I was wondering what people are using for eye protection.
I’ve got the enclosure and of course the green glasses that came with the Snapmaker, but the beam even when at just 0.5% for positioning and focusing still seems super bright and I’m not convinced the included glasses are up to scratch.
Has anyone come across a decent pair of glasses suitable for the snapmaker laser (preferably available in the UK, but USA online is also fine)
Hey, you have to search for “safety laser goggles 445nm”.
Be shure you have the right wave lenght!- not 440 or 450, you need 445nm.
also be shure it is a laser, safety goggles are not to look direct into the laser beam, just to protect you against scattered radiation. This is essential!
see this video about protection glasses, you might right with your feel
Greets Chris
EDIT: 1,6W Laser wave lenght 445nm
200mW Laser 405nm
See: https://snapmaker.com/spec
Thanks for the reply.
Just to check, you say they aren’t for looking directly at the laser beam, but I need to be able to look at the laser (when at 0.4% power) to position and focus. Would these be good enough for that?
Thanks again
On the 1.6W beam, 0.5% is only 8mW. According to scientificamerican.com and laserpointersafety.com that’s fine as long as you’re not pointing the laser at your eye.
As xchrisd’s link to DiodeGoneWild’s video shows, safety glasses will cut the brightness of the laser. If you put the glasses on and don’t see a large reduction in the brightness, then the glasses aren’t working.
I’m not going to say what’s safe and what isn’t, I’ll just say what I’m personally comfortable with. I grew up around welders, so I have an aversion to staring at bright lights. If you think it’s too bright, then it’s too bright.
Personally, I’m comfortable doing a quick focus of the 1.6W laser at 0.5% power. Well, after I double and triple check that the power settings are set correctly. 0.5% looks a lot like 5% when you’re not paying close attention, and it’s the difference between 8mw and 80mw. I wouldn’t spend a lot of time trying to dial it in perfectly. Go through the focal point, then go back to what you think is right, and call it good. I’m more comfortable spending some time to get the 200mW laser at 1% dialed in nicely.
But you know what they say:
don´t look direct in the laser-beam like “scanning your eye”! no laser goggles would protect you from that.
Im thinking of buying the new 2.0 model with the 1600w laser. I need to help understand the use case. Do you have to run a project on lower power first and then again at full power? Should you leave the room when running at full power?
Would these safety glasses work? They cover the 445nm range
OD 6+ @190-532nm
OD 6+ @5000-11000nm
@HartmanWagner
I believe what you are looking at for glasses will work and keep your eyes safe. I bought a pair from Laser Safety Industries that seem comparable after talking with their staff.
When doing the initial focusing for your work-piece minimal power is used. Power is adjusted as necessary to perform your operation, full-on is not always needed and in fact usually not. Try on a test sample of the same material to test settings.
Leaving the room is not required but always ensure you have your protection on and keep others from walking into the area the machine is running. A sign on the door is a good idea. Snapmaker also has an enclosure that will limit exposure to bystanders. I recommend you still wear your safety glasses.
Another thing to keep in mind when working with lasers are the byproducts of the laser burning the material. Good ventilation should be considered as toxic fumes can be created depending on the materials being marked/cut.
Stay safe and have fun.
The 1600mw laser is classified as class 4 blue at 445nm. So those safety glasses should be good. Also it is recommended not to run the laser head at full power, as it will mostly likely burn through the materials and give unsatisfactory results.
Thanks for all the info, I did buy the 2.0 cant wait for it to arrive in a few months. I would like to use the laser to cut puzzle pieces. I will need to play with the settings based on material.
Thanks
Hartman
@xchrisd to quote what you said “don´t look direct in the laser-beam like “scanning your eye”! no laser goggles would protect you from that.”, it could be - being australian (we may interpret words differently)
i am having trouble with the word “in” - to me it is putting your head under the module and looking up into where the beam comes from?
or does it mean - when the laser is operating, if you can see the beam going from the module to the wood.
we have the enclosure - did we mistakenly believe the enclosure would protect? like watching the laser cut the wood without glasses.
i am super careful about safety. and the eyes are precious.
been reading this topic (very informative) now i am very concerned
Hey @Nazar,
You are right about the differences in interpreting words.
I meant the “put your head on the build plate” thing, but thought about “hold the laser module in your hands”.
I explain it a bit:
I am a CO2 laser maintenance staff in a company and the guy at the safety check showed us pictures of the inner eye from a man who scanned his eye with a Chinese laser pointer, there were burning marks like holes on the retina. The guy would never see on the part which has holes anymore.
I guess the enclosure is safe but, if I engrave a piece which is very reflective I notice that it hurts a bit like looking into the sun, then I additional wear the safety goggles when looking through the enclosure on the engraving.
Without the enclosure I still feel save with the safety goggles, looking at the engraving, I don’t have any pain.
Hope you got the points 
Greets from Austria
Chris
@xchrisd that explains a lot about your eye comment - nothing is guaranteed, but the reply you gave helps a lot 
@jepho thanks for the link and it is obvious you are very knowledgeable as well (especially in the link)
had one eye fail - doctors found a reason (what actually happened), but they don’t know the reason why - hence i am very protective about my remaining eye… because "I checked various laser topic on the forum but can’t find official answer on what is the rating of the enclosure and green glasses " i have made the decision to use a sheet around the enclosure - so i am not tempted to look when i don’t have to 
and my children, dog and wife are safe being in the room…
thanks for the excellent replies - owe you guys heaps.
You are welcome Michael. That particular discussion was at the end of July this year and still no word from Snapmaker. Remember, that support claimed that the OD was 1.19 in response to an enquiry from @gpt1plon, who had wanted to obtain official figures.
They were apparently testing at the wrong frequency and support had adopted the ridiculous stance that a laser pointing down was less powerful (presumably meaning that the radiant energy was less damaging… which is completely false) than a beam where it was shining at the eyes directly.
The support worker who answered the question from @gpt1plon did not understand where the danger lies with high radiant energy levels added to the coherent light. They also confused the term transmittance (6.5%) with transmission and that level of ignorance means I would not trust them to sweep the floor.
It is more than 10 weeks since this important safety issue was raised and nothing has changed. Class IV laser energy is the most damaging. The links below are make very sobering reading.
It is completely unacceptable that Snapmaker do not take the safety of their customers seriously. Just another reason that I have sold my Snapmaker and am moving to a platform where safety happens to be the primary consideration.
All factors relating to the use of a laser have to be considered with class IV laser energy where the user is to have appropriate protection. My new laser is 4.2W and is covered by an optical shroud that can block that energy but it does not mean that I must not use the appropriate eye protection. My work practices must be commensurate with ensuring that I am exposed for the least possible time to a laser beam’s radiant energy when it is only some 1.5 metres from me.
Yes, thank you Brent. My index of suspicion was raised once I saw the V1.1 enclosure colour. I never felt that it was filtering the light effectively (the light beam was very blue through the enclosure) so I used the Snapmaker supplied eyewear in combination with the enclosure. After using an industrial company to supply me with better protective eyeglasses, I realised how ineffective the Snapmaker enclosure was. I could not test it but the lack of transparency from the company told me all I needed to know.
The discovery that they were not testing for the correct frequency nor did support appear to understand the reason for eye protection in the first place, was more than enough for me. Here we are with some distance between the wrong frequency testing and that whole dumb conversation.
Not one single thing has been done to correct the errors. My guess is that the new v2.0 enclosure is also OD1.19. I did not hear of any additional warnings (to the expected ones) being sent to the customers. The e-mail addresses of those customers surely must be available to the Snapmaker company. Another very poor performance from Snapmaker as in all things related to customer service. This one just happens to concern the safety of the vision of every customer for the Laser module. How many of those customers will look or see anything beyond the standard safety messages?
As for the nonsense about it is ok because the laser is pointing downwards… words fail me.
I really can’t disagree, I am particularly suseptible to UV as I had laser eye correction done this year and have to be extremely cautious at all times. I also work in the construction industry and eye safety is not ever something to skimp on.
This morning I ordered two pairs of these:
For a purchase like this I highly recommend going to a reliable source. I found options on Amazon, but not all of them were traceable back to consitent standards and testing.
Regarding the enclosure, here is a bit of info from Laser Safety Industries website:
Laser Windows | Laser Safety Window Options:
A single 24in x 36in window rated at OD5 is over $700. Low power windows, not acceptable for class 4 lasers, are OD3 but cost $260. Our conclusion is that based on the price we paid there is no way the enclosure provides enough safety for our eyes.
Hello Jesi. Nice to see what a proper laser beam protection organisation looks like. I used a similar organisation in the UK to buy my eyewear. I will be making a change from the SM 1.6W laser to a 4.2W laser from JTech very soon. I know that I need to buy something else now. You have done the right thing Jesi because on present showing, Snapmaker will not be capable of looking after your eyesight. The point about the cost of a laser protective acrylic window was not lost on me.
@jepho @Jesi15 you both make very good comments - i am at a loss of what to do, it is obvious by your comments that it hasn’t been tested properly, nor after this period of time that they are interested in testing it, and as jesi pointed out, the cost for effective blocking is much more than we paid for.
i am reluctant to use the laser now and hope i havent done damage with the little i have used it.
with something so serious, you would think they would do proper testing, if for no other reason - fear of later being sued.
i only found this topic because i was concerned - how many people would assume the manufacturer has done the right thing?
Hello Michael. I think it is important for you to address the company. You are a customer and you are entitled to understand the safety measures which have been adopted by Snapmaker. I guess that people (in general) will accept that a large company like Snapmaker will have done their due diligence. Ony Snapmaker can provide the answers as to what safety measures they have in place currently. I hope they respond to you.
I DEWALT DPG82-11/DPG82-11CTR glasses when i do my woodworking work. Its two options of lenses, which are smoke or clear lenses. The anti-fog and scratch-resistant properties of DEWALT safety glasses is an ideal choice for the professionals. It does not fall off easily, Glasses are scratch-resistant and Lenses can be replaced.
Here is one of good article to take reference for safety glasses for your eye protection:-
https://theedgecutter.com/best-safety-glasses-for-woodworking
I also recommend newbies to check features to look before getting it. Things like:-
UV Protection
Comfort
Impact Resistance
Adjustability
Peripheral Vision Coverage
