For the People That Use Jewelers Loupes... Which Do You Recommend?

[GB_Amateur]

Feeling a bit guilty for veering off topic, here's part of my collection of magnification devices I use frequently, including for investigating MD'ing finds.  I realize that Jim is looking for something he can rely on the field, but the subject line is more general so these should fit the topic:

Only the two in the bottom right (metal housed and black plastic housed) are compound (i.e. containing more than one) lenses.  And, yes, some are plastic 😉, e.g. the ones in the headset.  I think the 10x lower right metal housed one is referred to by Barry in his earlier post, although not his first choice.  I use all of these indoors but possibly the cheapest of all shown, the one in the middle (with faux alligator case), is my favorite to take into the field.  It has a wide angle view which its portable neighbors don't.  However keep in mind that I'm using it to identify coins, relics, etc.  For geology use in identifying minerals, etc., I can't speak to that and pretty sure Jim was most interested in that application.

[NA27]

I recommend oppo reno 7 

[Jim in Idaho]

6 hours ago, Clay Diggins said:

Yeah the smaller lens can be hard to get used to. My Fuji has a 32mm lens but good glass gets real expensive fast as you go up in size. I don't take the Fuji into the field.  I'm happy with my Zeiss because the exceptional image quality makes up for the smaller FOV.

Most people use their loupes incorrectly. This leads to eye strain and frustrating searching for the "spot' you have an interest in.

First rule of close lens work - keep your eyes open, peering with one eye closed doesn't improve the image but it does cause eye strain.

Second - you don't need to put your eye next to the lens. Back your head up to allow light in. With a little practice you can stand at a normal posture with the loupe 1 - 2 foot away from your face. The lens image will be just as clear, better lit and easier to find the "spot".

Yup...I agree with all of that, Barry. Same with using a rifle scope...closing the "off" eye screws things up. I'm right-handed, but left eye dominant, so it took me quite  awhile to train my brain to ignore the "pic" it got from my left eye. That business of staying back from the lens is also a really solid point...putting your eyeball right on the lens doesn't work worth a hoot...LOL.

Jim

 

[UT Dave]

20 minutes ago, Jim in Idaho said:

Same with using a rifle scope...closing the "off" eye screws things up. I'm right-handed, but left eye dominant, so it took me quite  awhile to train my brain to ignore the "pic" it got from my left eye.

Same!  Had it licked for a good long time.  But with less and less trigger time in recent years, I find myself having to "re-train" myself to deal with it.

- Dave

[Jim in Idaho]

4 minutes ago, UT Dave said:

Same!  Had it licked for a good long time.  But with less and less trigger time in recent years, I find myself having to "re-train" myself to deal with it.

- Dave

Yeah...I'm the same Dave. The brain falls out of training when we quit shooting so much. Man, it was fun back in the day, though...predators galore, and we were good at it. 🤪 Cats up here were going for $500-$1200 last year, just so you know...LOL

Jim

[Clay Diggins]

51 minutes ago, Jim in Idaho said:

Yeah...I'm the same Dave. The brain falls out of training when we quit shooting so much. Man, it was fun back in the day, though...predators galore, and we were good at it. 🤪 Cats up here were going for $500-$1200 last year, just so you know...LOL

Jim

Cats are good eating but why so much money?

[Jim in Idaho]

7 hours ago, RONS DETECTORS MINELAB said:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/127046706136?_skw=belomo+10x+triplet+loupe&itmmeta=01K6K1RBCSFZVYFZYRGHE4T9GD&hash=item1d9492e3d8%3Ag%3ApOsAAOSwvoNnR4SQ&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAAA0FkggFvd1GGDu0w3yXCmi1cCNuh%2BY7AtNN0lK5MGDpU6S3RhvlvEowRjiPwhTclnc2xnwlludcIXcRxV7tAbr88Xudhkh7mdy0UOVRmlgwr8I6d3uQn5N%2F9oWI1ZLXqCH%2BIdl24hYI1cRZV8%2FL0S0wFonRV1rIAtAeXQAOOsNLJPYofBhQLOdOlcek1CBhmuy1tYRgFjTItqaVYk5YeLBJFF%2BWE7snZk%2FmSWjDw069sw4aoNRo45QCp2w1mMkLl8XbZFxArbdLqhuB0UlOYi998%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR8K24eG0Zg&keyword=belomo+10x+triplet+loupe&sacat=0&relatedSearch=true
 

I have really like the Belomo made in Belarus for there good build quality and great lenses.

 

 

 

Yup Ron, that would probably have been my next choice.

Jim

[Jim in Idaho]

3 minutes ago, Clay Diggins said:

Cats are good eating but why so much money?

Don't know. I was shocked when my trapper friends told me what they were getting for them. Haven't seen prices like that, for fur, in decades. And they weren't skinning them for mounts, either...simply for fur. Don't know where they're ending up.

Jim

[Bedrock Bob]

The digital age is mighty cool. My silly phone camera is a better magnifier than most loupes. 

I've got a Teslong bore scope that cost less than a good loupe. You can examine a rock (or anything else) and snap a photo or shoot a movie clip. Then use the computer to zoom in even further. You can make tiny gold in ore look like chunks of gold... Then post it on the internet for fools to drool over. 

People have spent fortunes trying to turn lead into gold. I've turned tiny particles into bricks with a $100 bore scope. A digital clip is the best way to visually examine ore IMHO. And you have a digital record to back up your faulty memory of the glory you have discovered. 

In other words when the beer wears off you can go back and see that your ore dosent pay rather than believe those tiny specks you saw in the loupe were chunks the size of dice.

Photographs are better 'cause theire ain't no way to hide those lyin' eyes.