Underwater Laser Pointer

[tridacna]

From what i read, only the green laser will have a visible beam. what color is yours?

Still trying to find a fully waterproof (30m) green laser

Don't know if this thread is still alive but I have the Z-Bolt UW Green Laser and it is awesome. It easily penetrates through 40-50 feet of water and is a great tool for pointing things out. The most enjoyable thing is creating a "squigle worm" in front of predatory fishes. They will chase it around for minutes. 100 dives and still going strong.

 

[MikeQc]

I bought exactly that one too, just before my trip to Cozumel. And it is AWESOME!
I played with the fishs too, the small ones were the most excited by the little green dot.
On a night dive it's stunning, you can see the beam 60-80 feet away

 

[yuriyaz]

OK guys. Let me speak from the years of experience in laser physics and practical tests of laser pointers as an aiming device for spearfishing. First - forget red ones. The red wavelengths are not penetrating more then 10 feet in the water (everything is green down there, remember?). For the practical purpose one need at least 60 feet since you have to see your beam on the target. So if you aiming at the fish 20-25 feet away your laser have to be visible twice that long. Don't forget that most people hunting during daytime, which means sun, so your beam have to be bright enough to outfight the sun light. My tests of Z-Bolt 5 mw laser revealed that with that you get about 10-12 feet of practical range. Hence if you want to aim at the fish 20 feet away laser has to be at least above 10 mw output (more likely 30 mw). It is very nice to have when in range, but in my case I seldom have a chance to shoot a fish closer then 15 feet away. Alignment of the laser to your target is also a problem since spear is much greater drop in the water then it has in the air so one have to access to the pool to align it right. Keep in mind that Hawaian flopper on the spear will interfear with the line of sight of the laser, so you have to either mount it on the top of the gun (not good for rubber band guns) or use Thaitian flopper (one, which goes above the spearshaft). The drop of the spearshaft is about 12 in on 20 feet distance in my experiments, so plan accordingly. Bottomline: you can use 5 mw Z-Bolt for pneumatic guns or have to go to around 30 for bluewater rubber guns. Safety is a paramaunt so be very carefull even with 5 mw green models. Someone mentioned that he would take it as a hostile act if somebody point one on him - that is correct. The beam like that on the short distance can blind one's eye. You can imagine what 30 mw can do...
Ideally laser sight should be trigger activated to prolong battery life and lessen the potential risks to bystanders. One more thing. Laser + mount also made my gun negatively buoyant, which sucks so removed it because it didn't help aiming too much and negatively affected buoyancy and handling of the gun.
Just my $0.02, hope it will help somebody to solve laser sight speargun problem.

 

[nwflyboy]

I'm thinking of getting one of the Z-Bolt green laser points for an upcoming trip. They make two models, both with the same output and the same cost. One looks like it runs on AA and has a "constant on/off" switch (not sure exactly what that means - twist to turn on/off?), rated to 300 ft. The other one has a push button switch, runs on a CS123a lithium battery, and is rated to 200 ft.

I'm leaning towards the second one, primarily because of the switch.

Anybody who has used either have opinions? Thanks.

 

[MikeQc]

I have the "constant on-off switch" one and i love it.
Pro: uses AA batteries so you can use rechargeables.
Cons: you need your 2 hands to turn on-off. It's a twist to turn on-off

So the one with the push button switch should be easier to activate. I don't know much about the cr123s batteries format but if you can get rechargeables, go for this model.

You'll have a lot of fun playing with the fishs

 

[savante]

I'm a new poster here, but my company manufactures underwater green, blue and red pointers for use underwater.

www (dot) savante (dot) co (dot) uk

we use them for underwater photography,

 

[Maurice]

eh fftopic: it might get more interesting if we get sharks with lasers attached.

 

[jaeckert]

I know this is an older thread but, in case anyone researching UW laser pointers stumbles across it as I did, here is another possibility:

Beamshot Tactical GreenBeam Waterproof Laser Pointer FREE S&H GB50, GB100. Beamshot Laser Sights.

I have not used one as yet so this is in no way an endorsement; just one more current possibility. If you have used one I wold love to know what you think.

Joel

 

[Allison Finch]

Yes...HA HA... fish will chase a laser light. Just take your cat laser to a per shop and watch the oscars chase it around their tank. However, just like in humans, these lights will destroy a fish/critters eyes. I bet you don't even know how often you will, inadvertently, shine them in all the critters eyes that are in the way of your play. I would be really upset if someone started useing one around me. If they shined it on me, in any way..shape...or form, that pointer would be short lived.

 

[JRO]

I used the old Z-Bolt laser and loved it as a pointing device, no more guessing at was I am pointing at as it creates a very visible beam in the water that SOME fish chase...not all by any means. I was letting our dive guide in Mexico use it since he was such a great critter finder. I ended up giving it to him at the end of the week as a bonus tip.
SCUBA-1 Underwater Green Laser for Scuba Diving & Marine Use, Salt Water Proof to 200 ft

I just bought the newer version (oddly half the price and half the length)...the beam appears to be the same. both are twist to turn on. Though it seems on the new one if you don't twist it all the way you can push on the butt end of it to turn the light on and off...curious how this will work as depth increases....can't wait to try it out.