Don't get old...

joeykoins

Hi guys, I can tell my eyes are getting worse. The 10x Power Loupe, is not cutting it for me anymore. I recently purchased the 30x Power Loupe, to hunt for my Cherries! If it wasn't for my Scope 500x, I really can't tell if the coin actually is that certain variety/Error that I'm searching for. Three times now I end up with just a common coin, after checking at home on my scope. Is this just me or is this a problem for you guys too? Thanks guys in Advance-joey

Azurescens

I have to use 4x on my camera with a 20x loop just for myself. But it's nice because I can screen shot without having to photograph, and I'm tempted to find a way to just connect the darn thing. I've got a broken one. But it's nice to manipulate a 4 inch screen. I'll admit when my eyes get tired I just loop and cam it until I get a migraine and it's over. I'd use my scope, but that's microns, I'd never see what I need to see with something that powerful.

1630Boston

After years of work, yes my eyes are not what they used to be. Would love to find a nice, raised, magnifier maybe 12'x12" to hold coins and the like under while having both hands free

Azurescens

I went into storage yesterday to find my old handheld light and mag. Not only does the bulb not work but the magnification is passable at best and made of plastic. It's well over 50 years old. I really don't have much more to go through to justify buying a standing mag lamp.

I find it even harder having astigmatism. One eye will focus and the other kind of spaces out. Oddly enough I can still shoot fine but I have trouble with small details. Insult to injury, nerve damage in hands and my back hurts so I can't hunch over a table. Gonna replace the light on my lamp. It's meant to grow certain things not look at coins. It's missing a lot of the blue spectrum.

Twobitcollector

Getting old sure beats the alternative.
My Dino-Lite is a big help

ChrisH821

It may be the loupe you are using and not the magnification that is giving you issues. I've had a nice 10x loupe that is leaps and bounds above a cheap 16x loupe. The problem was that the focal point on that 16x was so close to the lens that any angle between the coin and lens made it difficult to focus, plus being so close meant lighting was terrible because of my own shadow. My best magnifier right now is actually one of the internal lenses out of an HD projector that I took apart(LOL if you want). It's about a 10x magnification, slightly smaller in diameter than a half dollar and the focal point is (I think) about 2".
Basically what I'm saying is try out a loupe with a larger lens before going overboard on the magnification.

oih82w8

This is why I love the TrueVIew images...they can be HUGE!

JJSingleton

Interesting...have you found a way to not get old? I'm a buyer.

TommyType

I do like the option of being retired, though.....That's the upside to aging.

Unfortunately, the "30 years old and retired" option passed me by long ago....both in time, and in finances.

DollarAfterDollar

Forty was a bish!!!

hammer1

too late...

Walkerfan

Trying not to but it ain't working.

Fortunately, my eyes are still pretty good.

mustangmanbob

I am well over 60, no glasses, but I can "see" the need for glasses coming at me like a freight train.

My vision in the Army was 20/08, far better than 20/20, with great night vision. It has probably slipped to 20/30 to 20/40 by surreptitiously checking the eye charts when my wife or kids are getting their glasses checked,

Lakesammman

Buy my 1.25's by the 3-pack at Costco. :-)

BryceM

Quality glass is the key. A good 4X beats a cheap 20X every day of the week and twice on Sundays.

joeykoins

Since I got the 30x Loupe, it has made a world of difference! Esp. checking for serifs and Mint Marks.

mannie gray

30x is my go-to for RPMs.
Has been for years.

Aspie_Rocco

As soon as I decided I was getting into Variety coins, my first tool was a 5-30x binocular microscope. Bought online for less than $200. Or maybe less than $300.
Best investment in coins stuff I made so far. Using it taught me cherry picking and variety attribution, die markers, etc.
I have great vision and am mid 30s.
Why strain with just a loupe? Unless you can't take your scope with you. (I do whenever allowed, haha even on vacation {except in Hawaii})
I use a 10x loupe on the go.

crazyhounddog

Your gonna get old and In case nobody's told you this, none of us get outta this thing alive.
I'm old just trying not to get salty about it.
Happy hunting.
Oh yeah, how do you see through a 30x loupe? Better yet, how does the light get in there?

mannie gray

I do recall that when I first started using a 30x loupe years ago, I had to train my eyes to get used to it.
The key is to get your eyes to relax.
It's second nature to me now.

ricko

I use a fingerprint magnifier http://www.opticsplanet.com/sirchie-m2-professional-fingerprint-magnifier.html?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=PLA&utm_term=&utm_campaign=1100001887539 Usually just for details ... I have worn glasses since the 6th grade.... nothing major, just some myopia... as I aged, glasses became unnecessary for about eight years... then vision regressed... I can evaluate most coins without the magnification, but small details or minor DD's require the assistance. That magnifier works great. Cheers, RickO

TwoSides2aCoin

Age is to our detriment and to a coin's benefit !

mr1931S

Variety that can't be seen with quality 10x loupe is too minor to garner any interest from me.

dogwood

Trying to read the instructions on the back page of the PCGS submission form is a cruel thing for my eyes.

blu62vette

@mannie gray said:
I do recall that when I first started using a 30x loupe years ago, I had to train my eyes to get used to it.
The key is to get your eyes to relax.
It's second nature to me now.

Problem is some of the old guys relax their eyes and they are asleep in seconds.

Azurescens

@TwoSides2aCoin said:
Age is to our detriment and to a coin's benefit !

Ever handle your coins and think, oh wow, no matter what, the person who bought or held this is dead?

Kind of like how laugh tracks on sitcoms in the 80s were rehashed to those of the 50s, so it's just a bunch of dead people laughing?

19Lyds

The primary problem that I encounter is that my eyes do not let enough light in anymore to actually focus on something much less see it.

Regardless of age, this is the primary problem with hand held loupe's as the loupe gets held close to the eye with the coin being drawn towards the loupe, the light sources begin to get cut off.

When I try to read small type on a label I find it nearly impossible until I can get a flashlight on the text. Then it become's somewhat readable although I do struggle with the settings on my Keurig Coffee maker. (I use a loupe on that one.)

I've always preferred my 10xx/30x stereoscope simply because it enables me to adequately light the coin upon examination. The direct light enables me to focus on what is actually there instead of "thinking" I see something which I often do at coins shows.

I recall one show where I was louping some 1964 Proof Kennedy's and danged near everyone clearly had visible doubling. I bought 2 knowing that a lot of times I see stuff but in this case, it was clear. It was evident.

When I got home and slipped them under the scope? Nothing. Zilch!

I figured that I must have been seeing the "reflection" of the coin on the 2x2 plasticene. Stupid.

500x, IMO, is useless.

ShadyDave

Sounds like lasik could do some of you wonders... but I'm sure you'll stay away from eye lasers just like instagram and other new technology.