Help buying a microscope in Canada for electronics work

[rkagerer]

Hi! I'm finally ready to take the plunge and buy my first microscope. I'll mainly be using it for electronics work, and I'm looking for advice and recommendations. Here's what I'm thinking:

ARTICULATING STAND

I'm set on an articulating arm stand as I think it will best fit my workspace. Idea being I can quickly grab and position it when needed, then fold it out of the way when not in use (which will be most of the time). I know these are more wobbly than double-arm boom stands, e.g. Louis Rossmann (video below) actually got rid of his Amscope arm after viewers complained it made his videos shake too much. I'm a bit wary of that, and for a while I was even checking out heavier-duty surgical microscope stands.

I'm going to start with a desk clamp, but plan to replace the vertical pillar with a custom post securely mounted between my desktop and a cabinet overhead. I'll route a fume extractor duct along the stand, like seen in the Union Repair video below.

I've identified a few models:

Amscope / Omax:

• 39" reach
• 20" vertical travel
• Video review by Corgitronics
• Unboxing and video review by Louis Rossmann

Omano:

• ~36" reach
• Marketing video
• Video by Union Repair
• Another video by Louis Rossmann, comparing it from the perspective of jitter to a single-arm boom

GRS Acrobat / Meiji CR-2:

• 31" reach
• 34" vertical travel

MICROSCOPE

I'm thinking trinocular with a "simul-focus" feature (or whatever it's branded), so I can simultaneously look through both eyepieces and use the camera, and avoid having to refocus when switching between the two.

Someone recommended having at least 8" working distance for clearance to work with a soldering iron underneath.

I'm considering the Amscope "TP" series, Omax W43DF1 and Omano. Also Walter Products, as they're available pretty cheap from Best Buy in Canada (I was skeptical at first, but their support folks got back to me more quickly than any other brand, answered my questions more thoroughly, and when pressed said they purchase from the same manufacturer as Amscope).

LENSES

Seems the recommendation for SMC work is to go with an 0.5 Barlow and widefield eyepieces. e.g. EP20x30E (20X magnification, 12mm FOV). Someone also pointed out the benefit of matching the eyepiece field of view with the camera (e.g. so you don't start pointing out features the audience can't see).

LAMP

A ringlight seems like it would work well for me. Continuous dimming is preferable to fixed increments. Having different zones is handy to change the illumination angle and control direction in which shadows are cast (depending what side of a part you want to highlight). I'd personally prefer the controls be integrated into the unit, to avoid having yet another console to strap to the arm. Metal threaded mounting holes (e.g. brass PEM nuts) as opposed to plastic ones, which wear out.

Saw a recommendation for the SCHOTT EasyLED Ringlight PLUS. The 144-LED illumination rings seem popular too.

CAMERA

Need some advice here, haven't researched it much. I figure it's handy to take images to document a build, get help or support on something or if I want to do a webcast down the road. Might also use it in other contexts (e.g. to get in real close to look at layer lines / defects on 3D prints and share those results with others).

OTHER ACCESSORIES

• eyeguards
• calibration slide
• dust cover

QUESTIONS

Any...

1. Other models or items I should consider?
2. Opinions on articulating arm vs. double-arm boom stands?
3. Owners here who can take a precise diameter measurement for me of the vertical pillar on any of the above armatures? Ideas on a good place to source a similar part (but longer)?
4. Real differences in quality between Amscope/Omax/Omano/etc. equipment? (They all kind of look like they could be made by the same Chinese manufacturers...)
5. Can someone with a Walter Products microscope comment on build quality vs the above?
6. Will all these scopes have roughly the same working distance when equipped with similar lenses?
7. Thoughts whether I really need trinocular vs. just going binocular w/ camera eyepiece?
8. Thoughts on an "engravers" headrest? (Can they even be used with trinoc?)
9. Recommendations on a good place to source this stuff in Canada? Right now I'm looking at Amazon.ca, eBay.ca and Microscopenet.com (which is based out of Kitchener).

I might post some more specific questions once I've narrowed down my choices a little more and figured out where I plan to buy. Thanks in advance for any help!

[Hobbyst46]

Hi and welcome,
Although I have only ocassionaly done electronic jobs, may I suggest some tips.
1. The camera will be an important aid. Especially since you are concerned about safety and intend to suck the soldering fumes (acids etc) away from the stand and you. An efficient suction tube cannot be very small and narrow-bore. Moreover, if during soldering you can rely on the camera and live display instead of your eye view (most of the time), so much the better. So, a USB camera (say, eyepiece camera) with a 0.3X or 0.5X reducing lens, tethered to the computer display. If you can solder while watching the live view on the screen, your head can be further away from the noxious fumes. This is what I imagine, really.
2. Hence, I would prefer a trinocular, definitely.
3. Some cheap commercial 60-LED or 144-LED ring illuminators from the far east (on eBay), installed directly under the objectives and providing a coaxial light beam, are equipped with unreliable dimmers (such is mine...). A good LED light dimmer should be a controlled current device. Moreover, these multi-LED ring illuminators often bulge out and interfere with your working space.

[apochronaut]

I see that you have done your homework but only when it comes to searching out Chinese made microscopes available through the internet.
That's a pretty poor sample of what is available in the universe of microscopes. China is a very capable and developing country, especially when it comes to technology, with lots of research going on but most of their research into optics is directed outside the consumer realm. Their microscopes are based on optical engineering which they have largely copied from the better manufacturer's designs of the 1980's and 90's. The Chinese haven't put anything new or revolutionary on the market in microscopes and where they have nudged forward with advanced optics, so has the price.

I have no idea how much you intend to spend but if I told you that you can get a 160mm field at 20X with NO aux. barlow lens and a 108mm W.D. in a research grade microscope with stellar optics on a rock steady boom stand for about 1000.00 in Canada, how would you feel about that?

[rkagerer]

Thanks for the advice. FYI I added a second Rossman video link to my post which talks about jitter.

Right now one of my top contenders is this: Omax W43DF1-6B3 with articulating stand (which is probably the same item/seller as this). I'd have to source a couple things myself e.g. ringlight, camera.

I notice all the OMAX scopes configured for higher magnifications (up to 270x) come with dual fiber lights. Why is that? Is a decent LED ring insufficient at those magnifications? For electronics work, I'll only be using the lower end, but like I said I might occasionally want to look at something else (and might want to add a 2X barlow later).

@apochronaut, I'd love to broaden my search - could you point me to the higher quality stuff? I'm open to paying more if the quality is worth it.

Also something I forgot to mention - I wear glasses. Anything to look out for with regard to that?

[Tarloth]

Rkagerer:

I did buy few months ago a microscope (two finally) to soldering PCB's with very small components. Some of my PCb's are solder in a reflow oven, but some components are soldered by hand. For this work I need a stereo microscope. My experience so far:

* Articulate stand is a must, period.
* Stereomicroscope: I did buy two inexpensive microscopes, I did pay less than U$S100 each one, they are old (very) but work PERFECT, better or the same that all the sub $ 1.000 chinese microscopes that I test. B&L Stereozoom4 and Nikon SZM-2 are far better that I need in electronics, I did use Nikon to tissue culture and every day use it to see very small aquatic critters. Perhaps Nikon has better contrast but B&L has a better work position when I solder. I put the B&L for electronics and Nikon for rest of tasks. SZM-2T would be fantastic if you need a camera. I did notice that a lot of industrial stereo microscopes for electronics industry used B&L and even today are selling for this task.
* Lenses: I have 10 WF, both microscopes have fantastic working fields and I did not need the .5 barlow lens (but maybe in the future it's useful), working distance of both microscopes are ok. I did buy two excellent WF 20x oculars and are useless for solder PCB and for inspect boards 10x and max zoom it's enough. For biology are fantastics, not for electronics.
* Lamp: for electronics 4 LED's with individual control are enough, more it's better, but really all options work.
* Camera: I did not buy stereo microscopes with camera tubes, but for soldering PCB it's really not frequent to take a picture. For evaluating or publish on the internet OK, it's a must, but for solder I really did take photos only one or two times. For biology it's a MUST. If I need to use a camera I prefer a DSLR mount and use the body of a DSLR camera.

I hope that this was useful to you. Welcome to the forum.

[rkagerer]

Thanks for all the tips here.

After a lot of research, I'm considering springing for a Leica S9i on a GRS Acrobat Versa armature. Mainly because:

• Huge depth of field from the FusionOptics (convenient, and might help mitigate effects of any vibrations carried through mount when doing video)
• Most sturdy armature I could find
• Large Field of View (I think 46mm using 0.5X Barlow and 10x/23 lenses)
• People rave about the optics
• No-fuss built-in camera with good output options (HDMI, USB, Ethernet)

I hear roughly one in a thousand people get messed up by the FusionOptics. Has anyone here used it and can comment?
Also if I understand correctly the optical path is permanently split so 50% is always going to the video port. Think that will noticeably impact the renowned image quality? (I think the cheaper trinocs I'm considering work like that anyway).
Also heard around 2017 the camera was laggy; hoping it's been upgraded since then to improve that.

Obviously this thing is ~4x the cost of an Amscope on a flex arm, so grappling with price a little. But I figure I'll keep it 30+ years so am open to spending a bit more for a good one. Open to thoughts here, too, if you think I'm overspending too crazily.

Also need to confirm I can do the 90-degree swivel thing on the optics carrier when mounted to the Versa arm, since I want the arm to come into my workspace from the side, something like this:



Here's a link to the product manual on the S9i.

If not that, then I'll likely go with the original OMAX W43DF1-6B3.

Unfortunately I never heard back from apochronaut on his higher-end alternatives.

[apochronaut]

Actually, they weren't higher end. They are lower end from the standpoint that they are existing older systems that you would have to search out and probably assemble from different sources. Cost would be under 1000.00 for sure and possibly much lower. I would be more than willing to help you do that but based on your posts, I gleaned that your inclination is A) to purchase a completely functional unit off the shelf and B) wanted to complete the purchase fairly quickly. To put together an exceptional used wide field stereo microscope on a boom stand made by one of the major microscope manufacturers would take a little time but I think you would save some money and you would also get something that would optically and mechanically outperform the budget microscopes you were looking at.

I'm a bit curious about Leica's specs. on that microscope. Working distance, depth of field and field of view are meaningless without a context and the important context is ; at what magnification? All of those specs. are variable depending on that one other piece of data. A 46mm f.o.v. for instance isn't earth shattering, if it is with a .5X barlow at the minimum magnification in the zoom range but if it is at 20X, then it is really good. Do you know what the magnification bench mark they are using for those specs. is?

The Leica I am sure is a good microscope for your purposes, if you can justify the cost of it.

[Scarodactyl]

A few thoughts.

I wouldn't necessarily count on a new Leica lasting 30 years. Maybe they have improved but many of their scopes have a reputation for having durability problems (likely due to how much plastic is in them). Certainly I have heard it about the MZ6. Either way you won't want to be stuck with the same camera 30 years from now, so hopefully built in doesn't mean it can't be swapped out later. That said the optics themselves should be quite good, and the s9 series are apo corrected iirc.

The fusion optics probably won't be much help for your camera, as the system relies on having two eyes (one eye is stopped down for higher DoF but lower resolution. I haven't tried it but find the concept a bit questionable). Not sure which eye the camera would pull from.

Overall I think the S9 will do what you want, but buying a leica new is awfully expensive. You could probably get an older research-grade head witha 0.5 aux lens and a compatible arm for that price and still have some money. But it is true there are risks to buying used and it may be more time and work than you want to put in.