‘Iron Man’ fan builds laser-firing gauntlet

It may not be exactly like the famous replusor beam gauntlet, but a German engineer and avowed “Iron Man” fan has built a working laser glove that can pop enemy balloons. Patrick Priebe is selling the gadget, which he said can pop balloons from a distance of several feet, on his website. The gadget is available in 405nm, 445nm and 650nm and low-power green, he said. He said the laser can be “fired” for two to three minutes continuously, adding variants are available for both left- and right-handed people. A separate report on tech site GeekoSystem suggested Priebe may have started work on the laser as early as July 2011, building a 1000 MW laser using a 445-nm laser diode. Meanwhile, an article posted on CNET said the “Iron Man Laser Gauntlet” fits over the forearm and runs on two lithium-ion batteries. The laser fires two 1.2-watt blue lasers, one where the palm repulsor would be and one over the forearm. It also has two 4-MW red aiming lasers. “Back in the day, I was fascinated by lasers... It all started with the older Battlestar Galactica movies,” he said in an interview posted on CNET. He added that in 2003 or so, he tinkered with coil guns and lasers, and someone asked him to build a laser gun he featured on YouTube. CNET said Priebe is a former lab technician based in Wuppertal, Germany, who turned his laser hobby into a full-time job. As for “Iron Man,” Priebe described himself as “a huge fan” of the comic and movie superhero. “I watch the movies several times a day, while I’m working to keep me focused. I can speak along with the characters. My friends find it very weird,” he said. But when asked if he would make the entire armor suit, he said he would not. “I won’t make a suit, because to be totally honest the gauntlet, as cool as it is, is way too geeky already...I’m not saying it would embarrass me, but it would be just a bit too much,” he said. — DVM, GMA News