This subject is likely to invoke dire warnings about the risks of eye damage and the like.
But please refrain from posting them, i have worked with lasers before
Has anyone looked into building a 'small' DIY laser rust removal gun, or seen others attempt it?
The professional units look to run between 20W and 1000W of pulsed and scanned 1064nm.
Costing around $80k to $400k
Some initial research shows you can buy 10W 1064nm laser diodes from china for $300 or so.
And 300W 1064nm water cooled Q-switched for ~$1000
(sorry, i'm not posting links to super powerful laser diodes. If you cant find it yourself you definitely shouldn't be buying it)
Does anyone know the actual reasons why laser rust removal guns are so expensive?
- Is it just a minefield of regulatory hoops to jump though pushing up the price
- Are they just so novel and work so well they can dictate whatever price they want
- Maybe they own patent on the tech.
etc.
Or is there a part inside that actually costs a significant percentage of the $80k to $400k price?
Maybe it needs a special kind of laser? Q-switched etc. and simply pulsing a diode laser wont work?
Obviously any DIY unit would be more in the 10-50W range rather than 1000W, but even 10W would be useful.