Welcome to Boom Microscope
What is a boom microscope?
A boom microscope is a simple stereoscopic microscope head mounted on a flexible, movable, metal arm that allows the microscope head to swing over the working area or out of place. What is a boom microscope use for? The most common application for a boom microscope is for circuit board inspection and repair. It is commonly used in conjunction with a soldering iron for doing soldering on a circuit board. A boom microscope is also used for surface mount device work on circuit boards. Another application of a boom microscope is for engraving. Any time an item is needed to be viewed under a greater magnification, a boom microscope is often the answer. Simply take the specimen and put it under the stereoscopic microscope head and swing the head directly over the specimen. Then you can get the specimen into focus and see it under greater detail.
There are different types of metal boom stands, some of them are very simple and inexpensive, others are heavy duty with counter weights and double arms for additional stability to give less vibration. Some boom stands have articulating arms that allow a greater flexibility, swinging and retracting over the working area. The different types of boom stands will affect the price of the equipment. The lowest price boom microscope is just a simple arm on a vertical pole on a plain stand base. The articulating arm microscope adds to the cost significantly and may or may not be needed, depending on the user’s application.
The boom microscope is a stereomicroscope. A stereomicroscope has two eye pieces on the microscope head and allows for actual three dimensional stereoscopic viewing which gives a greater depth perception. A boom microscope can also be a fix magnification or a zoom magnification. A zoom magnification is generally preferred as it allows much greater flexibility when changing the magnification. This can be helpful as a simple turn of the zoom knob will increase or decrease the magnification just to the point as is needed. The fixed magnification has a turret to change the microscope magnification. This is generally the cheapest type of boom microscope. When considering what type of boom microscope a user should be purchasing, one must consider if they are willing to pay the added cost of the zoom optics. This could be determined based on individual preference as well as the actual application for the microscope. The other thing to consider is the type of boom stand as a simple boom stand varies significantly in price, style and usage from an articulating boom stand. The zoom magnification should also be considered as the cheaper zoom stereomicroscope heads have optics that typically go to only 35 power magnification. A higher cost zoom microscope will go to 45 power. For some special applications, a high ratio zoom microscope head is needed. This high ratio zoom may go to as much as 65 power magnification without the need for changing microscope eye piece sets. The standard eyepiece set is 10x, but often, a 20x pair is included to double the magnification of the equipment.
So there are many factors to consider when one is ready to purchase a boom microscope. Don’t forget to consider the quality of the microscope head as some seemingly similar types of boom microscope heads may vary significantly in their cost. This can be a result of the different manufacturing quality in their glass optics. One does not need to purchase an expensive Japanese or German made optics to get a good quality. Typically, the top brand name German and Japanese made microscope systems are very expensive. The Chinese boom stand microscopes have been on the market for years and have steadily been increasing their quality level. Nowadays, many of the German and Japanese microscope manufactures are locating some of their production lines in existing Chinese microscope factories.
The purchaser of a boom microscope must consider the type of stand, the zoom ratio, if they want a photography port, and also the general quality level of the microscope when purchasing. All these factors affect the final price of the microscopy equipment. Please contact us today for assistance with your selection of equipment.
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