Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

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Scarodactyl
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Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#1 Post by Scarodactyl » Tue Jun 09, 2020 9:41 pm

Hi everyone. I got a parcel of these a while back to put on gem microscopes but just have more than I need. I have two extra pairs which are available for 150usd/pr. with free US shipping.

Image

These eyepieces are probably one of the greatest ever made, certainly the greatest 23mm ones ever made. They bring true ultra widefield imaging to Bausch and Lomb and American Optical stereo microscopes, by stretching the 18mm field of view you'd get in a normal wf 10x across a 15x magnification. The effect is an ultrawide view that would be equivalent to a 27mm field number in a 10x, giving an apparent field of view a bit wider than the best from nikon or olympus at 26.5mm. To get a wider field of view you'd need either a very specialized mitutoyo with their ultra widefield 10x/30mm eyepieces or one of those Vision Engineering motorized Isis eyepiece things.

Let's just say this is what it feels like:


On top of that they also seem to apply some more fine-tuned corrections, at least the image seems better.

The reason these were made to such exacting standards was they were designed for use with Bausch and Lomb's stereoscopes (not stereo microscopes, but stereoscopes) for viewing 3d aerial imaging. These were largely used by the military so that extra bit of performance was well within their budget. As you might image these babies cost a ton of money in their day.

apochronaut
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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#2 Post by apochronaut » Wed Jun 10, 2020 12:07 am

I did some measuring on those eyepieces in mm of coverage at certain magnifications and your f.o.v. figures are conservative . Start with the B & L and AO f's.o.v. being 20mm and adjust everything up.
Odd that a year or so + or - , you weren't so hot on them.

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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#3 Post by PeteM » Wed Jun 10, 2020 1:22 am

Just to add my two cents -- these are wonderful eyepieces and a good value at the asking price. Perhaps at first glance the ultra wide view is a bit like going from a tiny B&W TV to widescreen cinema. Doesn't take too long to be enamored of them on the proper scope.

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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#4 Post by Scarodactyl » Wed Jun 10, 2020 1:29 am

apochronaut wrote:
Wed Jun 10, 2020 12:07 am
I did some measuring on those eyepieces in mm of coverage at certain magnifications and your f.o.v. figures are conservative . Start with the B & L and AO f's.o.v. being 20mm and adjust everything up.
Good to know! I'm just quoting based on what I'd heard.
apochronaut wrote:
Wed Jun 10, 2020 12:07 am
Odd that a year or so + or - , you weren't so hot on them.
I'm not sure when I would have given that impression, but it's been like five years since last year so it's not surprising that I wouldn't remember.

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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#5 Post by BramHuntingNematodes » Sat Sep 18, 2021 11:22 pm

After much wangling and dealing I finally managed to get a pair of these and I can see why they have such a cult following on this board. I should have just bought one of scary's pairs last year! Each one as big a lemon, and packed full of glass, they really enhanced this old SZ7. I notice a thin blue rime of blue around the edges and I wonder if they are slightly negatively compensating. In any case, they look great on any stereoscope I have put them on. They look pretty nice in the Flat Field Dynazoom even. I tried them with some Nikon CF plan Apos and there was a little color fringing at the edges compared to some slightly more neutral 31-15-71s, but the good stuff in the center is still as wide as a normal 15x seems like. Anyway, if you got a stereo scope, these should be on your list of high desirables.
1942 Bausch and Lomb Series T Dynoptic, Custom Illumination

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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#6 Post by zzffnn » Sun Sep 19, 2021 4:45 am

I will take a pair, please, Scarodactyl.

My em8il is zzffnn at h0tm8il d0t c0m , please kindly remove spaces and replace numbers with letters. My private message probably still works, though I don't get on this forum much lately.

Thank you!

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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#7 Post by apochronaut » Sun Sep 19, 2021 8:05 pm

BramHuntingNematodes wrote:
Sat Sep 18, 2021 11:22 pm
After much wangling and dealing I finally managed to get a pair of these and I can see why they have such a cult following on this board. I should have just bought one of scary's pairs last year! Each one as big a lemon, and packed full of glass, they really enhanced this old SZ7. I notice a thin blue rime of blue around the edges and I wonder if they are slightly negatively compensating. In any case, they look great on any stereoscope I have put them on. They look pretty nice in the Flat Field Dynazoom even. I tried them with some Nikon CF plan Apos and there was a little color fringing at the edges compared to some slightly more neutral 31-15-71s, but the good stuff in the center is still as wide as a normal 15x seems like. Anyway, if you got a stereo scope, these should be on your list of high desirables.
The blue fringe indicates that they provide a certain amount of correction, which is normal for the stereozoom eyepieces. I would want to test them on a microscope first before committing to them, since there may be more compatible 15X eyepieces that although they don't provide the ultra wide field, provide a very wide field. The loss of complete correction for lateral ca is a game changer on some scopes. For that reason I don't use them on an AO 580 but they are within spec. on a Cycloptic, if you are willing to accept a bit of field curvature at the edges. I suppose they are always saleable though, as long as one doesn't pay too much for them. I had heard from a repairman that has an old price list from FJW Industries ( one of the original military contractors that sold them), that in the 80's they were $2000.00/pr.

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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#8 Post by BramHuntingNematodes » Sun Sep 19, 2021 9:08 pm

Speaking of the Cycloptic I have a pair of the AO 147s that are very good too and might be a good cheaper 2nd best for the SZ7. The also look OK on the Dynazoom but not as good with the CF stuff. I somehow haven't been able to well identify the 31-15-62s, or maybe everyone already bought them all up for their microstar 4s.
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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#9 Post by apochronaut » Sun Sep 19, 2021 9:21 pm

BramHuntingNematodes wrote:
Sun Sep 19, 2021 9:08 pm
Speaking of the Cycloptic I have a pair of the AO 147s that are very good too and might be a good cheaper 2nd best for the SZ7. The also look OK on the Dynazoom but not as good with the CF stuff. I somehow haven't been able to well identify the 31-15-62s, or maybe everyone already bought them all up for their microstar 4s.
I might have a pair branded Leica, I could sell you. I have to check on them because I don't recall the Leica # off hand. They are n.o.s.

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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#10 Post by josmann » Sun Sep 26, 2021 7:02 am

I picked up a pair of these (Reichert branded) on eBay for 200 plus shipping. Now that I've experienced them, I'd pay even more. Holy cow. I'd liken it to the first time I tried room-scale virtual reality. You just get completely submerged in the image.

Are there any eyepieces on the market which perform similarly (or at least improve majorly on the stardard 10x WF) but are more available and less costly?
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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#11 Post by BramHuntingNematodes » Sun Sep 26, 2021 7:58 pm

Well there was that pair of Chinese 22mms that went for around fifty.

Say apo, how much would those Leica be?
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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#12 Post by apochronaut » Mon Sep 27, 2021 2:03 pm

I will have to check on them yet, to see just what they correct properly with. Then you can be sure about their application. They are B & L production, but probably made in the AO factory before 2003. B & L suffered the ultimate insult after the schmerger between Cambridge & Wild-Leica by having the factory closed and moved into the Buffalo plant.
Offhand , they are probably for the SZ microscopes because the SS program was axed in favour of the SZ program and the Balplan program axed in favour of the Microstar/Diastar program, with that then continueing in Buffalo and the SZ production moving in to replace the SS production. Everything was then branded Leica, going forward. Probably, thousands of the starstruck were going: oh wow! Leica is producing optics in the U.S., now!
I 'll message you.

They are these ones. https://spectraservices.com/product/310564.html

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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#13 Post by Scarodactyl » Mon Sep 27, 2021 5:19 pm

Looks like the pair that came with my gia-branded Leica sz6 (sadly misaligned--mechanically hinky but I love that quickzoom feature). I'll have to check.

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Re: Bausch and Lomb Ultra Widefield 15x eyepieces 150usd/pr

#14 Post by Osteolepis » Sun Nov 21, 2021 10:38 am

Scarodactyl, if you still have a pair available I would very much like to buy them. Thanks. Roger

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