Which USB Microscope for honing?

[MrAstro]

If I wanted a USB microscope for honing which one would I get... I wear glasses... the 10x loupe has too small a field of view for me and I'm finding it really hard to light up the blade in the house to use the loupe.

I know there's a thing called a Carson Microbrite 60-120 but I don't think it takes pictures if I needed some help learning to hone properly. Nevertheless this might be the go?

Anyway if there is some reasonably priced one that'll do what I want happy to hear about it... Frankly I didn't want another gadget in the house but I'm struggling to see the edge.

 

[SliceOfLife]

I've used a bunch of optical scopes... so can't really recommend a USB one. But I'll say this... Don't get a Scope to help with your honing.

It's good for two things:

1. cool/semiscientific analysis shots just for fun/interest in the details of the bevel/edge topography
2. Looking at razors you are restoring to see if there's microchips or microscopic pitting at or near the edge that you will need to hone past.


The second one can save you some time and effort if you're restoring a lot of razors; but isn't really necessary otherwise.

The first one is fun yeah; if you have the time to do that kind of stuff. When I had more free time I loved comparing edge shape off various finishers; looking at slurry on slides to find particle sizes; other stuff like that... but it wasn't really to help with honing. Just fun comparisons.


But buying one to look at the edge and say "Yeah that's good" or "Now I can move to a finer stone"... they aren't really good for that.

I mean obvious crazy stuff like massive foil or folded over edges can be seen (or microbevels and other stuff like that). But really that can be seen with the naked eye and some angled lighting too...

 

[H Brad Boonshaft]

The Carson Microbrite 60/100X at $10-15 is a good handheld scope, it is easy to use, and batteries last a long time, some scopes eat batteries.

USB scopes are a different animal. They are great for seeing a bit more detail than a handheld scope but are slow and can be finicky to use/focus.

But they are invaluable for taking photos to document edges, problems or edge finishes. I have taught a number of folks to hone in person, I use a USB scope in the process, so we are looking at exactly the same thing at the same time. It dramatically speeds up the learning process.

I have also taught a number of people to hone online, (on the other side of the world) using a USB scope, and currently coaching a couple of guys. They take photos and send them to me and I explain what I see and make recommendation. It is much slower than in person instruction, but it works.

The USB scope I use is the Celestron 5 mega pixel and sells for $50-150. Shop around prices are all over the map, eBay often has some very good prices on them.

Do buy a scope with a good base with a knob height adjustment and sturdy base. Do not buy one with the small chrome scope holder with the dual ball and wing nut adjustment. At that magnification any small bump or over correction will take your view out of focus and can be very frustrating.

As said for use with daily honing the USB scope is slow and cumbersome, I use the Carson Microbrite for honing, but still use my USB for documenting edges with photos. At around $100 they are invaluable learning tools.

The other beauty of MicroBrite is what you see at 100x is very similar to what you see of posted micrographs. If you try to compare a micrograph to a 10 or 20X loupe they look nothing the same.

Google (My Second Try at Honing) for a post of long-distance learning where a new honer took an eBay beater to a pristine shaving razor. He took a lot of micrographs of the razor and his progress. If you do nothing else and just make your bevels look like his at each stage in the progression, you can learn to hone.

It was the Second time he had tried to hone a razor.

 

[MrAstro]

The Carson Microbrite 60/100X at $10-15 is a good handheld scope, it is easy to use, and batteries last a long time, some scopes eat batteries.

USB scopes are a different animal. They are great for seeing a bit more detail than a handheld scope but are slow and can be finicky to use/focus.

But they are invaluable for taking photos to document edges, problems or edge finishes. I have taught a number of folks to hone in person, I use a USB scope in the process, so we are looking at exactly the same thing at the same time. It dramatically speeds up the learning process.

I have also taught a number of people to hone online, (on the other side of the world) using a USB scope, and currently coaching a couple of guys. They take photos and send them to me and I explain what I see and make recommendation. It is much slower than in person instruction, but it works.

The USB scope I use is the Celestron 5 mega pixel and sells for $50-150. Shop around prices are all over the map, eBay often has some very good prices on them.

Do buy a scope with a good base with a knob height adjustment and sturdy base. Do not buy one with the small chrome scope holder with the dual ball and wing nut adjustment. At that magnification any small bump or over correction will take your view out of focus and can be very frustrating.

As said for use with daily honing the USB scope is slow and cumbersome, I use the Carson Microbrite for honing, but still use my USB for documenting edges with photos. At around $100 they are invaluable learning tools.

The other beauty of MicroBrite is what you see at 100x is very similar to what you see of posted micrographs. If you try to compare a micrograph to a 10 or 20X loupe they look nothing the same.

Google (My Second Try at Honing) for a post of long-distance learning where a new honer took an eBay beater to a pristine shaving razor. He took a lot of micrographs of the razor and his progress. If you do nothing else and just make your bevels look like his at each stage in the progression, you can learn to hone.

It was the Second time he had tried to hone a razor.

Just out of curiousity did you have to grind the clear plastic shield under the celestron?

 

[2bit_collie]

I have a TAKMLY 30x USB scope. I agree with the other writers that the most valuable feature is for looking for micropitting on heavily-corroded edges. For “normal” honing I use a 10X loupe that has a built-in LED - that solves the lighting issue and gives sufficient magnification for that application. It’s not as nice as some others described, but it does have a stand and a support for the lens system (hard to hand-hold anything with > 10X magnification).

 

[H Brad Boonshaft]

No. the end of the scope is close to the bevel but not touching. I do use a piece craft foam to lift the blade, so the bevel is level with the edge of the scope.

This is the model I have.

 

[Eshebert]

I keep this one the bathroom



use the smaller one to travel

And this one in the yard for when I am honing in the shop.

 

[MrAstro]

Well I've ordered a Belomo 10x loupe which is about twice the diameter of my current 10x loupe which I had from University 35 years ago. Also a Carson Microbrite. I'll keep the Celestron microscope up my sleeve if I feel like I really can't manage with the magnifiers.

 

[H Brad Boonshaft]

When you are learning to hone, you need as much magnification as it takes to see the bevel and edge, so you can learn what it is you see means. For example are you honing to the edge, is the stria pattern even from heel to toe and are the bevels meeting fully.

The more you see the better you will understand the results of your actions and your stones performance.

As you learn more and master honing, you will need much less magnification, you can hone with 10x, it is just more difficult until you learn what to look for.

The Carson MicroBrite is a bit tricky because you must rest the scope on the bevel and the back of the scope on the spine and adjust the focus. It is not a progression from 60-100x. It is 60 or 100x at either edge of the focus knob rotation. Once focused it should remain in focus for your eyes.

60x is a good magnification to learn and hone on, the field is large enough and the power and light are good to see detail.

The USB scope is invaluable for learning and documenting, but do rename the photo files. Their numbering system will easily confuse you and you will not recall which photos are from which stones in the progression.

Feel free to post your micrographs and ask for assistance, should you need it.

 

[David]

I keep this one the bathroom

What’s her name?

 

[ZeelandsRoem]

Just out of curiousity did you have to grind the clear plastic shield under the celestron?

I had to grind mine, not necessarily for razors but mostly for other jobs. It was an easy task, pop the plastic out, lay it on Atoma 120 and start removing material. Took one minute or so. Then I "finished" on Shapton HR 1k and Bob's your uncle. If you don't have a coarse stone, 1k was still fast, so it should be easy to do it if it really gets in the way.

 

[Gamma]

No one needs a lot of magnification to learn how to hone. That's a fact.
People honed for hundreds of years without using lab gear. They did very well.
I own a microscope, didn't have it when I learned to hone. Don't use it now to hone either.
I honestly think the people who are the most confused, and confuse the most new people, about honing are the ones relying the most on their microscopes.

A wide field 4x - 10x loupe will show anyone all you need to see. Like a photo loupe.
Harder to get the 10x with good eye relief and a wide field.
Most of my edge viewing is done with one of a few different 4x photo loupes. Has been since day 1. Works very well.

The little jeweler's loops are a pita... short working distance, minimal eye relief. Photo type loupes are much more forgiving.
Note - "X" is not all that standardized. Cheap magnifiers marked 60x might be more like 8x with a quality optic.

People send me usb scope pix often, I usually can't understand what I'm looking at, the images are always sketchy. Lighting is whacked, most people use LED light which isn't my fave option. Mostly, I can't tell what's what with an edge by looking at a fraction of a micron's length of it.

All that aside, if I wanted a cheap usb scope, I'd probably get one from Amscope. If I was serious about using a microscope, I'd still shop there but go for optical. The scope I have now is a reflected light metallurgy scope, does lightfield and darkfield.