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I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Thu Apr 15, 2021 1:51 pm
by Jimbo
I just got finished ordering my 1st scope, T490A-DK.
I am so looking forward to it’s arrival. Also ordered polarization film (linear), phone adapter, extra ep’s for said adapter, pipettes, tweezer set, blank slides/slips, the book:”Ponds and small lakes” and a 60X Plan objective ( I know some folks don’t care for 60X dry objectives, but I don’t think I will notice anything I won’t like).
So many of you have helped me decide on a scope, thanks to all of you! I’m quite disabled now and this hobby should keep me active and not watching protists on you tube!!
I have noticed one thing missing in this community... a decent tool kit for microscopy that doesn’t include plastic tweezers! I just bought items separately.
Hope to be posting about “first light” with this scope soon, hoping for stentor coeruleus (astronomers in the crowd know about ‘first light’!).
Again, thank you everyone!! Jim.
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Thu Apr 15, 2021 2:41 pm
by InstantMochiii
Jimbo wrote: ↑Thu Apr 15, 2021 1:51 pm
I just got finished ordering my 1st scope, T490A-DK.
I am so looking forward to it’s arrival. Also ordered polarization film (linear), phone adapter, extra ep’s for said adapter, pipettes, tweezer set, blank slides/slips, the book:”Ponds and small lakes” and a 60X Plan objective ( I know some folks don’t care for 60X dry objectives, but I don’t think I will notice anything I won’t like).
So many of you have helped me decide on a scope, thanks to all of you! I’m quite disabled now and this hobby should keep me active and not watching protists on you tube!!
I have noticed one thing missing in this community... a decent tool kit for microscopy that doesn’t include plastic tweezers! I just bought items separately.
Hope to be posting about “first light” with this scope soon, hoping for stentor coeruleus (astronomers in the crowd know about ‘first light’!).
Again, thank you everyone!! Jim.
Congratulations on your first microscope~!!!! XD
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Thu Apr 15, 2021 3:27 pm
by Jimbo
Thank you, InstantMochii. I know we have been following each other’s posts because we both were looking for “ the right scope”. I pray your quest will be over soon. Good luck to you young man! Jim.
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Thu Apr 15, 2021 5:21 pm
by ScienceMatters
Congratulations! Glad you were able to come to a decision. I’m sure you’ll love it!
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Thu Apr 15, 2021 7:23 pm
by DonSchaeffer
The 60x plan objective is a good choice. It's my staple lens.
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Thu Apr 15, 2021 9:01 pm
by Jimbo
ScienceMatters, I darn near went with the T400A-30W you use. I just couldn’t resist getting dark field at a low price , plus the great reviews on the 490 series.
DonSchaeffer, thanks for the vote of confidence on the 60X Plan. That will be my high magnification objective. With all that I ordered, I never ordered Kim wipes for the oil. Good thing I don’t plan on using the 100X oil yet!
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2021 5:18 am
by Greg Howald
Just a note here. Amscope has a full line of tweezers now. Just type tweezers in the search box and they will pop right up.
Greg
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2021 3:35 pm
by Jimbo
Thank you, Greg. Those are more like it. Unfortunately I already ordered mine. The ones I bought are comparable with those pictured in vinyl pouches. Amscope also offered a lot of disposable plastic ones. A lot of people use those, I’m sure, but I wanted that fine, precision tip that metal ones offer.
Everything has been delivered except my book, “Ponds and small lakes “ and the scope!!! It’s now April 21st and they say it won’t be here until May.
Patience is a virtue ,so they say! Jim.
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2021 4:39 pm
by dtsh
Jimbo wrote: ↑Wed Apr 21, 2021 3:35 pm
Patience is a virtue ,so they say! Jim.
Plenty of reading and preparation until it gets there to help keep you distracted.
If you're going for pond water, you'll want a dipper. I use mine for mosquito sampling mostly, but the concept is the same even if the target differs.
It's just the lower half of a plastic bottle with a tang taped to a fiberglass rod, cost was maybe $3?
- dipper.jpg (160.79 KiB) Viewed 3910 times
- dipper2.jpg (156.15 KiB) Viewed 3910 times
For specimen holding I use old jars, glass or plastic, and put a jug knot on them so I can carry them easier
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2021 10:58 pm
by Jimbo
Definitely going to make something similar. There is a great public pond just a few blocks from my house. Thanks for the idea! That would be perfect for saving back ache.
Meanwhile... the scope is here!! I will start a new thread about my day so far (all good!).
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Sun May 16, 2021 11:31 pm
by farnsy
Congrats on your new microscope!
If you are looking at buying other objectives, I encourage you to grab a 20X. I spend such a large fraction on my time on 20X. It's a good level of magnification for most protazoa (better than 10X) but less finicky than a 40X or higher (darkfield and oblique work well with it...not so much with higher magnifications). If you are buying objectives, also consider buying upgraded plan ones or even fluorite if you find them. You can pick that kind of thing up cheap on ebay or aliexpress.
Enjoy!
Re: I did it! T490A-DK!!
Posted: Mon May 17, 2021 11:42 am
by Jimbo
farnsy, thanks for the nod toward the 20X objective. I did buy a 60X dry to replace the 100X oil. Now I’m thinking the 20X might have been a better choice. I rarely use the 40X or 60X. Too bad I don’t have 5 ports for objectives!
Jim.