Loupes

[Coinguy19]

What, in your opinion, is the best loupe for coins? What magnification should I be looking for and in what price range should I expect to pay?

[TomB]

For common usage and the ability to lose the loupe without getting too upset, I would recommend the Bausch & Lomb 5x aspheric model. This costs about $8 or so and when closed is about the same size as a closed 2x2 mylar flip. Quite a few folks would urge you to buy a Hastings tiplet or similar quality loupe, but these can run perhaps $75, I don't recall off-hand, and if you do not wear it around your neck you may lose it easily. I prefer to use a Zeiss 10x microsope eyepiece for high quality viewing. Regardless, I think that 5x is plenty of magnification for nearly every circumstance and that more than 10x is far too much for typical coinage.

[Wihlborg]

This question has to be one of the most asked on the board.

 

I own three loops, a 10x, 7x, and dual lens Eschenbach. One lens is 3x and the other is 6x. Both lenses can be user together for a combined magnification of 9x, which is much more magnification then is needed for normal coin grading. I normally use just the 6x lens for coin grading. Because of its optical quality and the versatility of having three different magnifications, the Eschenbach is by far my favorite and most used loop.

 

Yes, the Eschenbach is at the higher price range, but you will see a clearer, less distorted image, with less eye strain. Basically, it's true that you get what you pay for.

 

John

[michael]

get the zeiss 3x6x9 it will pay for itself in short order if you are serious about collecting and looking at coins

 

not only will it pay for itself it will be free and then some.....................

 

add the bausch and lomb 20x hastings triplet and you got nirvana with both

[chinook]

This question has to be one of the most asked on the board.

 

I own three loops, a 10x, 7x, and dual lens Eschenbach. One lens is 3x and the other is 6x. Both lenses can be user together for a combined magnification of 9x, which is much more magnification then is needed for normal coin grading. I normally use just the 6x lens for coin grading. Because of its optical quality and the versatility of having three different magnifications, the Eschenbach is by far my favorite and most used loop.

 

Yes, the Eschenbach is at the higher price range, but you will see a clearer, less distorted image, with less eye strain. Basically, it's true that you get what you pay for.

 

John

 

I concur 100%

[nwcs]

I would also recommend the zeiss. Superb quality optics.

[MunkyMan95]

How are some optics better than others? I've got a Bausch and Lomb loupe, 10X. I've also got a Peer loupe 10X (the one the ANA sells) and I really can't tell the difference between the two. The Peer is less than half the price of the Bausch and Lomb, however.

[TomB]

Some lenses will introduce color or image distortion as one moves away from the center of the lens while other lenses are specifically made to avoid these artifacts.

[Wihlborg]

Some lenses will introduce color or image distortion as one moves away from the center of the lens while other lenses are specifically made to avoid these artifacts.

 

BINGO! We have a winner.

 

It all has to do with how well the lenses are made. The higher quality loupes use optical quality glass that is precision ground to keep distortion to an absolute minimum from the center to the outside edges of the lens.

 

This allows you to see a clear, distortion free image of the coins surface with much less eye strain then a cheaper loupe.

 

John

[nwcs]

Not only eye relief and distortion but also sharpness. What people don't realize is that the cheap loupes have lousy sharpness. That sharpness can really help you when evaluating something where it's important to be correct.

[Wihlborg]

Not only eye relief and distortion but also sharpness. What people don't realize is that the cheap loupes have lousy sharpness. That sharpness can really help you when evaluating something where it's important to be correct.

 

I agree. That’s what I meant when I wrote about seeing a clearer image of a coin.

 

I’m a big advocate of using a quality loupe. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen someone buy an expensive coin based upon what they saw through a $20 loupe. Think about that for a minute. These people are willing to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on a coin, but not $100 - $150 for a loupe that will help insure that the coin they are thinking of buying is indeed worth the money.

 

John

[MikeKing]

interesting reading. I never thought much about it.

I use either a donegan optical eye glass loupe, which attaches to my eye glasses and kind of looks like a borg apparatus or a triplet. I initially got the eye glass attach one for working on clocks where I might need my hands entirely free from holding an eye loupe. It's 5X I believe, and like I said, is handy, but that's about it. You can raise it out of your visual field and when you need it, it's there, on your eyeglasses, and you just flip it down. I think there is a 10X one on the market, which is what I should have gotten.

 

For real descriminating viewing however, I cannot settle for anything less than a 7X triplet, bausch and lomb. Anything less I fear I might miss something.

[Fergie]

I prefer to use a Zeiss 10x microsope eyepiece for high quality viewing.

 

Hello everybody

 

Can you help me find a Zeiss product seller ?

 

I found their website and I can see why their products provide "high quality viewing".

They correct the glass for distortion well and add coatings for anti-glare and for color correction too. No other magnifier manufacturer does this I guess.

 

Hey TomB,

 

I used to have a 5-element lens I removed from a junk security camera.

It was large in diameter, fully coated and provided superb viewing at about 3x.

The lens was great for viewing coins at shows. The coatings reduced the glare from bad lighting and allowed you to take in 100% of the the coins surface for general viewing. I lost it and would like to buy another one.

 

I recommend you try one in 2-3x for shows. The luxurious comfort of this type of glass should not be missed.

 

I tried Brent and Brooklyn, nada, any other suggestions ?

 

Fergie.

[Wihlborg]

They correct the glass for distortion well and add coatings for anti-glare and for color correction too. No other magnifier manufacturer does this I guess.

 

 

Zeiss is not the only company to do this. Eschenbach lenses are made the same way, in fact all high quality optics are. This is what makes them superior to lenses of lesser quality.

 

John

[Fergie]

Thanks Wihlborg, I saw your mention of the loupes.

I just had not checked into them.

Sounds fine to me.

Can you point me in the right direction to find one ?

 

Anyone else that has never used a "coated" fine quality glass, I highly recommend you try one out. I found the biggest difference in using it at the shows, where all those ceiling lights are glaring like an invasion from Mars.

 

Thanks,

Fergie.

[Wihlborg]

Hi Fergie,

 

This site has the best prices on Eschenbach loupes that I have ever seen.

 

ihobb.com

 

I have no connection to the site other then having bought from them in the past, and my dealings were trouble free. Honestly, in my opinion the Eschenbach loupes are every bit a good as the zeiss. You won’t go wrong buying either one of them.

 

John

[Fergie]

Thanks a million !

 

Figures, a good old days, good old fashioned stamp dealer would have the goods !

 

EEExxxpensive ! But hey, what's a poor numismatist to do ?

 

They look spectacular !

Better than the Zeiss, the Eschenbach models seem to have better "dust free" housings and overall look better ergonomically. Nicely made.

 

I will get the 3-6-9 model.

Note that it's a "70 series" and distortion free and color corrected.

I also am looking for a large one like I had before. It's like a 5-element round assembly you would find on a video camera. Body length was about two inches

 

What makes it great is being able to view comfortably from a good distance.

The lens is about 35mm in diameter and you can see the whole coin.

 

 

Thanks alot, I am very happy to find the Eschenbach loupe.

 

Fergie.

[Fergie]

I own a bunch of cheap loupes because I am always forgetting to bring mine.

So then I end up buying one to use !

 

Ha, our local shop has a bidboard and the owner must have gone through a hundred loupes over the years.

 

People borrow it and then forget to put it back.

 

Fergie.

[Wihlborg]

Hey Fergie,

 

Do yourself a favor. Buy one of the ANA lanyards to go along with your new Eschenbach loupe and use it! You don’t want to the Eschenbach to grow feet and walk away.

 

John

[Fergie]

Thanks for the reminder, I will.

I have a large assortment of cheap loupes because I forget to bring one to shops and shows.

Knowing me, I would leave it on a show table.

Then a lucky SOB, would be saying, oh my, now this is real nice !

 

Thanks,

 

Fergie.