SW380B no illumination getting through the condenser

[jackieone]

I had just put a new slide on the tray, and was adjusting the condenser to see if I could get a better lighting for the picture on my screen, when...POOF...the light stopped transmitting to the slide. The bottom illumination is still working, but once it hits the condenser, it's stopped cold.

I have NO idea what caused this. I had been experimenting with the condenser for better brightness for a few days now, so what did I do wrong? I turned the microscope off for a while, but when turned back on, still the light did not penetrate the iris.

Am I not supposed to touch this part of the microscope? (The manual reads: "Adjust the focusing ring on the iris aperture diaphragm to change the resolution of the image. The condenser can be manually moved closer to or farther from the stage by rotating the metal knob." So I think I'm ok with this...)

Any ideas would be helpful.

[Alexander]

Opening the diaphragm may help.

[Hobbyst46]

Maybe there is no problem with the condenser - but the objective turret (nosepiece) is slightly off-position ?

[jackieone]

@Alexander - I fiddled with the little lever which I believe is the iris (could be wrong) and the top metal part which I believe is the condenser. I don't think I messed with the underneath part, the diaphragm.

@Hobbyst46 - I have not moved the nosepiece at all; it has the camera attached to one of the eye tubes, and it's pretty solidly in place.

[jackieone]

I just went over to the microscope, and turned it on and NOW the light is going through the way it should.

What a mystery! So, I still do not have a clue why the light was blocked, or what I did wrong here.

Anyway, if you think of something, let me know.

If I'm fortunate enough to hear back from Swift, I'll share what they have to say about this.

What a day...

[MichaelG.]

It tells you almost nothing … but I thought this very brief video worth sharing, for its glimpse of the manufacturing:
https://youtu.be/Xn--qBs0_p8?feature=shared

MichaelG.

[jackieone]

@MichaelG - That was fun!

I think I saw my very own microscope at 1:05, second one in from the middle row! How cool is THAT?

LOLZ!!

[MichaelG.]