Newbie Slide Arm Question

[jwellsy]

I've been lurking here at MH for several months and this is my first microscope & newbie post. I just bought a SW380T with a 5mp camera. So far so good with it. I got a set of 120 prepared slides, so that's helped my learning curve. I haven't tried the oil lens yet. The color mismatch between the eyepiece and the camera is interesting (the Swift software white balancing seems to not be very good).

Now for the question. Is the spring loaded slide arm supposed put down pressure on a corner of a slide or horizontally on the edge (or two edges at the corner) of the slide? The notch in my spring arm doesn't align with the corner of a slide like I've seen in some pics and videos, it to ride over the corner of a slide and pushes downward. I don't see any way to adjust it. is this normal?

[apochronaut]

No. It should not override the slide. It may be bent slightly or the pivot may not be quite at a right angle to the stage. This is the kind of thing that is supposed to be caught by Q.C. in the factory and as well by the distributor and should be covered by a warranty.

[Phill Brown]

If the slide clamp is removable there may be shims under it. The difference between Chinascopes clamp and quality made is a world apart.
The sprung arm should be easy to shape/bend down to work on the edge
It shouldn't rub on the stage or it will damage the surface finish.

[jwellsy]

Thanks! I didn't think it was right. I'll try and contact Swift and see what they say. Since the notch in the arm isn't even closed to mating with the corner of a slide, I'm inclined to believe the wrong arm was installed.