Microscope suggestions

[l4nsky]

Hola,

Been awhile since I've been active here, but my fascination with this hobby and my collection still continues to grow. Anyways, summer is right around the corner and with the higher temperatures in the T room, I'm starting to get a lot of molts. I've usually waited until my T's are in the 4" range and just sex them with the naked eye or the zoom on my phone. I would like to change that and I'm interested in purchasing a microscope to be able to identify the gender as soon and as small as possible. Now I grew up with the standard monocle eye piece and bottom lit microscopes and I can use them just fine. However, when I was perusing Amazon, I found that they have really advanced. Their are top lit options with screens intended for circuit board construction and repair that have really caught my eye. The model I'm looking at specifically is listed on Amazon as "LCD 7 Inch Digital Microscope 1-1200X Maginfication with 16G TF Card,Yvelines 12MP Camera Video Recorder with HD Screen Suitable for Teaching,Circuit Boards,observing Antiques,Jewelry Identification". Has anyone used one of these for sexing purposes? If so, how do they compare to a more traditional microscope. Also, I'm interested in hearing what Models everyone uses and any advantages they have over their competitors.

Thanks,
--Matt

P.S. First P. metallica I've been able to sex out of the 0.0.3 I purchased in Jan 19. Camera works well, but it would have been better if I could have sexed her and her sackmates much earlier.

 

[mjzheng]

I use one very similar to that and love it. Only downside is you will need a backlight , I lay my phone upside down to use the flashlight as my back light (usually with a white tissue over it )
Took this today on a similar scope

 

[Vanessa]

This is the one I use... USB Microscope, Potensic Endoscope Inspection Magnifier
Same shot, but one is not backlit and the other is.

Thrixopelma lagunas 2" Female

• Vanessa
• Oct 3, 2019
• blue birdeater tarantula exuvia exuviae female juvenile juvenile female lagunas molt moult sexing spermathecae thrixopelma thrixopelma lagunas uterus externus

You have to be careful with this genus, because males can have very prominent sexual organs. I'm...

Thrixopelma lagunas 2" Female Backlit

• Vanessa
• Oct 3, 2019
• 2
• blue birdeater tarantula exuvia exuviae female juvenile juvenile female lagunas molt moult sexing spermatheca spermathecae thrixopelma thrixopelma lagunas uterus externus

You have to be careful with this genus, because males can have very prominent sexual organs. I'm...

 

[AphonopelmaTX]

You can't go wrong with a good old fashioned optical stereo microscope with a magnification range of 7x - 45x from AmScope.com. Everyone likes to use those icky digital microscopes, but there is no comparison to the resolution of an optical microscope.

 

[Colorado Ts]

You can't go wrong with a good old fashioned optical stereo microscope with a magnification range of 7x - 45x from AmScope.com. Everyone likes to use those icky digital microscopes, but there is no comparison to the resolution of an optical microscope.

How do you take images with one of those?

 

[AphonopelmaTX]

How do you take images with one of those?

By throwing a bunch of money at it.

But seriously, imaging through a stereo microscope can be quite expensive. Ranging from a couple hundred dollars to up to 600-700+ dollars for a dedicated microscope camera and you still won't get DSLR macro photography quality. There are microscope adapters for DSLR cameras though. I use a microscope camera in the 700 dollar range and it outputs 1080p images to an HD monitor or TV with an HDMI cable. Like the photography hobby, microscopy can be a money pit if you don't contain yourself.

The best option for quick snap shots is with an iDu Optics LabCam iPhone adapter (ilabcam.com). I have one of those too and use it when I need to snap a quick picture to send to someone. I have even used it with FaceTime to show someone in real time how too dissect and identify spiders. Come to think about it, I could probably make a few bucks giving one-on-one spider ID lessons with that thing. Unfortunately, the iDu Optics adapter is just for iPhones. No Android powered phones.

The point of having a stereo microscope as opposed to those cheap digital magnifiers sold as digital microscopes, is the image quality you see with your own eyes. A digital microscope produces a 2D image at a low resolution whereas the image produced by glass and light you see with your eye is 3D and the resolution is much higher. Even with stereo microscopes on the cheaper end of the price spectrum, looking at a tarantula molt is like seeing it with the naked eye, just bigger and more detailed. That's why I will never recommend a digital microscope to someone who wants to sex their tarantulas or for anything else. You can actually see the anatomy in 3D and make a better determination of what sex your spider is.

 

[viper69]

You can't go wrong with a good old fashioned optical stereo microscope with a magnification range of 7x - 45x from AmScope.com. Everyone likes to use those icky digital microscopes, but there is no comparison to the resolution of an optical microscope.

It's glass or nothing!

 

[viper69]

By throwing a bunch of money at it.

But seriously, imaging through a stereo microscope can be quite expensive. Ranging from a couple hundred dollars to up to 600-700+ dollars for a dedicated microscope camera and you still won't get DSLR macro photography quality. There are microscope adapters for DSLR cameras though. I use a microscope camera in the 700 dollar range and it outputs 1080p images to an HD monitor or TV with an HDMI cable. Like the photography hobby, microscopy can be a money pit if you don't contain yourself.

The best option for quick snap shots is with an iDu Optics LabCam iPhone adapter (ilabcam.com). I have one of those too and use it when I need to snap a quick picture to send to someone. I have even used it with FaceTime to show someone in real time how too dissect and identify spiders. Come to think about it, I could probably make a few bucks giving one-on-one spider ID lessons with that thing. Unfortunately, the iDu Optics adapter is just for iPhones. No Android powered phones.

The point of having a stereo microscope as opposed to those cheap digital magnifiers sold as digital microscopes, is the image quality you see with your own eyes. A digital microscope produces a 2D image at a low resolution whereas the image produced by glass and light you see with your eye is 3D and the resolution is much higher. Even with stereo microscopes on the cheaper end of the price spectrum, looking at a tarantula molt is like seeing it with the naked eye, just bigger and more detailed. That's why I will never recommend a digital microscope to someone who wants to sex their tarantulas or for anything else. You can actually see the anatomy in 3D and make a better determination of what sex your spider is.

I setup a gorgeous Leica with Leica camera, and additional port for a DSLR. It takes incredible images. Of course it was over $20,000 on sale! The arachnologist loved it. I agree there is no substitute for looking through oculars. I don't what screen someone is using, oculars provide the best image quality. The detail is unmatched with good old glass.

 

[viper69]

How do you take images with one of those?

Easily, it's the best.

 

[Thekla]

This is the one I use... USB Microscope, Potensic Endoscope Inspection Magnifier

I use the same simple USB microscope and I'm absolutely happy with it. The pictures aren't backlit, but I place the moults on a plastic sheet with a white paper underneath:

0.1 Homoeomma sp. "blue peru"

• Thekla
• Apr 5, 2020
• 2
• exuviae female homoeomma homoeomma sp. "blue peru" molt moult sexing sp. "blue peru" spermathecae uterus externus

Moult is about 4,5".

0.1 T. albopilosus (Nicaragua)

• Thekla
• Mar 30, 2020
• 3
• albopilosus brachypelma albopilosum curlyhair tarantula exuviae female molt moult nicaragua sexing spermathecae tliltocatl tliltocatl albopilosus uterus externus

Moult is about 3 3/4".

0.1 C. versicolor

• Thekla
• Mar 30, 2020
• 5
• antilles pinktoe tarantula avicularia versicolor caribena caribena versicolor exuviae female martinique pinktoe tarantula molt moult sexing spermathecae uterus externus versicolor

Moult is about 3 3/4".

 

[KaroKoenig]

A digital microscope produces a 2D image at a low resolution whereas the image produced by glass and light you see with your eye is 3D and the resolution is much higher. Even with stereo microscopes on the cheaper end of the price spectrum, looking at a tarantula molt is like seeing it with the naked eye, just bigger and more detailed.

A very very good point.

Is a $50 digital microscope sufficient for the purpose of sexing even a small tarantula molt? Absolutely. You will be able to see everything you need to see.

However, looking through a stereo microscope is a completely different experience. The 3D effect - if the scope is well-adjusted to your eyes - is very intense. I frequently catch myself getting lost, wandering around aimlessly over the whole molt, slowly focussing through exquisite details of those creatures' anatomy. You really have to see it for yourself to appreciate what you've been missing. Having lighting both from below and above is important.

There are several relatively affordable options, even in the lower 3-digit region. Look for "school" or "teaching" when searching for those. I work at a Museum of Natural History, and we have worked with all sorts of different lower-end stereo microscopes over the years. In my experience, the difference between the cheaper ones and the more expensive ones is not so much in the optics (*), but in build quality. When you use large numbers of these things for education purposes, move them around 5 times a week and have them suffer abuse by children of all ages, motor and mental dispositions, the cheaper ones won't last very long. But the average tarantula keeper doesn't do all that to her/his microscope. So you'll be fine with a lower-end instrument. No need to set up something that's built like a tank.

As for taking photos: If you just want to take a quick snapshot, say, for sex ID here on this site, you don't even need a digital camera fitted. Just shoot with your smartphone through one of the oculars. It takes a bit of fiddling to line up with the optical path, but it's no rocket science. I'll attach a photo I used to confirm the sex of my B. hamorii, which at that time had a body length if about 2 cm. You can see that for all practical purposes, a smartphone does just fine.

(*) Yes, yes, I know. There ARE huge differences in optics. But we're not talking scientific use or high-end macrophotography here. Just normal day-to-day enjoyment of a tarantula molt.

 

[andrew jhonson]

I have been using last 8 month a Levenhuk D670T Digital Trinocular Microscope which is compound type 5 MP durable microscope. The microscope has Abbe condenser, rotating trinocular head, revolving nosepiece rate features. It is also easy to use, handle and store because of its compact build and ergonomic hand grip. The microscope boasts of impressive magnifications from 40x to 2000x. The microscope has impressive and powerful features and at the same time incredibly easy and comfortable to use, you can try this out.

 

[Smotzer]

I second if you really want to use it for more than just taking photos of molts but doing any sort of ID work that you get a optical stereo microscope. And this is a great place

AmScope.com

You have many different options, styles, and price-points to suit your budget.

the microscopes sold on Amazon that say 1000x-2500x are not true magnification levels like they are with optical stereo microscopes. I believe Amscope sells some compounds with a low res digital cameras. I’m in the market for a new microscope amd will be going the OSM route, they will also last I’m sure much longer than the ones on Amazon.

 

[Smotzer]

It's glass or nothing!

It sure is, I try and tell this to people that want to buy expensive high MP consumer body’s but not spend money on the lenses. It all comes down to glass! As you know we know some of the companies that make these cameras have a loooong history in microscope glass as well!

 

[viper69]

It sure is, I try and tell this to people that want to buy expensive high MP consumer body’s but not spend money on the lenses. It all comes down to glass! As you know we know some of the companies that make these cameras have a loooong history in microscope glass as well!

Zeiss and Leica both get their microscope objectives from the same source, Schott Glass.