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Blindingly awesome homemade laser guns (pictures)

Patrick Priebe's laser collection is the work of a passionate movie and video game fan.

Tim Hornyak
Crave freelancer Tim Hornyak is the author of "Loving the Machine: The Art and Science of Japanese Robots." He has been writing about Japanese culture and technology for a decade. E-mail Tim.
Tim Hornyak
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1 of 9 Patrick Priebe

Paging Tony Stark

Do you crave a laser gun? German DIY meister Patrick Priebe can help you out. A diehard fan of the "Iron Man" films, Priebe is also crazy about lasers.

A former lab technician, Priebe combined his passions in his homemade Iron Man Laser Gauntlet, which fires two blue 1.2W lasers as well as two 4mW lasers for aiming. While he's excited about the third installment of the film series, he says he has no plans to create a full Iron Man suit.

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2 of 9 Patrick Priebe

Victorian lasers

Priebe's Steampunk Laser Blaster is an ornate weapon for a more civilized age. It has two lasers, a 1.3W blue laser for firing and a 3mW red laser for aiming.
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3 of 9 Patrick Priebe

Palm-sized blaster

This nifty Micro Laser Gun fits in the palm of your hand. It has a blue 1.2W laser and can run for 30 minutes on a battery charge.
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4 of 9 Patrick Priebe

The Blade Driver

Here's a crossbow that Chewbacca would love. The Blade Driver has a 30mW green aiming laser and it fires rotating circular blades. Check out this puppy taking down a watermelon here.
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5 of 9 Video screenshot by Tim Hornyak/CNET

Pulse power

Priebe's Pulse Laser Gun emits a powerful blast of infrared light that can instantly pop balloons. A demo video also shows it punching holes through plastic.
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6 of 9 Patrick Priebe

Flaming hands

The Flame Glove shoots fire from the palm of your hand -- if you have the guts to try it. This video shows the butane-powered flamethrower sending out a column of flame from Priebe's hand. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, it's not for sale.
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7 of 9 Patrick Priebe

Gauss Rifle

The 4-stage Gauss Rifle fires steel slugs, which Priebe says are sped along by the gun's magnetic field.

"Each coil makes it go faster, if you do it right!" he adds.

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8 of 9 Patrick Priebe

Wrist crossbow

Light and compact, the Wrist Bow is only 5.7 inches long and features a mini crossbow and aiming laser.

Activated by a thumb trigger, it fires bolts with brass-steel tips that can easily puncture fruit, cans, and balloons. It has a range of 30 feet.

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9 of 9 Patrick Priebe

Laser Revolver

Inspired by the first-person shooter Rage, this steampunk-style Laser Revolver has a wooden grip and metal body. It has a 1.6W blue laser diode that can burn wood at a distance.

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