MicrobeHunter.com Microscopy Forum

Thanks, 75 - that's perfect.

MichaelG., sorry I was less than clear, but 75RR got us covered so all is well. Thanks again, amigo.

May I respectfully request a distillation of this thread in plain English for us Earth People? Thank you.

75RR is the wizard of the Zeiss 63x/1.4 Planapo for sure. If I ever get back in my lab I may be hitting him up for advice - mine gives me fits!

For whatever it's worth, I obtained a Nikon Diaphot TMD equipped with phase and with DIC from the guy in the eBay ad in the original post, very similar to the one linked to above, and have been past delighted with it. I had tried a couple other inverted scopes but could never quite get comfortable w...

Very cool to see! I guess this means there are at least two in Texas - "Nessy the Tessy" is a marvelous monster that lives in my lab. I could use a better picture of it, however (as with the original Nessy, I suppose).

They are not zip-locked... Indeed, zip-lock bags, commonly assumed to give watertight seal, don't really. I'm an old canoe and kayak instructor among other things, and can't tell you how many sad tales of heartache I've seen and heard about people putting valuables in ziploc baggies only to end up ...

Nicely done - a lovely instrument! I have a Labophot and Diaphot TMD, and can vouch for the very nice phase contrast your Nikon is likely to deliver.

Here's a web site with Nikon info you might enjoy: https://lavinia.as.arizona.edu/~mtuell/ ... heads.html

mintakax, since you're relatively new here I'm unclear on whether you are able to swap PMs or not, so would you please drop me PM, or email? I have a Buddhism-related question I'd like to ask, that's off-topic for this forum.

Fantastic - please keep the desmid images coming! (And yes, please post a picture of the sample bag, sounds interesting.)

Now there's one I'm totally unfamiliar with. Let's look into it and see if we can tag this guy. And you only found one? What size sample and from where - benthic, planktonic, or ? Or were you in the marina scraping mooring lines again? Do keep an eye out for others.

First thing I thought is Entomoneis.

Very cool! Just in case somebody finds it useful, here's a hint for the sharpest razor blades you can buy locally: They still make and sell double-edged safety razor blades (I'm in the USA), find 'em in the grocery store, much keener than box cutter or single edge razor blades. Super glue or tape a ...

Oh now that looks interesting indeed. Thanks for posting!

I suppose it should have occurred to me...

Now there's a great big lurking "gotcha" in diatom study right there: keeping on your toes for the valve view vs. girdle view thing. If I had a dollar for every time I've been bamboozled by that one I could buy a new bottle of Pleurax.

Zeiss Standard WL on sick leave

Oh my, I hope it's not serious, and shall keep fingers crossed for speedy recovery.

I'll tell you what would be a fun thing to do with it: sell it to me. :P :lol: Seriously, I just wrote our buddy Tom asking (more) questions about these stands (again), been wanting one for the past little while but have been consumed with rebuilding my antique house for the past 6 months, before it...

Everybody sees things differently of course, so here are a couple comments from an old AO/Spencer enthusiast that are meant only to offer my own personal take on life. First, the bright field, POL, and phase contrast all can be in the same stand - why not? If I had room and inclination to keep (yet)...

In his epic thread on making diatom slides... http://www.microbehunter.com/microscopy-forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=3036&start=60 ...my friend rnabholz mentions getting one and digging it! Now I wonder where I got the hint, as I'm 99.99% sure I didn't think it up all by myself. Oh well, thank you whoev...

Bravo!

(And I agree with Hobbyst46.)

I bought one of these about 4 years ago and have been living happily ever after. https://tinyurl.com/yxrhnvpu Seriously, it's so great I ordered a second one for backup, haven't needed it yet, and I makes lots of slides. This baby makes picking up cover slips fun! In case the URL doesn't work: eBay ...

I imagine, their processing of the diatom for SEM modified the frustule, and made it sort of less round, more heart-like. Although far from certain, I'm thinking there's enough subtle shape variation in this one to cover a bit of outline discrepancy. Campylodiscus is a notoriously tricky bunch, a g...

Yes, what an exceedingly pleasing image! Always so nice to see living diatoms "doing their thing".

Very cool post! We don't see a lot of this sort of thing on this forum, and that's precisely what makes it so especially interesting. I hope you (and anyone else who has them) will post more thin section pics, and perhaps give a few words on them for context. I love it!

Well, John, I must say I certainly admire your style, and can hardly wait till the first images from your new BX stand come in...

I was hoping to see this generate some discussion, as I have pretty much the same question going myself: I also happen to be a diatom enthusiast with a complete E400 stand that needs a new home. I take it OP is in the UK; I am in the States. I fear no "pre-owned name brand" microscope ever sells for...

This guy has several complete "turnkey" stands available for what I think are reasonable prices. I own two DIC stands, an upright and an inverted, the latter came from him and I am delighted with it. I feel comfortable recommending him as a seller who knows his wares, as opposed to one of the (too) ...

Please do be aware that not all harsh reflections are bad. In macro and extreme macro it's certainly a major challenge to avoid blown out highlights, and much has been written and discussed on the subject, but we must be careful to remember that occasionally, even if only very occasionally, harsh re...

That tiny shell is beautiful, looks to be a ton of potential in it for a truly spectacular image - not that the ones you posted aren't very nice, just looks like a grand subject to play around with if it's your thing. Be really great if some size context could be added to show just how tiny it is, l...

Here are some collecting pictures Michel Haak, a fellow in The Netherlands who might know a thing or two about diatoms, sent me a while back. Seems he stashes a piece of glass by a piling to lure in some sample material. Depending on time of year, the pond's vitality, etc., etc., that chunk of glass...

Wow, what a video! I especially enjoyed and appreciated it since I myself have had the very special pleasure of paddling with dolphins just like that, except for the clear water (sigh). One of my old (fellow sea kayak advanced open water skills instructor) buddies was a TAMUG/MFL marine biologist sp...