Thread: Microscope Edges

Originally Posted by netsplit

You do know one of those knobs is for focusing? =P

Haha, yes, much easier said than done. Probably a combination of my unit and more likely the operator...

Pictures of edges can be very educational (OK, sometimes rather disappointing too!) I used them in this review of a rather (in)famous razor brand.

The pictures were taken with a cheapo kids' USB microscope, but are far more useful to me than the Radio Shack microscope. or any other (I do have a nice Olympus binocular microscope in my office for looking at - well, you would rather not know, believe me!)

Chris

Chris, that was a great presentation. I have read and re-read it many times.

Where can one buy one of those microscopes? Do tell. Disregard..... Just ordered one from Opticsplanet.

apparently from radio shack, we dont have them here in Australia, but i got mine from ebay,

just do a search for 'led microscope' and they should come up

These little scopes are well worth the little money you have to spend, they will show you whats going on with the edge. Netsplit that last foto in the first group looks like a crumbling edge, it may take some time to get past the bad steel before you can establish the bevel.

Cheers, yeah,

it's a broken razor, a scrap one i got off ebay to test diff metal products out on, no way that's getting back to shave ready =P

But the microscope has been handy, I was honing a razor earlier, and i'm noticing that its putting micro chips into my bevel, not a good start,

Now i think i just need to get a better quality 1k hone =/

Originally Posted by nun2sharp

These little scopes are well worth the little money you have to spend, they will show you whats going on with the edge. Netsplit that last foto in the first group looks like a crumbling edge, it may take some time to get past the bad steel before you can establish the bevel.

Yea, the best explanation for that I've heard, assuming it's good steel, is that it's a "rotted" edge probably due to rusting in the past (maybe it was nun2sharp that did the writeup on that?). Just keep removing material until you get past it. If you run out of razor before you get past it then it wasn't made of good steel.

The best way that I've found to focus these microscopes is to focus on a flat surface first. I set a sheet of newspaper or similar down on my table, place the microscope directly flat on the paper, and set the zoom I want. Once the zoom is set, I adjust the focus so that I can clearly see all the little fibers and stuff.

When holding the microscope to a razor, you have to use one hand for the scope, one for the razor. By focusing on paper first, you can dedicate both hands to the scope, making adjustments much easier. Since the scope has the plastic "foot" you don't have to worry about specimen distance screwing up your focus. You put the paper on the foot, then the razor on the foot. Same distance.

Can you please post a picture of your holder for the USB webcam and the scope? I'd be very interested.

Hi, Did you put the razor between the foot and the microscope, or under the foot, with the razor between the foot and the table?