Getting to the stage where I am struggling to see small 'stuff' that I am trying to work on, and thinking about a magnifying lamp of some type.
There are the simple plug in USB powered LED types, bench top 'helping hands' style, with built in magnifier, croc clips etc., and larger angle poise style, either floor standing or clamp on the bench.
Any pros and cons? My first thought is the angle poise clamp type.
Oh. Bugger. Yes, see what you mean, although I was trying to avoid anything I would have to wear. Ideally, something that I could just swing into position, as and when required.
Mine is used on my electronics work bench, an anglepoise type. With a circular fluorescent tube around the lens.
Pros - Nice big field of view, so you can see what you are doing..
Cons - When using it, it is always in the way. I catch my tools on the thing, it 'hides' my iron in its stand behind it so my hand cannot work out where the iron is. What ever I am using, it knocks it and then it wobbles for a while.
I admit, my workbench could be much better laid out, it is 10' wide but very shallow in depth, restricted even more because of shelving over it.
Which will then be in the way when not needed. Trust me on that. ;-)
The head worn magnifier I got was quite cheap and came with a selection of clip in lenses of different powers. Which you can flip up to return to normal vision. And fits over specs.
I have contact lenses which make my eyes identical as far as reading specs are concerned - but at my age need specs too for close work. Ideally I'd like a pair of special specs that gave the same magnification as the combination of mine and the magnifier. So I could just swap them.
The snag with a separate magnifier is you then have three things to position for focus - the work, magnifier and head. With the head worn ones I use, just your head and the work.
But with a powerful desk light, I only need the extra magnification rarely
- to check for PCB etc faults. I have a pair of +5 ready reads which are fine for most things.
One of the advantages of being short-sighted, take off my glasses, stick anything within a couple of inches of my nose and I could do a knee-replacement op on a gnat :-)
I found this ugly sort better than the many ones with clip in lenzes the very best are the ones that doctors use which cost hundreds you can get plastic ones of similar type
Welcome to the club !! Have just hung a spare 5 foot fluoro a few feet above the workbench and this made the world of difference.
I have a smallish desklamp with circular fluoro tube from years ago which provides additional light and magnification when needed. Great for a quick look. Probably a good first step and always useful to have around.
Have also access to good headworn magnifier "glasses" which are great for higher magnification , like when watch battery changing. But have to get the distance right for focus. Worthwhile if sitting doing a lot of work closeup.
The USB microscope type can be quite good for some inspection activities, but not much cop for working under (slow update, narrow focal range, tiny working distance).
ok for some jobs, but not really a good general solution.
I have one with a ring lamp built into its periphery (you can use it as a desk light as well if you want, of flip up the lens cover and you have a 6" magnifier of reasonable quality. You get enough working distance under it to actually do things.
Of the options I have tried, that works best. Having a small hand held illuminated inspection magnifier lamp is also handy.
Depends a bit on what you want to do with it, and how much you are prepared to pay. (electronics style binocular inspection microscopes are nice, but silly money unless you have a serious application for them)
Glass, not plastic lenses and fit over spectacles well. The plastic pingfukits used to hold the lenses in are not brilliant but easily replaced by something more substantial. Had a set 6 months and they are very good.
I am just wondering if I do actually need to wear glasses as well as one of these magnifiers - I have just tried a strong magnifying lens with and without specs. and it works quite well (better?) without the specs..
If you ever end up under a stereo surgical microscope for root canal treatment see if you can blag a wee demo of how they are cantilevered and balanced so they can be moved to different positions/angles/heights while leaving the whole area below them free. They also come with loads of optional extras. Much like BMWs in that respect. And in price :(
A magnifying glass is effectively the same sort of lens as very strong reading glasses: they allow your eyes to focus closer than it normally can. If you need glasses and don't wear them, your eyes should still be able to focus over some range of distances (a range because your eyes will accommodate or adjust focus). All it will mean is that you may need to move the object slightly closer or further away than if you were wearing your glasses or your sight was perfect.
My distance sight is pretty near perfect (I'm *very* slightly short-sighted) but my close vision has deteriorated gradually over the past few years because I'm at an age when the eye muscles won't compress the lens as well as they used to for focussing close. I can still see perfectly well through magnifying glasses of various sorts - including the eyepiece of an old pair of binoculars (*) which I use for extreme magnification to read the microscopic print that you get on the part number and ratings plate on electronic appliances. I probably just compensate when moving the object and/or lens to bring it into focus. Indeed a pair of reading glasses would prevent me getting the binocular eyepiece close enough to my eye to focus!
(*) After I dropped them, smashing a couple of the prisms and one of the objective lenses I thought "what can I use the remaining good bits for?" so I sawed off the eyepiece supports and filed the edge smooth, so as to leave a short 1/2" stump which I can use to hold the lens to my eye.
That is the same as me. Distance is fine, but slightly better with my prescription glasses for driving and they certainly help me see the details in the dash.
I've opted for these...
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They will work with glasses and offer a range of 1x to 6x. They also use 3x AAA giving longer time between battery replacement and maybe brighter LED's - judging by the LED lens's. They use a head band clamp, so should be able to stay put. If the batteries make them heavy to wear I can always cobble up a separate holder.
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