Stereo Microscope

[Neverenoughwatches]

10 hours ago, gpraceman said:

I just pulled the trigger on an Eakins version of the AmScope SM-4TP.  It was significantly cheaper, factoring in that the Eakins one that I got comes with the 10X and 20X eye pieces, 0.5X and 2.0X Barlow lenses, 48MP 2K camera, C mount bracket, ring light, simul focus, and dual boom stand with tilting head feature.  It was just under $442 out the door.  AmScope is currently having a 15% off Veterans Day sale and the Eakins price still beat it.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2251832821477621.html

Not sure just how good (or bad) the Eakins cameras are, but hopefully good enough for photos and videos of the disassembly.

I'm looking forward to using this.  My digital microscope is pretty good, but working through an optical microscope sounds much better.

Lots of extras there, a really good deal, and hopefully all works well.

[spectre6000]

Link to camera? @gpraceman

[gpraceman]

1 hour ago, spectre6000 said:

Link to camera? @gpraceman

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2255800889866423.html

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015U163T0/

I found several YouTube videos with that camera being used and really didn't see any complaints.  I really couldn't find much on Eakins cameras (which I am sure are just rebranded but not sure the original brand).  This camera added $14 to my original total.

I also ordered the C to CS mount adapter that some people had commented that they needed to get the camera in focus better when the microscope is focused.  Less than $3 for a 4 pack, so they are really cheap.  Jason, I'll have one for you if you have the need.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805199196641.html

I'm not sure on the 0.35X versus 0.5X camera mount until I get the microscope in hand.  The microscope comes with a 0.5X mount.

[spectre6000]

I'm probably going to do something like this sooner than later. Seems like a good stocking stuffer idea. You'll have to share how it all works out together. I have a spare computer monitor just sitting on the project table in my office from when I upgraded an embarrassingly long time ago. If this will just plug and play, take photos, and record video without the need for an extra computer, 3-almost-4yo will be able to sit on her stool and watch over my shoulder and we'll have all sorts of fun!

[ColinC]

I bought my stereo microscope from the Eakins store on Ali express.
I have been really happy with what I bought and the price I paid.  I got the simple binocular 7x-45x with a 0.5x Barlow lens and a pilar table stand. And I forgot it on the first order and had to order it later a light ring...

This gives me an effectively 3.5x to 20x.  At the 3.5 end the depth of field is good enough to see your movement in the holder and have a screw sat next to it on your mat in focus at the same time.
There is plenty of space to work under with this set up.

Drawbacks:

1. I wish the area on the pilar table stand was bigger - my mat drapes over the side leading to the risk that badly placed screws roll away.
2. Perhaps I should have forked up the money for the trinocular scope so that I could take pictures (I wasn't interested in streaming so I decided to save $)
3. The stand again -  I have seen some better mounts on arms where you can angle the head.  This would be nice to not always be looking straight down on top of your screwdriver.

Edited November 13, 2023 by ColinC

[gpraceman]

1 hour ago, spectre6000 said:

I'm probably going to do something like this sooner than later. Seems like a good stocking stuffer idea. You'll have to share how it all works out together. I have a spare computer monitor just sitting on the project table in my office from when I upgraded an embarrassingly long time ago. If this will just plug and play, take photos, and record video without the need for an extra computer, 3-almost-4yo will be able to sit on her stool and watch over my shoulder and we'll have all sorts of fun!

I am hoping that recording and taking photos to the micro SD card is reliable.  If I need my laptop, I have to grab a TV tray and put it next to my desk as there's not enough desk space.  More so once I have a big microscope stand sitting on it.  I have an old 19" monitor lying around, but I'll have to get a HDMI to DVI adapter and maybe a VESA wall mount instead of using the stand.

4 minutes ago, ColinC said:

I bought my stereo microscope from the Eakins store on Ali express.
I have been really happy with what I bought and the price I paid.  I got the simple binocular 7x-45x with a 0.5x Barlow lens and a pilar table stand.

This gives me an effectively 3.5x to 20x.  At the 3.5 end the depth of field is good enough to see your movement in the holder and have a screw sat next to it on your mat in focus at the same time.
There is plenty of space to work under with this set up.

Drawbacks:

1. I wish the area on the pilar table stand was bigger - my mat drapes over the side leading to the risk badly placed screws rolling away.
2. Perhaps I should have forked up the money for the trinocular scope so that I could take pictures (I wasn't interested in streaming so I decided to save $)
3. The stand again -  I have seen some better mounts on arms where you can angle the head.  This would be nice to not always be looking straight down on top of your screwdriver.

Good to hear that you've been happy with your Eakins.  You could replace the stand.  Looks like Eakins and AmScope sell those separately.  AmScope is currently running a pre-Black Friday sale.  I definitely wanted the head tilt ability.  While I can tilt my current digital microscope, i found it rather and awkward arrangement.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2251832738787903.html

https://amscope.com/products/daw

Or if you are handy with carpentry, make an angled work surface to fit over the stand base, with a lip around it to keep any wayward parts from rolling away.

I do like the ability to record and take photos from the microscope during disassembly.  Helps to refer to during reassembly.

[GuyMontag]

2 hours ago, spectre6000 said:

If this will just plug and play, take photos, and record video without the need for an extra computer, 3-almost-4yo will be able to sit on her stool and watch over my shoulder and we'll have all sorts of fun!

As long as the monitor has an HDMI port it should work. The camera has a mini or micro HDMI, I forget which one, so you need a cable with mini/micro on one end and a regular HDMI on the other. My monitor is clamped to the desk with an articulating arm that rotates and moves up and down.

Edited November 13, 2023 by GuyMontag

[DBROWN]

Hello all,

I just wanted to share a way to look at pictures from your USB scope camera on your phone.  Ali express sells a little gadget called a WIFI Box.  Its rechargeable and your camera plugs right into it.  It puts out a wifi signal that you connect your phone to and you can capture photos and video with the included phone app.  It works way better than it should for the princely sum of........$17.00!!!

 

[gpraceman]

1 hour ago, ColinC said:

I bought my stereo microscope from the Eakins store on Ali express.
I have been really happy with what I bought and the price I paid.  I got the simple binocular 7x-45x with a 0.5x Barlow lens and a pilar table stand. And I forgot it on the first order and had to order it later a light ring...

This gives me an effectively 3.5x to 20x.  At the 3.5 end the depth of field is good enough to see your movement in the holder and have a screw sat next to it on your mat in focus at the same time.
There is plenty of space to work under with this set up.

Drawbacks:

1. I wish the area on the pilar table stand was bigger - my mat drapes over the side leading to the risk that badly placed screws roll away.
2. Perhaps I should have forked up the money for the trinocular scope so that I could take pictures (I wasn't interested in streaming so I decided to save $)
3. The stand again -  I have seen some better mounts on arms where you can angle the head.  This would be nice to not always be looking straight down on top of your screwdriver.

Also, I have seen a camera adapter that you can replace an eye piece.  Swap out for the camera when you want to take photos/video and then swap back.

[ColinC]

54 minutes ago, gpraceman said:

Or if you are handy with carpentry, make an angled work surface to fit over the stand base, with a lip around it to keep any wayward parts from rolling away.

I haven't done much carpentry but this has been my idea - build a work surface that I can tilt with a screw - with a lip around it and sized to my work mat

[spectre6000]

7 hours ago, GuyMontag said:

As long as the monitor has an HDMI port it should work.

Awesome! 

[gpraceman]

Got my microscope today.  Shipping was faster than I expected.  Still waiting on the camera, though.

Went together no problem.  One difference I notice is that to tighten down the head (fore/aft tilt) on the Eakins it is a just an Allen head screw, not the silver handled knob like for the (left/right tilt), unlike the AmScope.  Not as convenient to change that tilt.  I imagine once set though, I probably will not be futzing with that.  I really had to crank down on that screw to keep the head from tilting.  The AmScope has 3 of those silver handled knobs.  The Eakins just has one, with a plastic knob to lock the boom in place.

The dust cover for it is rather useless.  Too small to cover the whole stand and too big to cover just the head.  The instructions that came with it is for the SZM series microscopes (much smaller stand), which makes me wonder if the dust cover was intended for a smaller microscope.

The stand is quite heavy.  Wife brought in the box from the porch and asked if I bought a box of bricks. lol  Though, the microscope can be tippy if the boom arm is fully extended, so a bit more heft would have been nice.

Overall, I'm quite happy with the microscope.  I think it will be so much nicer to use this when servicing a watch.

Next up is the camera and monitor setup.  I was thinking of getting a VESA mount to put on the back of my hutch, so as not to take up any desktop space.

Edited November 18, 2023 by gpraceman

[spectre6000]

I wonder if you couldn't contact Eakins (or even Amscope) and request parts. Maybe you got that scope "used" for AmScope purposes. Alternatively, there's always McGuckings up in Boulder! Or McMaster.

That's definitely a worthwhile note for the non-AmScope alternatives. There are ways to spec a cheaper scope from those factories in China, and hardware substitutions like this are definitely one of them. You might find you want to adjust the tilt if you're using the full power (180X), as the result of keeping the slight angle is a very thin band of usable focus AND a corner of the light is almost touching the work surface.

Also, the AmScope dust cover is big enough to cover the whole thing. Another cost saving substitution. That said, the plastic cover isn't anything to write home over. It keeps dust off the eyepieces, and I keep mine in place for that reason (our house is old, super drafty, and incredibly dusty due to all the mica coming out of the canyon walls). I need to get my wife to make me up something a bit more... more.

[GuyMontag]

14 minutes ago, spectre6000 said:

Also, the AmScope dust cover is big enough to cover the whole thing. Another cost saving substitution. That said, the plastic cover isn't anything to write home over. It keeps dust off the eyepieces, and I keep mine in place for that reason (our house is old, super drafty, and incredibly dusty due to all the mica coming out of the canyon walls). I need to get my wife to make me up something a bit more... more.

 

I put a ziplock bag over the eyepieces

[gpraceman]

23 minutes ago, spectre6000 said:

I wonder if you couldn't contact Eakins (or even Amscope) and request parts. Maybe you got that scope "used" for AmScope purposes. Alternatively, there's always McGuckings up in Boulder! Or McMaster.

That's definitely a worthwhile note for the non-AmScope alternatives. There are ways to spec a cheaper scope from those factories in China, and hardware substitutions like this are definitely one of them. You might find you want to adjust the tilt if you're using the full power (180X), as the result of keeping the slight angle is a very thin band of usable focus AND a corner of the light is almost touching the work surface.

Also, the AmScope dust cover is big enough to cover the whole thing. Another cost saving substitution. That said, the plastic cover isn't anything to write home over. It keeps dust off the eyepieces, and I keep mine in place for that reason (our house is old, super drafty, and incredibly dusty due to all the mica coming out of the canyon walls). I need to get my wife to make me up something a bit more... more.

I did send Eakins a message regarding the dust cover and instructions.  Waiting to hear back.  Used?  Doesn't look used in any way.

I have thought of sourcing a lever knob to replace that screw.  I don't think that left/right tilt adjustment would be useful at all, so locking that in place with a simple screw would be fine.  However, I cannot swap the existing lever for the screw due to different size of the screws; otherwise, my problem would be solved.  As another watchmaker I know has said "If you had a lathe, you could make that" (he's trying to sell me a lathe) lol.

On the dust cover, I may ask my wife to sew me something out of ripstop nylon with a drawstring.  She's made covers for me before.  Really, I just want to cover the head to keep dust out of the optics.

Edited November 18, 2023 by gpraceman

[Razz]

16 hours ago, gpraceman said:

Got my microscope today.  Shipping was faster than I expected.  Still waiting on the camera, though.

Went together no problem.  One difference I notice is that to tighten down the head (fore/aft tilt) on the Eakins it is a just an Allen head screw, not the silver handled knob like for the (left/right tilt), unlike the AmScope.  Not as convenient to change that tilt.  I imagine once set though, I probably will not be futzing with that.  I really had to crank down on that screw to keep the head from tilting.  The AmScope has 3 of those silver handled knobs.  The Eakins just has one, with a plastic knob to lock the boom in place.

The dust cover for it is rather useless.  Too small to cover the whole stand and too big to cover just the head.  The instructions that came with it is for the SZM series microscopes (much smaller stand), which makes me wonder if the dust cover was intended for a smaller microscope.

The stand is quite heavy.  Wife brought in the box from the porch and asked if I bought a box of bricks. lol  Though, the microscope can be tippy if the boom arm is fully extended, so a bit more heft would have been nice.

Overall, I'm quite happy with the microscope.  I think it will be so much nicer to use this when servicing a watch.

Next up is the camera and monitor setup.  I was thinking of getting a VESA mount to put on the back of my hutch, so as not to take up any desktop space.

Nice set up! One thing makes me nervous is having the scope so close to the edge to the bench. If it tips it could go all the way to the floor. I am pretty satisfied with my base at 1200 or 1300 as it only needs a 45 degree movement in either direction to clear the working area. Obviously a personal preference and well done!!

[gpraceman]

3 minutes ago, Razz said:

Nice set up! One thing makes me nervous is having the scope so close to the edge to the bench. If it tips it could go all the way to the floor. I am pretty satisfied with my base at 1200 or 1300 as it only needs a 45 degree movement in either direction to clear the working area. Obviously a personal preference and well done!!

Seems quite stable where it is.  I cannot see rotating the head out over the floor, as that would definitely be tippy.  If I need it out of the way, I can push the boom in and then rotate the head towards the back of the bench.  Plenty stable when the boom is in.

[spectre6000]

10 hours ago, gpraceman said:

I did send Eakins a message regarding the dust cover and instructions.  Waiting to hear back.  Used?  Doesn't look used in any way.

I meant tell AmScope you got it used, and ask if they'll sell you parts to repair it back to spec.

[gpraceman]

Well, I've made some changes to my Eakins microscope.

Dust Cover - The one that came with the microscope is rather useless.  It is too big to cover the head and too small to cover the whole microscope and stand.  So, I printed some eyepiece covers.  That's really all that I need.  I got the STL file from https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5956643

Head Tilt - The Eakins only came with one handle to tighten down the head tilt, while the other axis uses an allen head screw.  The Amscope comes with two handles.  I managed to find an inexpensive handle that works.  Now, it is much easier to change the head tilt.  I bought the M5X40X50 handle, but a M5X40X40 would do as well but either way you need to cut the screw down to a suitable length.  I cut mine down to about 35mm thread length, but I used a couple of thick washers to make sure that the knob was making good contact with the round piece it tightens against.  https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804968135919.html

Camera Field of View - I bought a 0.35X C mount camera adapter to widen the field of view for the camera.  Field of view is definitely better than with the 0.5X camera adapter, but I still have a much better field of view through the eyepieces.  Is it possible to get these field of views to match more closely?  I don't see an adapter less than 0.35X.  I'd like my videos/photos be closer to what I see through the eyepieces.  As it is now, I cannot see the whole movement for a modest size wristwatch through the camera but see all of it and more through the eyepieces.  https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2251832823671184.html

Edited December 6, 2023 by gpraceman

[gpraceman]

I guess that I have been expecting to have comparable FOVs on the eyepieces and the camera.  Well, that isn't quite possible, as the camera sensor is rectangular and the eyepiece view is circular.  The size of the camera sensor also comes into play.  This article can explain it better than I can. https://www.microscopeworld.com/p-3341-microscope-c-mount-field-of-view.aspx

I guess that I'd be happy if I could at least get the whole movement in the camera FOV.

[gpraceman]

@spectre6000  said:

Quote

So are you not happy with the camera you got (I was thinking about getting the same one, but may hold off).

I wouldn't say that I am unhappy with the camera.  I'm just unhappy with the FOV issue.  I did find out that my expectations are not realistic due to cameras having a rectangular sensor.   I did not realize that camera sensor size came into play as well.  I went on the assumption that a lot of people are using this same camera with that microscope, so it must be a good combination.

If I had to do it over, I would have ordered a couple of cameras from Amazon, with different sized imaging sensors.  Then I could have found the best option for the lenses that I have and returned the other.  I ordered this one from AliExpress, so trying to do a return is probably not a good option.

It is rather strange and confusing how the manufacturers state camera sensor size.  My camera image sensor size is stated as 1/2.3 inch.  See sensor size comparison photo below.  The C mount adapter to use depends on the sensor size. https://www.microscopeworld.com/t-microscope_c-mounts.aspx 

I just did a test, which you can see in the photos below.  With my microscope at minimum zoom (0.5X Barlow and 10X eyepieces), my width of field through the eyepieces is about 49 mm.  With the 0.5X C mount camera adapter, width is about 21 mm, while with the 0.35X adapter it is about 33 mm.  So, the 0.35X adapter was an improvement and I don't notice any vignetting in the corners.

My cheapest option at this point is to give a 0.3X Barlow lens a try.  I have one on order from Amazon (so if it doesn't work out, I can return it).  If I can get a whole movement in the camera's field of view, then I'll call it good.

Eyepiece View:

With the 0.5X C mount adapter:

With the 0.35X C mount adapter:

Image sensor size comparison:

Edited December 6, 2023 by gpraceman

[linux]

Please keep us posted on the FOV experiment.  As you know I'm expecting delivery of the 
AmScope - SM-4NTP 7X-45X which looks to be equivalent to yours.  The camera I ordered from Amazon is the "14mp Tv Hdmi USB Industry Digital C-Mount Microscope Camera Tf Video Recoder DVR", Hayear 2307.  It looks like the one you got from aliexpress.

As I was taking advice from Alex Hamilton initially, I believe he recommended a 0.35 Barlow which I have.  Is that the one you've ordered?  Or is it the "AmScope SM03 0.3X Super Widefield Barlow Lens For SM Series Stereo Microscopes (48mm)"?

[LittleWatchShop]

37 minutes ago, linux said:

Please keep us posted on the FOV experiment.  As you know I'm expecting delivery of the 
AmScope - SM-4NTP 7X-45X which looks to be equivalent to yours.  The camera I ordered from Amazon is the "14mp Tv Hdmi USB Industry Digital C-Mount Microscope Camera Tf Video Recoder DVR", Hayear 2307.  It looks like the one you got from aliexpress.

As I was taking advice from Alex Hamilton initially, I believe he recommended a 0.35 Barlow which I have.  Is that the one you've ordered?  Or is it the "AmScope SM03 0.3X Super Widefield Barlow Lens For SM Series Stereo Microscopes (48mm)"?

I received my sm-4tp today. I did not order a camera yet. Waiting to see how this is sorted out.

[RichardHarris123]

Can anyone tell me if this is suitable? VEVOR 3.5X-90X Simul-Focal Stereo Microscope 360°Swiveling Trinocular Stereo Microscope with Dual Arm Boom https://amzn.eu/d/9Bn2qXh

[Neverenoughwatches]

1 hour ago, RichardHarris123 said:

Can anyone tell me if this is suitable? VEVOR 3.5X-90X Simul-Focal Stereo Microscope 360°Swiveling Trinocular Stereo Microscope with Dual Arm Boom https://amzn.eu/d/9Bn2qXh

They look the same as the Amscope and the swift makes. Quality could be different or just badged differently. They come from china but which factory and under what quality control. Unless someone here has and can recommend one, ive read good and bad things about all of them.