Thread: Magnification

I hopefully getting my first hone in the very early part of next year. So just wanted to ask you guys what you use to see the edge? i know some people use loupes what magnification ? or should i go for a microscope of some sort? can you hone without one, or is that just for experts? Any advice at all would be welcome.

Cheers MW.

I've found a 10X loupe very helpful. I have a 20X and 30X, but have found for my purposes that too much magnification makes things difficult. If all I had was the 10X loupe, I'd be fine. It does help visualize the bevel and edge. Good lighting is important too.

Loops of 10x or 20x or higher, lighted helps. Radio Shack hand held pocket microscopes for well under $20.00.
I would actually like a table top that takes digital photos, that will come next year.
Use the Advanced search function in this forum for more input and photos on this subject.

A good 10x hand lens is a great help to me. I use a Bausch & Lomb Hastings Triplet, which has excellent resolution and no image distortion edge to edge. It's pricey, but not as pricey as the Nikon Hastings Triplet. Sometimes I think a 20x would be nice too, but the focal distance on a 20x is only 1/2 inch and I don't want to muck around that close to the edge. The 10x lens has a focal distance of 1 inch.

I was a botanist, so the hand lens is one of my everyday pocket items on this slow walk through life. My wife dreads it, especially when I pull it out in a restaurant.

Hi guys thanks for the replys some good ideas for me to think about here.

Im liking roughkype Bausch & lomb Hastings stuff so with ace mention of light im thinking of one of these to start with https://www.easupplies.com/BAUSCH-LO...r-p/ht214h.htm

Widget Supply December Sale - 10x 18mm - 20x 12mm Jeweler's Loupe

Simple, cheap and excellent. This place has other lighted loupes as well. Check them out! I use the 30x lit loupe for myself. STill under 5$.

Cheers!!

M

p.s. Duh, just saw where you are located...

Anyone interested in how loupes work and what to look for should consider this article:

How to choose a loupe

I ended up purchasing an LED Loupe Triplet 10X-21MM. It's really easy to get all caught up in purchasing an expensive loupe and it's just as easy to consider purchasing one which may not suit your needs.

I ended up buying mine from an outfit by you, quicktest.co.uk. They had a whole assortment of loupes (and other optical equipment) and honest assessments of each. I'm glad I purchased a lit one, and a true triplet. If you read that article, the triplet part will make a lot of sense to you and you'll see what you're paying for. I spent less than $40 USD for mine and I couldn't be happier.

It all comes down to what do you want to see? It's not about the magnification, it's about the resolution and eye relief. You can see more with a good 15x than a cheap 100x. Just do some research.

I bought a vintage dutch microscope for about 40$ shipped, and I am totally satisfied with it. I don't like holding a razor and a loupe too, for me it is better that the mircoscope is stationary, and only the razor moves. I use it mainly on the 64x mag, just because thats the lowest setting. You can see everything with that, even more than you have to. I rarely use the 160x mag, I could live without it.

20-45 is a good starting point. i think something like the radioshack 60-100 is good for inspecting the last part of the chips and facilitates learning but it eats up batteries like nobody's business.