lit magnifying glass

[Guest]

Hi all

I am looking to source a lit magnifying glass for detailed work and am trying to find where to buy a good quality glass without spending a fortune. Now the winter is here I am modelling on my day off and Sunday , Having poor lighting in the conservatory and ageing eyes i need a combined light/ glass. Any suggestions will be appreciated .

Regards

Tony

[Guest]

Tony I would have a search on Ebay & Amazon. I got mine there. Some rubbish but also some good stuff.

Go for a glass magnifier as they are easy to clean & difficult to scratch. The magnifier is 1.75 magnification which i have found a good standard.

The magnifier is about 110mm 4.5" across. Mine is a Shesto Lightcraft 8066D2.

It has a round fluorescent type lamp which gives out a good light both for magnification & for a general model making light.

It has anglepoise type arms. If you use it on a desk base it is limited in its use as far as movement. If you get a clamp fitting to support it it increases the movement to double the desk base. I have mounted mine on a shelf above the work station where it is out of the way yet gives a reach of about a metre.

Has turn buttons for tightening the tension. Found it this is the one. Lightcraft Round Flexible Mag Lamp - Light-Craft - Shesto - Suppliers of Specialist Tools...Worldwide

Not cheap but Not cheap but good value for what you get.

Laurie

Just found it on Amazon. Amazon are marketing it so postage is free at £40 a really good buy.

Lightcraft Flexible Magnifier Lamp: Amazon.co.uk: Lighting

[Guest]

Hi Tony , cant help with the magnifying glass , but this works for me - Halogin reading lamp and +1.5 reading glases , like you my eyes aint what they used to be when modelling very small stuff but with the glasses it makes a huge difference and something I wished I`d done years ago ( in normal life I don`t wear glasses ) , as for the lamp I find it great - bright enough and mobile can`t say much more .

its a cheap option - lamp £10 up , glasses £1 up

Richy

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[yak face]

Hi tony , i use one of these Clarke SAM75 Swing Arm Magnifying Lamp - Machine Mart Its only about £18 from machine mart . It doesnt come with a bulb , dont buy the one thats recommended, just get a 35W SES (small edison screw) energy saving bulb for about £1 , you know ,the small screw in type . This has the advantage of giving a much better light than a clear filament type bulb ,and it doesnt get as hot. I dont know how id manage without mine now (and of course the +1 reading glasses from poundland!!) hope this is of some use , cheers tony

[Guest]

On offer at 25 quid at the moment, I can recommend it

22W Fluorescent Daylight Magnifier Lamp : Magnifier Lamps : Maplin

[Guest]

Well done Andy that is the same one I use & wrote about above for £40 & Shesto are marketing at near £50. That is a real bargain for a quality piece of equipment.

Shesto must be making a fortune.

Tried to buy a couple of very nice clamps form them a week ago. Clamps about £12 plus postage £9:99. The must have weighed no more than an ounce. They still own the clamps.

Laurie

[Guest]

Missus got mine from argoose;-) big magnification with a little doubler at the side it has a cover to stop damage and really bright flouresent bulb around the magnifier, moves and holds position nicely with a weighted base just purfect for 1\35 face work.

hope this helps and you have an argos close.

Martin

[Guest]

Well done Andy that is the same one I use & wrote about above for £40 & Shesto are marketing at near £50. That is a real bargain for a quality piece of equipment.Shesto must be making a fortune.

Tried to buy a couple of very nice clamps form them a week ago. Clamps about £12 plus postage £9:99. The must have weighed no more than an ounce. They still own the clamps.

Laurie

I've got exactly the same one, and paid £40 for it last year at Hobbycraft, but it's distributed by Shesto, never thought of going to Maplins, I will have a look there first in the future !!

[Guest]

I went a slightly different route, a cheap head magnifier/light. I tried a lamp but couldn't get on with it.

The make is Rolson and I got it from eBay. It has 4 different magnifying lens sets in different strengths, which can be fitted singly or in a combination of two. It flips out of the way quickly and is light to wear. The lamp on the peak contains two L.E.D. bulbs and is adjustable and very bright.

I know it's not for everybody, but has enabled me to paint minute subjects and fit those silly small PE parts even with my poor close-up eyesight. It allows me to view small items with both eyes which helps with depth perception and placing the brush on the subject without missing. I use it without my glasses.

Oh, and it's great for finding those tiny parts that are hiding on the carpet having pinged out of the tweezers.

Just another option to consider

Regards

Scuff

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[AlanG]

I got this one from Machine Mart. It's the Clarke SAM100 and i also got a daylight bulb/tube (6000 and 6500 Kelvin depending on the lamp) for it. Magnifying is ok but if you don't have the correct light source it can be almost a waste of time.

Clarke SAM100 Swing Arm Magnifying Lamp - Machine Mart