USB Microscopes Redux

3

303tango

Joined
Nov 12, 2012
Messages
53
I've done a search here and read quite a bit about USB Microscopes (MS) Most of what I found posted was a couple of years old. Very good info, but not too current. Anyone here seen/bought anything (MS) new lately? There have been a lot of pictures posted here from (MS) that are excellent and I know that if I had been using one I would have found answers to problems that were driving me nuts. I do have some loupes but a larger image at higher magnification would be helpful. And, I believe I would use it more often. Thanks in advance for your comments. Jeff
 
I am curious why do you say the Veho400 is the best bang for the buck? I know nothing of USB microscopes, wouldn't mind the reasoning behind that decision so I know what I am looking at latter down the road as I am undecided on a loupe or usb microscope myself.
 
I wish when people would recommend products they would include links, and a photo.
 
We can't always include links due to forum rules. A quick google search will do the job takes all of one second. I use Chrome so all you have to do is highlight the words and hit "Search Google for 'XYZ'", or if you have to copy and paste it into google it's not very difficult. It takes me a few minutes to steal a photo from a site and upload it to an image hosting website so the link doesn't get moved on the main website and you get no image, something not all site owners are happy about (copyright images, etc). Or I use a direct link to their image on their site, again not something all site owners are happy about with the increase in bandwidth with no one looking at their actual site.

Linking links and photos to everything is time consuming and sometimes photos are taken down and links change over time, so people looking through older posts won't see the photos and you get bad links or things saying the photo was moved and the format of the thread is thrown off a bit.
 
Links are against forum rules? I include them frequently, some moderator, please comment on this for clarification. Thanks.
 
Links to non forum sponsers websites are against the rules. Such as....

www.chefknivestogo.com , Coincendentally the same place I would recommend buying it from..

In regards as to why , here is why I feel that the Veho is the best you can get for the money spent.

Maestro Wu , Factory Edge



Maestro Wu , My Japanese Natural Edge



Dovo , Factory edge



Dovo , My Jnat Edge



Cold Steel 4116 , 8k Shapton stropped with 1u CBN on Roo
 
Its usefull for tracking down problems and seeing what is actually going on at the edge of the edge. Like in this case I had some leftover scratches (probably atoma 1200) that were really messing me up , these types of things don't always showup until later on in the process...

Dovo , Meara w/ Atoma Scratches



Dovo , Meara Properly Sharpened



Dovo , Mukaida Jnat , just did this one 5 minutes ago :)


I have yet to find anything that hooks up to my PC , and gives me such great images , for 60$ , theres a couple other brands out there (dinolight?) , but I think they are basically the same thing only slightly more expensive. There are better microscopes out there , but unless you already have access to one , even I wouldn't spend 1000$ on a microscope just for the purpose of sharpening knives. 400x shows me everything I need to see , and as you can see , takes some great pictures with some practice.
 
Me personally, I think I might be more interested in macro photography / video. Close, but no so close to see every detail. Something where a polished edge, looks polished. Too close, and it would never look polished.
 
Maintenance forum isn't as moderated as compared to other parts of the forum which is why you probably got away with it for this long without anyone telling you that your not suppose to. In general what happens is they tell you about the rule to give you a heads up about it, it's not that big of a deal unless you keep ignoring mods or something.

For ebay your not allowed to link active listings but when they are over you can link them.
 
NRA said:
Me personally, I think I might be more interested in macro photography / video. Close, but no so close to see every detail. Something where a polished edge, looks polished. Too close, and it would never look polished.
Click to expand...

Maybe your missing the point. Its not for looking at the aesthetics , its for checking your work , diagnosing problems , and comparing work with others. I can sharpen a knife and put on a perfect mirror , and make it perform like crap if I want. If I then sent that knife to another forum member , they would have no clue why this 0.1 micron , mirror finish , is not even cutting paper without a scope to look and see that I rounded the edge right off intentionally.
 
I had never even heard of a USB microscope until this thread. That's some very cool stuff, guys.
 
The USB microscope also makes asking for help on the forum quite a bit easier from what I've seen. Looking back through older posts I've seen people post pictures of edges they made asking for help and you be quite surprise at how quick someone can spot what is going wrong and how to correct it. It's a worthwhile investment if you have the funds and want to take sharpening seriously.
 
A thanks to Sadden for the Veho suggestion and the great images. A picture is worth... Well, we knew that already. While the Veho is certainly everything Sadden said it is, I did come across one other that is very close with a compelling feature. The Veho 400X V2 sells on Amazon for $50. The Aven 26700-300 Zip Scope sells for $75. The feature on the Aven I think is important is the Aven lists the optical magnification from 20-50X. From 50X to 400X the magnification is accomplished digitally. Compared to the Veho, the magnification specs are 20X to 400X digital magnification. Sadden's images look really good to me and if I already had the Veho, I'd be staying put. My gut is telling me that the optical capability on the Aven is well worth the extra $25 as the lower power images (20-50X) will enjoy an edge in quality. If I had to push the buy button right now, I would go for the Aven. However, I'm going to sit tight and see if a stronger argument comes along in the next day or so. Thanks to everyone who has contributed so far. Jeff
 
NRA said:
Links are against forum rules? I include them frequently, some moderator, please comment on this for clarification. Thanks.
Click to expand...

The FAQ area has a brief explanation of this. If you include a link that is a link to a page where the item is for sale, it can be considered deal spotting. If you want to link a photo, it is recommended you download the photo and upload it to a file hosting site rather than linking directly to the site itself (if it has sales). This is done in part to protect the dealers and manufacturers on this site. We'd obviously rather funnel sales to them (because they paid money to keep the lights on here) rather than Amazon or other stores (they don't need us directing sales their way and they couldn't care less about our forums). If there is any questions regarding the rules, read them (info located in my sigline for convenience). If that does not provide adequate explanation, a thread in Tech Support can always be started to address specifics.
 
Sadden said:
Maybe your missing the point. Its not for looking at the aesthetics , its for checking your work , diagnosing problems , and comparing work with others. I can sharpen a knife and put on a perfect mirror , and make it perform like crap if I want. If I then sent that knife to another forum member , they would have no clue why this 0.1 micron , mirror finish , is not even cutting paper without a scope to look and see that I rounded the edge right off intentionally.
Click to expand...

I can see a bur with course media with my bare eyes. To visualize a bur, with 10,000 grit media, some magnification would be helpful, but I do not need a microscope to do that. If I have very bright light, I see the reflection of the bur now, with fine media.
 
Can you take a similar photo of a mirrored edge? I would be interested to see what it looks like at the same magnification.
 
Compliments of CKTG


Mine are still coming along. It takes many many many passes to get results like above. Mine were 200x with each strop , or 100 per side.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top