Hi Introduction and query

[allthejunkgenes]

I've lusted after a microscope ever since a friend was given one for her 12th birthday. We spent the summer searching for things to examine and I drew the images.
I won't repeat my mothers response to my request for one as it would offend any women here.
Studying pharmacology I had my next opportunity to work with a microscope and I was hooked.
I was asking my course co-ordinator as I intended to buy one for a summer project. There is a Watson Microsystem 70 binocular microscope I was looking at but the bulb is blown. I wondered if anyone could tell me how easy it is to get replacement bulbs.

Sadly I cant afford to lash out tons as I'm paying my own tuition fees for some of this degree due to mistakenly deciding I wanted to be a psychologist prior to doing pharmacology. T'was a bad move, no microscopy there
Username is a nod to a very upsetting lecture on evolutionary biology and the red queen hypothesis and all the junk genes could get dumped at the end of one line to end a non productive lineage....
47, chronic medical condition, medication causes birth defects, like kids but prefer to hand them back,

Looking forward to meeting others in the forum who had better luck in the gene pool and maybe know more about bulbs for Watson Microscopes!

[Dale]

Welcome to the UK, right? Looked at a Watson on a UK site, very impressive, but no prices.
How could you go wrong with "twin beryllium copper spring parallelogram with no sliding parts giving a rigid hysteresis free movement".
Could you give the model number, as these scopes had many different configurations that affected
the illumination parts.
If you give us a few hints as to what you will be examining there will be a deluge of very
experienced opinions.
Dale

[JimT]

Allthejunkgenes, welcome and best of luck in your studies. Sounds like you didn't get just the junk genes

I can't help with the Watson but like Dale suggested, a little more info and others will probably be able to help.

JimT

[Bufo Bill]

My dear lady, it is well established in scientific literature that the "Funk Soul Rebel" gene is formed from a combination of the recessive genes that give us suceptability to bad hair days and the infamous "grinding your teeth" gene. This gives the coolness present in James Brown, Graham Parker, and the Scotty dog with the tartan neckerchief that lives in my street.
No idea on the light I'm afraid, but search for Brunel stereo microscopes for an excellent range of budget models.
Hope to see you around, all the best from Bill.

[gekko]

Welcome, Allthejunkgenes, good to have you join the forum. I hope someone can help with your bulb problem, especially if you can post a picture of the old bulb.

[75RR]

Welcome,

Here is a link to a positive review of the Waston 70.
Assuming all else is well one can't go wrong with a beginners microscope that has Köhler.
Am sure a bulb can be sourced, especially if you have the old one.

http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/ind ... son70.html

[billporter1456]

Welcome to the forum. I have found that there are some very friendly and very helpful folks here.

[gekko]

This post may be useful (as a last resort) in the event that you are unable to find the right bulb, but may interest you in any case:
viewtopic.php?f=24&t=1785&p=13848&hilit=watson#p13848

[allthejunkgenes]

Thanks everyone.

Off topic a bit but I have always been in the UK....anyway...

Can't really say much more about the microscope other than it comes from a university biosciences lab (not ours!!)
and it only has 2 objectives, plus the bulb problem....and its covered in dust.

Heres hoping my attempt at putting up a picture of it works.

I was also looking at an Olympus Tokyo 593595, but the lens had been replaced and although the seller said that they refurbished it they wouldn't give respond to whether the new lens was a good match or if there are any focus artefacts and resolution limits. They just said they were a chemist not a biologist!

[allthejunkgenes]

Oops posted the picture in stereo!

[Bufo Bill]

I found this sited www.bltdirect.com they seem to sell the non frosted bulb you need. Hope this is of use.
All the best from Bill.

[allthejunkgenes]

Fantastic thanks!

Only trouble is I really am flying blind here.

At uni they just let us work with them and ask us to name the parts in exams. We arent trusted to take the lab microscopes apart to see what the bulbs might look like.

Now Bill has told me I want a non frosted bulb and recommended a site (thank you!) but I'm sorry to sound really naive I have no idea of the wattage the bayonet fitting or anything. If someone knows and could tell me that would be great.

It's one of a selection of best of the cheapest I can afford on ebay - I'm in the north of Scotland not many chances to go view the goods.

[apatientspider]

Allthejunkgenes,

Hello! And welcome to the forum.

The link above reviews the Watson 70 microscope ( http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/ind ... son70.html ) and shows several photos of the bulb needed for it. According to the description it is a 6 volt, 30 watt, double contact, bayonette base bulb - either clear or lightly frosted. If the microscope you have under consideration is reasonably similar, then it most likely takes the same bulb.

Here is a link to a site that deals in difficult-to-find-bulbs: http://www.donsbulbs.com/cgi-bin/r/t.pl

I have never dealt with them, and they seem a bit pricey to me, but if they don't have what you need or a substitute, then I don't know who would. They seem to list and cross reference every kind of light bulb ever made - and with measurements. Very informative site.

Jim

[Bufo Bill]

Hi again, if you look at the link to the positive review that one of the other posters has given in their post, if you scroll down the review you will find a picture of the bulb required, and the writer tells you that it is a 6 Volt 30 Watt bulb. When I said that they had the unfrosted version of this bulb, I meant to say that they only have the unfrosted version of this type, and I cannot find a frosted version on the linked site, I did not mean to imply that you would not do just as well with the frosted version if that is more suitable for your work. Read the review in depth and then decide. I am somewhat new to this myself, but I hope someone with a little more experience will read the review as I see some differences between your pictures and the one pictured in the review.
Hope I am making sense, all the best from Bill.

[apatientspider]

Additionally the review article - if one scrolls down - mentions several other illumination arrangements. For example other Watson models are powered off line or mains voltage and require a different bulb: 25 watts at either 100-120 or 200-250 volts. Still another - with the rheostat built into the base - requires a third type of bulb: a 6 volt, 18 watt lamp.

The photo posted just above appears to show one of these other models - but I can't tell which. None of the afore-mentioned bulb types should be all that difficult to find online - except, perhaps, the partially frosted variety.

Jim

[apatientspider]

Fantastic thanks!

Only trouble is I really am flying blind here................................

It's one of a selection of best of the cheapest I can afford on ebay - I'm in the north of Scotland not many chances to go view the goods.

Allthejunkgenes,

If the microscope in which you are interested is being sold on Ebay, could you not email the seller and ask him the model number or request more information about the bulb?

As for the scope being covered in dust - that generally means it hasn't been used in a long while. That could be either good or bad, depending on why it hasn't been used. In this case it could be because of the blown bulb. But why did the bulb blow? Did it simply come to the end of its useful life? Or could it have been subjected to the wrong voltage for some reason? It would behoove you to find out before you buy.

Jim

[allthejunkgenes]

Cheers Jim I'll ask

Thank you for pointing out everything I missed in the other replies. I'm studying hard for impending exams and do tend to skim things that aren't related to microbiology of the cell or organic chemistry.

Trying to relax tonight so im paying attention......apart from the pre exam jitters.

[gekko]

You'll do well. Good luck!