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A tiny ultrabright laser that can melt steel

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Re: A tiny ultrabright laser that can melt steel

#81

Post by ben_w »

sungho_ wrote: post #74
RecycledEle wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The same can be said of BB guns that can put out eyes, lock picks that can open locked doors, and bolt cutters than can break chains. More powerful tools are a good thing.

What about nuclear weapons, which have become so accessible that even small organizations can have them?

When small organisations get nuclear explosives, the only two safe options are:

1. Spending your life in a nuclear bunker and only interacting via the internet — including pure VR and/or remote controlled robot bodies.

2. Let your government poke around everywhere to make sure nobody is making (or importing) their own nukes, regardless of what anyone says about the 2nd amendment.

Re: A tiny ultrabright laser that can melt steel

#82

Post by rhelz »

aqme28 wrote: post #7

A society in which "the average car-buyer" has a tiny portable steel-melting laser is a society where I'm wearing welding goggles every time I leave the house. And I'm not sure how you even lock a bike or a door or a safe any more.

I hate to tell you this, but you can already buy infrared lasers off of eBay which have completely invisible beams which can blind yo.

Re: A tiny ultrabright laser that can melt steel

#83

Post by 91bananas »

coder543 wrote: post #67
83 wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The precision of a laser cutter would open up a lot of possibilities. Particularly making things that slot together with tabs - like fabbing my own welding squares and fixtures where a cnc plasma cutter would leave too rough an edge to have them slot together accurately.

Can't you buy a CNC mill/router that can cut metal more precisely than a CNC plasma cutter?

Completely different processes for completely different things.

Re: A tiny ultrabright laser that can melt steel

#84

Post by coder543 »

91bananas wrote: post #83
coder543 wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can't you buy a CNC mill/router that can cut metal more precisely than a CNC plasma cutter?

Completely different processes for completely different things.

Yes, and a laser cutter is also a completely different process for completely different things... yet you can still do some of the same things, and a CNC mill would be more appropriate for smooth cuts than a CNC plasma cutter.

Re: A tiny ultrabright laser that can melt steel

#85

Post by coder543 »

dghlsakjg wrote: post #77
83 wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Diode based lasers have driven the cost to laser cut plywood down to affordable levels (~$200 for a creality/comgrow/chinabrand 5w laser). I just bought two of them off ebay as "customer returned" for $75 dollars a piece. they work great on the 1/8in plywood and 3/8in foam i've been cutting. Haven't tried 1/4in ply yet but I bet going slower or multi pass and it will do it. Edit: It easily cut 1/4 ply (used 2 passes,…

What is this genre of machine called, just a laser cutter? I would love to play with this

Yes, laser cutter/engraver.

Re: A tiny ultrabright laser that can melt steel

#87

Post by ben_w »

bingbingbing777 wrote: post #40
aqme28 wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A BB gun has to be used very intentionally to hurt your eyes. A high-powered laser could blind you because your neighbor is doing some work on his shed and you caught a reflection

Have you not heard of stray bullets, crossfire etc?

BB gun — that's as in "ball bearing" — also known as "airsoft".

In this example, crossfire would require someone to walk into an airsoft combat area without any eye protection and for someone in that game to not realise and shoot them anyway. In the face.

Stray BB bullets don't go very far. They're not rifled, and they have fairly low muzzle energy compared to real weapons — I've shot myself with one at zero range, and even on bare skin it stings rather than penetrates.

Re: A tiny ultrabright laser that can melt steel

#89

Post by steve_adams_86 »

Swizec wrote: post #79
Thorrez wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Does the Netherlands have a law against knowingly buying stolen property?

The Netherlands famously has more bicycle thefts per year than citizens. At this point you could almost think of cheap commuter bikes as public property. People in countries where bicycling is not seen as a personality statement generally ride very cheap city bikes around town. Last time I bought one of those in college it cost about 30eur. Is not like in SF where people ride 3000 dollar bikes to work because omg you…

Here in the part of Canada I live in, you see some of the $3000 bike identity stuff, but most people ride something in the $500–$750 range. Something practical, comfortable, reliable, etc.

There is also a growing segment of people who use $5,000–$15,000 cargo/kid carrier bikes as replacements for their cars, which is cool. But I do worry about theft of those increasing. Right now I rarely hear of it, but it seems likely to increase. Even the motors and batteries in them cost thousands alone.

Re: A tiny ultrabright laser that can melt steel

#90

Post by kwhitefoot »

Swizec wrote: post #79
Thorrez wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Does the Netherlands have a law against knowingly buying stolen property?

The Netherlands famously has more bicycle thefts per year than citizens. At this point you could almost think of cheap commuter bikes as public property. People in countries where bicycling is not seen as a personality statement generally ride very cheap city bikes around town. Last time I bought one of those in college it cost about 30eur. Is not like in SF where people ride 3000 dollar bikes to work because omg you…

> think of cheap commuter bikes as public property.

Didn't Amsterdam try that with 'white bikes' in the 1970s?

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