Thread: Microscope Examination

QX5
spyderco ultra fine hone and strop a beard hair on the blade
sorry that i could not get a shot of the full bevle but hey at 200x you cant get a lot in the pic

BTW this is my house razor

I picked up the radioshack special today. had a lot of trouble figuring out how to keep the blade flat and not moving and how to maneuver with the plastic guard on the microscope.

This thread just keeps on giving.

So gents, I am looking for something inexpensive, but better than the $10 Radioshack version. Under $50 is good. I was looking at some of those eye loupes from Bausch & Lomb, but what Lynn said about them makes me rethink that route (they're pretty expensive). Any suggestions? I think 40x or 60x would suffice for my purposes. For now...

I have 30x and 200x USB scope and I have a 10X BelOMO eye loupe.

The BelOMO is about $30 on Amazon.com and is equivalent in quality to the B&L or Nikon scopes that cost an arm and a leg.

I find I can see all I need with the 10X loupe.

The conclusion I have come to is that whilst the magnification is interesting, it still doesn't tell me if the razor is going to give a comfortable shave. I think my thumb does a better job. When the edge feels sticky sharp it always gives a good shave and I only ever feel that sticky feeling after stropping.

Being a pro tattoo artist I have to check needles for defects in the points. I have eye loupes in 14, 20 and 30X. I also have an old B&L stereo microscope in 30x. I find 30 very good for checking edges for damage when I first get them and for the progress I am making in setting a bevel or in general honing.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Being a pro tattoo artist I have to check needles for defects in the points. I have eye loupes in 14, 20 and 30X. I also have an old B&L stereo microscope in 30x. I find 30 very good for checking edges for damage when I first get them and for the progress I am making in setting a bevel or in general honing.

Thats exactly what I want them for! Where can I get a quality one in my price range?

Originally Posted by English

I find I can see all I need with the 10X loupe.

For anyone thinking of buying one...
You can use a lens from a SLR camera as a loupe. Hold it as if it was pointing at you to take a photo and put the object you want to look at on the other (film) side. The lens optics are designed to work this way so you get a very clear image.

You can probably buy 50mm f/1.8 manual focus lenses for next to nothing on ebay now. And of course you don't need them to be fully functional, as long as the glass is good.

Originally Posted by Leighton

Thats exactly what I want them for! Where can I get a quality one in my price range?

Kaptain Zero turned me on to Widget Supply here.