Dental / surgical loupes

[Grant Gunderson]

So my near vision had totally gone to **** in the last year. I need to get readers to read a menus etc…

However I also do a lot of precision work on electronics/ MTB shock rebuilds etc.

So at the dentist the other day I noticed they got these loupes at attach to their glasses and also have a very bright light on them. Seem to be pretty ideal for what I’m doing. Anyone got any experience in them / recommendations. I know good ones are not cheap, but it’s worth it if it allows me to continue to do precision work.

I have lighted magnifiers at most work stations. They help but are not always ideal.

 

[captain14]

Everyone at my dentists uses them. Dentists, hygienists and the other techs.

I and a little more light and magnification. To read socket sizes too.



I’ve seen them posted on Amazon but have not pulled the trigger.

 

[RTM]

Dentists, huge fists and the other techs.

I know what you meant, but the last dentist I went to did not have a hygienist that day, so he cleaned my teeth, felt like a rugby match was played in my mouth. Fingers like bratwurst.

 

[RTM]

So at the dentist the other day I noticed they got these loupes at attach to their glasses and also have a very bright light on them. Seem to be pretty ideal for what I’m doing. Anyone got any experience in them / recommendations. I know good ones are not cheap, but it’s worth it if it allows me to continue to do precision work.

I have lighted magnifiers at most work stations. They help but are not always ideal.

I’ve tried on a friends pair once, really a learning curve, worse than my Optivisor as far as getting my coordination back. FIeld of view and depth of field are both trade offs depending on how much magnification you get.

 

[Grant Gunderson]

Everyone at my dentists uses them. Dentists, huge fists and the other techs.

I and a little more light and magnification. To read socket sizes too.



I’ve seen them posted on Amazon but have not pulled the trigger.

I’ve tried on a friends pair once, really a learning curve, worse than my Optivisor as far as getting my coordination back. FIeld of view and depth of field are both trade offs depending on how much magnification you get.

Seems like a massive difference in price between the Amazon stuff and the true dental / surgical ones.

I don’t mind spending a bit for better optics / a brighter wireless light.

From my photo days I really have a distaste for cheap plastic magnifiers as they often have lots of aberrations on the edges. Plus if they do accidentally get sprayed with suspension oil I want something that won’t get damaged like most plastic lenses.

 

[jayemm]

Seems like a massive difference in price between the Amazon stuff and the true dental / surgical ones.

I don’t mind spending a bit for better optics / a brighter wireless light.

From my photo days I really have a distaste for cheap plastic magnifiers as they often have lots of aberrations on the edges. Plus if they do accidentally get sprayed with suspension oil I want something that won’t get damaged like most plastic lenses.

Ask your dentist to quickly try his on. Explain your situation. Maybe get some pointers and pricing.

 

[captain14]

I know what you meant, but the last dentist I went to did not have a hygienist that day, so he cleaned my teeth, felt like a rugby match was played in my mouth. Fingers like bratwurst.

My bad. I fixed it above also.

Originally I had to type it 3 times to get it correct and autocorrect “fisted” again.

 

[RoninB4]

-Whatever you get try to make sure the lens is made of glass not plastic. The light gathering ability in glass is usually superior to the plastic lenses I've seen/used. Even with the Optivisor there's a noticeable difference between the glass and plastic lenses they use. There's a price difference too but I'd prefer glass over plastic.

 

[Etchase]

The latest are the ones that include a 45 degree or so bend so you can keep your neck straight. I believe they are about 5K. Dentists typically use higher magnification than hygienist. I think some are $10K.

 

[four.cycle]

Lovely young Hillary cleaned my teeth Thursday morning wearing a pair of those.
I just put a call in and asked them to let me know where they got them.
Hopefully they'll get back to me Monday morning when they open.
I'll bet my buddy would love a pair... the light was blinding!
BK

 

[Etchase]

If you go to hygienist school you get half off! They come out and fit you in person. Kind of like tool truck service.

 

[Citation]

I inherited a pair made by Cameron Surgical Specialty Co. They were active from 1922-1957. I think my pair is pre-war. I also have the heap HF magnifier. Having used both I suspect you can't really do a set of good loupes if they don't have good adjustments. The vintage pair I have took me a bit to get fitted correctly. They also have a very narrow depth of field. I do use them on occasion because, the $15 HF thing doesn't magnify as much. However, most of the time the $15 tool is more than sufficient. If there was a sub $50 loupe option I would get it but when the price is a few hundred I'll pass.

 

[MichaelP]

Check my post here: https://www.garagejournal.com/forum...agnifier-light-solution.556578/#post-11586657 (Post #3)

 

[Two Sheds]

I have a nice set of high quality dental loupes that I got for cheap at an estate sale (Designs for Vision). They are great for looking in peoples mouths. For working on small electronic or mechanical devices, I always grab the OptiVisors, which I have in multiple strengths. The dental loupes have a long working distance and a narrow field of view. It is harder to focus on the object you are working on. Great for a molar way down deep, but for soldering an electronic component, the OptiVisor is easier to use. If you buy an OptiVisor, get the glass lenses. I have the flip down supplemental loupe on the 5x, but not on the 10x.

 

[johnre]

If you don't need to be working on the object as you're magnifying it, you could try a magnifier app on your smart phone - most of the modern ones have it built-in; you don't need to install anything.

It's more than just a digital zoom; mine manages to coerce the focus in much closer so you can move in on small objects.

 

[Grant Gunderson]

My dentist had the designs for vision setup also. I reached up to them it’s around $1500 with the light.

So I ended up ordering a Luxo Wave. Since I mostly need it at one workstation so we will see how that does. Might order 1 more for another workstation. Had a hard time deciding between the Luxo Wave and the Circus model.

 

[rlitman]

...dental loupes have a long working distance and a narrow field of view...

Kind of, but also phenomenal 3D viewing when you have them setup correctly. You need to set them at both just the right interpupillary distance AND the right conversion angle (for each individual eye), and then the view is magically immersive. Also, I discovered inadvertently that if I use a clip-on set with a pair of +2.5 reading glasses, I can get them in at a much closer working distance, and now it's like having a low power binocular dissecting microscope.

The narrow field of view depends entirely on how close you can get the ocular lens to your eye. Get it up close! And remember than when you change the position of the ocular with respect to your eyes, you need to re-adjust everything again to get a full view.

Additionally, the long working distance is an advantage in many situations. Soldering included. It keeps your nose away from the hot iron, and out of the smoke. If I'm cutting fine black stitches out of a seam in black fabric, it keeps the scalpel further from my nose too (though I then need to be extra careful with my fingers).