Magnifying floor lamp

Jewelry Discussion
12

Hi,

regarding using a microscope, i find that what works best for me is:

first adjust my chair to a comfortable height, feet flat on the floor.

then adjust the scope head to a comfortable height, while the up/down dial is set at halfway…head and neck relaxed.
(i approach the scope head, barely touch the lenses to my checkbone, look straight ahead, and then drop my glance down into the lenses. ie: how i position my head angle to the lenses)

then set the magnification knob to the maximum

then adjust the height position of my work piece to be in focus.
(i find the grs “true axis slide and lock” with ball vise shelf attached, works well for making quick adjustments to the height of the work piece. the tru-axis version of the “slide and lock” is designed to not raise up above bench height and hit the scope, the the original “slide and lock”

i can make subtle changes to the height of the workpiece using the knob, or raise or lower the workpiece using the slide and lock, while maintaining a comfortable seated position…without stretching my neck up, or slouching down, both of which adversely affect my head angle to the lenses and mess up my view.

so…basically i am saying that for me, i try to maintain my position, and move the focus knob and the work piece…

i hope that makes sense…perhaps it will help in your decision making process…

Julie.

13

Hi Rob and Sue,
As far as microscopes go, I have had several older stereo zoom microscopes, both Bausch and Lombs and American Opticals. They have all worked very well and were fairly cheap. Zoom ranges were either 7X to 30X or 7X to 45X. It is easy enough to get a ring light for these scopes on ebay for about $35 to $75. The only problem I had with one AO scope was that an internal lens came loose and disabled the scope…I would have had to have the lens reglued in the right place. As it was, I found a replacement head for the scope for about $175. The boomstand was the hardest thing to find, the heads were available all over Ebay. I think I paid about $350 for the boomstand + scope. You might try looking at the Cloudy Nights astronomy site, because there is at least one vendor there who sells reconditioned microscopes and stands. I don’t have any experience with the newer Amscopes, but I suspect that they are adequate. Hope this helps. I am a great fan of working under the scope, it changes your accuracy level drastically, you can see so much more than with an Optivisor or something similar. -royjohn

3 Likes
14

i have a scope from AmScope and am very happy with it. since i don’t know what your requirements are, i would suggest calling AmScope and speaking with them.

15

Mostly engraving and stone setting…Rob

16

Well, I know a lot about microscopes now, if I can ever afford one :smile:

17

Hi Rob,
I am away from my studio right now so i cannot check, but i think i have the .50x objective lens on my A60…GRS also offers a .63x objective lens…and i cannot recall the difference as it relates to working properties…

perhaps call grs and inquire…to get an understanding of what type of lens you might be looking for…

julie

18

here is info on leica objective lenses .50x and .63x…i believe there is also a .75x

my working distance is around 6”…

also meiji has more objective lenses starting at .35x i belive

image
image1284×2778 133 KB

image
image1284×2778 140 KB

julie

19

lots of different styles and mounts

20

Hi Rob,

I am thinking you might want an articulating boom type arm, that clamps or is mounted to your bench, versus a small stand, as it would provide more flexibility in positioning work…in the future…

i think the working distance would be of prime concern…the head length/height also adds to the distance from the workpiece…longer working distances puts the workpiece lower down…and if you are working with a standard ball, the bench shelf holding the vise is even lower down due to the height of the ball

i got the objective lens that grs recommended for jewelry engraving and stone setting, versus gun engraving

i hope that makes sense…

julie

21

Hi,
ok, so, re: lenses and magnification…I had a minute to double check…

to clarify, my above comments are based on my using a .63x objective lens zoom range 3.13x - 18.9x, with a working distance of 6.1”…on the Leica A60 scope head native magnification 5x - 30x, on a GRS Acrobat Versa stand…

see below quote regarding reduced magnification when using an objective lens, from contenti website

image
image1284×1051 227 KB

i was looking at the AmScopes, but got confused by all the different lenses…and magnification specs…so i searched for some info…thought i would share…

i found this explanation of how ocular and objective lenses work in conjunction with each other in microscopes…interesting

julie

22

Hi,
also, re Neils point about focus, the Leica A60 stays in focus when you zoom in and out using the zoom knob.

i usually set the zoom knob at max zoom first…then i raise/ lower the workpiece until i am in focus…from there i can then use the zoom knob to zoom in or out and it stays in focus…until i move/ tilt the piece…in which case i use the other knob to raise/ lower the scope head to re-focus…or raise/lower the piece using the slide and lock to re-focus. i usually start with the head knob set at the middle of its travel length…i often prefer to move the slide and lock rather than the scope head so that i maintain a comfortable position…it all depends on where everything is…

julie

23

hi,

in above previous post, talking about body positioning, the 2 knobs are:

  1. zoom knob (adjusts magnification)
  2. focus knob (adjusts scope head height travel, up and down)

julie

24

Hi Sue,
you mentioned headaches…which optivisor lens are you using?

perhaps it is too strong? optivisor has a range of lens with progressively higher magnification…i primarily use the #4, but also have the #7, and #10…

image
image1284×1536 194 KB

julie

25

Thanks, it’s actually the headband itself that bothers me. I think.

1 Like
26

Hi Rob,

(sorry, i forgot to reply specifically to you regarding my above comments re magnification and objective lenses…i hope you saw them…)

p.s.i am not advocating for GRS, i am just using their content to show examples

i think that the working distance (magnification- ocular and objective lens choice), scope positioning flexibility (boom arm, pillar stand height/ weight), and positioning of work piece (choice of ball vise height, slide and lock option, satellite stand stand option, dedicated bench height with lower table height, etc, are critical questions to answer…

focusing your scope: (note the head/ eyepiece distance from the work)

also, since you will be engraving, centering will probably be important to consider

how to center your work:

universal centering vise attachment:

ball vise sizes: the height of the vise… (i have the microblock xl at 7lbs…the microblock at 4lbs was not stable enough when applying any force…i love the weight of the standard at 19lbs, but it is a but tall when working under the scope…

note the ball vise heights, and then look at the back of the photo where the standard ball is on the satellite stand, for an idea of work position height…ie: look at the height of the surface of the stand itself…

image
image1284×1320 256 KB

you could also use a GRS benchmate type setup for work holding, …

here is an example of a fixed height bench top, shortest height micro block, and a pillar type microscope stand as opposed to the versa style stand…(the Jura bench)

lastly here is a video about less expensive microscope, with a base style pillar type stand in action…and he talks about stereo and trinocular, which i found interesting…(for a camera) i feel like the scope stand needs to be raised…he appears to be hunched over a bit too much, even though he says he is comfortable…and there is no headrest, which i feel is very important to maintain head/ eye position to the eyepieces…very slight head/ eye movements really affects whether you see properly or not…

also, consideration for how high the scope stand will go, and how far forward it will travel…ie: how will you sit comfortably, can you extend it past the edge of your bench comfortably…

basically, i guess i am saying everything needs to be considered in relation to maintaining a comfortable seated position

julie

julie

1 Like
27

Julie…You are way ahead of me on this one. I am just beginning to learn about microscopes and appreciate all that you and others have offered in response to my original posts. The decision to eventually buy one is way down the road for me, but I will take into account your advice before I do. I have always thought that, if someone can ask a question, others probably have wanted to ask the same question, but didn’t, however, they will benefit just the same from the answers, even if they didn’t ask the question in the first place. As a teacher, I saw this happen in the classroom all the time and used it as a measure of how effective my teaching was…Rob

2 Likes
28

Hi Sue,

I just recalled a brand of lighting with magnification that you might be interested in…OTT lights…here is a link to their craft and sewing section/ lighting with magification…they have many floor lamp models…

julie

1 Like
29

Many thanks!

30

Hi,

back to your original pist…

i saw this floor lamp/ magnifying combo on instagram
here are some pics

image
image1284×2778 192 KB

image
image1284×2778 209 KB

image
image1284×2778 203 KB

i dont see that config, but scroll thru the below website, in the accessories section.

for the mangnifying glass, the lamps. etc

a bit pricey…looks like more for photography, beauty, etc

julie

31

Very cool, and thank you (nearly missed this, I had kind of stopped following this thread since it got sidetracked into the spendy zone :slight_smile: )