Loupes/magnifiers

[Anthony P]

Hello

 

I'm currently pondering my first loupe, and I was wondering if you guys had any info. I hear that pocket microscopes run a bit too high with regards to magnification, and I read about an Independent Living Aids 14x lighted magnifier in another thread which runs for the same price as a BelOMO from Richard's Pens.

 

Links

https://www.independentliving.com/prodinfo.asp?number=905204

http://www.widgetsupply.com/page/WS/PROD/magnifier-eye-loupe/XWZ3-18HB

http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=51092&cat=1,43456,43351&ap=1

 

 

Or any other recommendations?

[andybiotic]

My most frequently used "loupe" is a 60X plastic "microscope" with led light, cheap as hack on ebay, $5? I think it works like a charm. You can REALLY see the nib in detail and detect the smallest misalignments! I also have a 120X but THAT is too high and I can never hold the nib still enough to get it in range.

 

If you are afriad that the 60X is too high (but it is NOT), there is also another one in a regular loupe shape at 40X also with bright led light. The diameter on that one is around 3cm so it is very easy to use and easy on the eye. Again, very cheaply on ebay.

 

I am actually considering to get one of those that are mounted on a eye glasses frame so I have both hands working on the pen. (Like those ones on professor farnsworth! :roflmho: ) Too bad the highest magnification on those are only 20X.... which should be enough but I think I am too used to the 60X.....

 

Btw, you can't work on your pens with that fin-longer on your hand! :roflmho: I am a futurama fan too!

Edited December 14, 2011 by andybiotic

[Anthony P]

Huh, the general consensus was that I should avoid cheap magnifiers.

 

Not really sure what to do now. I just pulled up an ebay search for 40x LED-lighted and they were about $5. My immediate need is nib stuff, but I think 40X is way too high for general inspection.

[Torculus Resupinus]

I'm still using an old 7x Bausch & Lomb I inherited from my father about 1975. I've heard others here saying 20x is too much; apparently 10x-15x is a good range of magnification to aim for. BelOMO and Bausch & Lomb are extremely reliable for optical quality.

[dex138]

I've been at this fountain pen stuff since May 2011, and am learning fast. I've been playing with nib alignment using an old Tasco 10X pocket loupe that worked OK once I striped it down and cleaned it. (it is 30 years old) Although it is now clean the view still isn't as sharp as I'd like and the depth of field is poor.

 

Through hours of reading the forums, reviews from all over, and talking to members at the Vancouver Pen Club at their monthly meetings, I've learned that BelOMO loupes are well made and very popular. They are hand held and unlit (but for my whopping collection of 9 FPs it's not a concern) and available in 7X, 8X, 10X, 12X, 15X, and 20X. I actually got a chance to use a 10X and found it to be very nice indeed, nice crisp image, and good depth. The concensus so far has been that the 20X loupe is just too much (difficult to hold it steady), that the 10X just isn't quite enough, and that one of BelOMO's 12X or 15X would work well.

 

I just ordered ( like an hour and a half ago) a BelOMO 12X Triplet Loupe. I went with the 12X rather than th 15X as at 52 YOA my hands aren't that steady anymore.

 

Another good source of information is some of the Geologists sites. They use loupes for examining rock samples.

 

Hope this helps.

Edited December 14, 2011 by dex138

[dnayakan]

Some generalizations. The magnification you need is a function of the task as well as the condition of your eyes and what you find comfortable.

 

For general inspection, 5-10X is usual. For nib inspection (tine alignment, feed and nib alignment etc), a 10X loupe is usual. For really close up nib work (grinding etc), a 20X or more is usual. You can certainly go higher as required but it is often overkill. It is cool, though, in a using a cannon to shoot a fly kind of way.

 

The form of magnification and quality of the optics is more important.

 

Quality of optics matters more than you imagine, especially for long periods of work. Poor quality optics will be poorly corrected for aberrations which means a very poor image away from the center and will result in eye strain.

 

Magnification can come in various forms. The typical loupe is either something held in one hand or held at your eye like a jewelers loupe. Old fashioned jewelers loupes are just screwed into your eye socket and held there by your cheek muscles - it might explain the grimace jewelers usually seem to have. These days, you also have them available in the form of lenses mounted on a spectacle frame or something similar.

 

The advantage of having an eye loupe is that it leaves both your hand free but it can be annoying in that one of your eyes is looking at the distance while the other is corrected for very close vision. So, you usually close the other eye but people seem to vary in how long they can tolerate that situation. Loupes are comfortable upto a region of about 10X-15X, maybe 20X. Beyond that, you are holding the item to be observed extremely close to the lens and minor tremors in your hand, which are unavoidable, will frustrate you.

 

Anything beyond this really requires a stage to hold the object being observed, at which point you also want to eliminate the tremors in the hand holding the lens - in other words, a microscope. Another comfortable option is a dental loupe (like what you see dentists wearing). These can be very pricey but rather than a microscope, they work on the principle of telescopes. In fact they are simple telescopes mounted in an eyeglass frame. So, you can hold the object at a more comfortable arms length distance. They are good for the prolonged periods of magnification required by dentists. They are expensive enough to be highly impractical for pen work, which is served as well by regular loupes.

 

In general, very high magnifications will reduce the distance between the object and lens significantly. By 20X, the distance is sufficiently small to preclude working while watching the magnified image. That is, you will have to look at the object through the lens, take it away and work it unmagnified, take it back to the lens to check it etc.

 

In general, I would say you should aim for the magnification that makes it possible to see the level of detail you need for a job, and no higher.

 

Cheers, DJ

[Bo Bo Olson]

I have a 10 X....not quite enough it's adequate but could be that smidgen bigger. . I think 50% more at 15 X would be too much.

 

I think 12 X with good coating and a good lens would be what you need.

 

If you buy cheap junk, you will get cheap junk...cheap glass not good glass, I don't even know if you are going to get any coating, much less good coating.

 

Those who are ignorant remain so. Those who are not ignorant, don't buy cheap junk.

 

It is a once in a life time buy...get something you won't be replacing in six months or as soon as you try a real lens.

[Lince]

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php?/topic/184053-please-buy-one-of-this/page__p__1856117__fromsearch__1#entry1856117

 

My link

 

Buy the cheap ebay one. It says x40 but really it is only 15.

 

I have it for 4 years and use it a lot, and love it.

I grind my own nibs.

Check out my review.

[pen2paper]

I heartily recommend the " I L A ' .. mine (8X) is several years old, in frequent use has needed but 1 battery change.

 

Used in competitive judging of small objects, which may be 3/8" or less, and where materials, other material embellishments, and specific details of artisans technique must be identified. [is this true (Whitby) jet = carved, black glass = molded, horn = molded with specific marks, etc.]

The Ila lens is distortion free, the light renders colors correctly. Worth the price.

 

This Ila is not hands free. 8X is small enough to carry in a pocket.

[welch]

Some generalizations. The magnification you need is a function of the task as well as the condition of your eyes and what you find comfortable.

 

For general inspection, 5-10X is usual. For nib inspection (tine alignment, feed and nib alignment etc), a 10X loupe is usual. For really close up nib work (grinding etc), a 20X or more is usual. You can certainly go higher as required but it is often overkill. It is cool, though, in a using a cannon to shoot a fly kind of way.

 

The form of magnification and quality of the optics is more important.

 

Quality of optics matters more than you imagine, especially for long periods of work. Poor quality optics will be poorly corrected for aberrations which means a very poor image away from the center and will result in eye strain.

 

Magnification can come in various forms. The typical loupe is either something held in one hand or held at your eye like a jewelers loupe. Old fashioned jewelers loupes are just screwed into your eye socket and held there by your cheek muscles - it might explain the grimace jewelers usually seem to have. These days, you also have them available in the form of lenses mounted on a spectacle frame or something similar.

 

The advantage of having an eye loupe is that it leaves both your hand free but it can be annoying in that one of your eyes is looking at the distance while the other is corrected for very close vision. So, you usually close the other eye but people seem to vary in how long they can tolerate that situation. Loupes are comfortable upto a region of about 10X-15X, maybe 20X. Beyond that, you are holding the item to be observed extremely close to the lens and minor tremors in your hand, which are unavoidable, will frustrate you.

 

Anything beyond this really requires a stage to hold the object being observed, at which point you also want to eliminate the tremors in the hand holding the lens - in other words, a microscope. Another comfortable option is a dental loupe (like what you see dentists wearing). These can be very pricey but rather than a microscope, they work on the principle of telescopes. In fact they are simple telescopes mounted in an eyeglass frame. So, you can hold the object at a more comfortable arms length distance. They are good for the prolonged periods of magnification required by dentists. They are expensive enough to be highly impractical for pen work, which is served as well by regular loupes.

 

In general, very high magnifications will reduce the distance between the object and lens significantly. By 20X, the distance is sufficiently small to preclude working while watching the magnified image. That is, you will have to look at the object through the lens, take it away and work it unmagnified, take it back to the lens to check it etc.

 

In general, I would say you should aim for the magnification that makes it possible to see the level of detail you need for a job, and no higher.

 

Cheers, DJ

 

Brilliant explanation.

 

I'll add a tiny, from my taste and experience:

 

- I like a loupe with light...I see more

 

- I noticed that Richard Who-needs-no-last -name uses an eye-glasses-style magnifier...lighted, I think. Reminded me of my dermatologist, who has a lighted magnifying thing he puts over his glasses, as he says, "hmm...let's see...over here?"

 

- Overall, loupes and such are inexpensive compared to pens, so you can afford to try one and move to whatever works better. Keep trying until, like DJ, you have a set of tools that feels right. (Heat guns are the exception...they have to be just right, or you have to scorch enough sections that you have just the perfect touch...)

[Anthony P]

Alright, I've got a decision between BelOMO 10x vs a non-name but LED-lighted 10x magnifier from an electronics shop. Both are the same price.

 

EDIT: Actually, on further inspection, the no-name is a "doublet", 26mm eyepiece. I also found a lighted headpiece magnifier than can do combos with 1.5x, 3x, 8.5x and 10x. Same price.

Edited December 15, 2011 by Anthony P

[someonesdad]

You left out the critical information -- i.e., exactly what you want to do with this magnifier. Different tasks take different tools.

 

Here's what I use. I've had a B&L 4X magnifier (in jeweler's loupe form) for 40+ years and it is the single optical tool I use far more than anything else. It doubles as a macro lens for my little digital pocket camera. It sits just at my left hand when I sit at my computer, as I use it many times in a day.

 

When I want to measure physical dimensions, my favorite tool is a 20X Dumaurier Micro-mike; I also have a 50X Micro-mike, but I use it much less. Dumaurier went out of business, but someone else is making them now (easily findable on the web). I've been using mine steadily for 30 years and they are great tools with no moving parts.

 

For flat stuff, I have an Edmund Scientific viewer with a 20 mm scale (0.1 mm graduations), but I use it much less than the Micro-mike. It has an incandescent illumination attachment that uses two C batteries.

 

My favorite inspection tool in industry was a B&L Stereozoom 7 stereomicroscope that I bought at work in the early 80's. If I was doing commercial work, I would find a tool like that along with a good fiber optic illuminator.

[Mike 59]

Up until October this year, I used a x10 insect microscope. I thought it was very macro..... until I bought a x20 Triplet from a local watch shop. What a difference, I can really see what's what around the nib, not really sure any more power would help, but it would be interesting to find out. My triplet is all metal, chrome plated, has 20mm diam glass lenses, and a 2 LED light which uses a watch battery for power. The optical quality is good, certainly much better than the plastic lenses I used before. Dimensions are 45 x 25 x 20mm. Price £16.

( I have taken a photo but in reality it's far better than this. This nib is a Parker Frontier 'M'.)

Edited December 16, 2011 by Mike 59

[eric47]

Loupes are comfortable upto a region of about 10X-15X, maybe 20X. Beyond that, you are holding the item to be observed extremely close to the lens and minor tremors in your hand, which are unavoidable, will frustrate you.

 

Great comments DJ. I'd just add that as the magnification increases, the depth of field also gets narrower. So yet another reason why those minor hand tremors are problematic the higher the magnification.

[fabrimedeiros]

I have a chinese cheap 15x that is awesome to check the nib tip and other details. Even cheap, it produces a good qualilty image. They say 30x, but it's 15x, in fact. http://www.ebay.com/...=item53dd2f67fd

 

However, the best ones are that can be held on the head, and you can keep your hands free.

 

 

Expensive or cheap, all FP enthusiast must have one at least. Nibs get misaligned very often and we need to keep them working properly.

Edited December 16, 2011 by fabrimedeiros

[Anthony P]

You left out the critical information -- i.e., exactly what you want to do with this magnifier. Different tasks take different tools.

Well, my immediate need is nib inspection. I don't know if I'd take a 20x into a shop and start inspecting things with it though.

[eric47]

Well, my immediate need is nib inspection. I don't know if I'd take a 20x into a shop and start inspecting things with it though.

 

LOL, earlier this week I did that with a 12x BelOMO loupe which was in my jacket pocket. I was looking at how the nib was tipped and its width. While I own vintage pens from the brand, I don't own any of its modern pens. I was trying to get a rough idea of nib width without dirtying the nib. My local shop lets me try pens without any fuss, but I didn't want to dirty the nib of an LE pen I was curious about but not ready to buy.

 

Along with that loupe I also have eye loupes (15x, 10x, 8x and 6x). 12x BelOMO gives that little extra bit over the 10x for nib inspection, which I like; pretty cool while in the field, e.g. pen shows.

 

I still prefer the eye loupes for nib adjustment so my hands are free. My 15x eye loupe is great for further nib inspection (checking tipping material), but I find it difficult for working with my hands -- the nib needs to be really close and the depth of field is really thin. I can't imagine trying to use a 20x. Given the loupes I own I use the 10x eye loupe for "hands-free" nib adjustments.

 

I may one day get a 12x eye loupe for nib adjustment; again I like that little bit more magnification on the tines and tipping.

 

I'll probably get another BelOMO loupe like a 7x and/or 10x for quick and dirty pen inspection at shows (like I do with my lower powered eye loupes at home) -- to find areas that require more detailed inspection with a higher magnification. With a 12x it takes a long time to inspect an entire pen, plus the BelOMO 12x lens has a smaller diameter than both the their 10x and 7x. I find fold-out loupes like the BelOMOs easier to carry around and use at shows and shops.

Edited December 16, 2011 by eric47

[Anthony P]

Alright, I picked up the BelOMO 10x from Richard Binder as well as that $3 "45x" one off ebay that only goes up to 15x, but it gets a few recommendations here anyway. Why not, it's only $3 and at least I'll have an idea of what 15x is like.