT:
Found what appears to be the same product (with ARG filters) on a website cascadelaser.com. Had a look around and a google, they seem legit enough. I ordered the style 60 "softie goggle" with ARG filters, exact specs I expected to see, 48% VLT, same wavelength block, very similar graph to OEM's showing OD7+ protection. The order was quite pricey, it came to $151, $51 of that being postage (at one point they wanted to charge me $200 postage!!!) which works out at roughly £90 in proper money

Laser Glasses Polycarbonate - Filter ARG Argon/KTP-EN207

So I'm fairly happy with that, and I also ordered the blue Eagle pair which will cover the yellow and red wavelengths.