On 4 Nov 2020 08:43:16 GMT, Roger Hayter wrote:

snip

And, of course, the rules about over-the-counter reading glasses don't affect
the sale of various high magnification vision aids for close work.

That's a good point and one I'll now use to re-search the likes of
eBay to see if it comes up with what look like 'glasses' but have a
greater than 4x magnification. ;-)

I'm thinking that x6 might be good enough to see the detail I'm
looking for but not too strong that I can't still move about (say in
the workshop or study) and without falling over. ;-)

Reading all the replies so far (thanks guys), I think there could be
the need for four stages:

1) No glasses: Sleeping / showering / shaving my head (No2) or doing
stuff where they could get knocked off my head / broken and I don't
need to 'see' what I'm doing (working under a car when I might use
feel and my base vision).

2) Std readers: General everyday living + using a magnifying sheet /
glass / loupe as required to read smaller stuff (I have a magnifying
sheet in one of the kitchen cupboards for reading fine print cooking
instructions).

3) Strong glasses: When I'm basically in one place but moving about
but want that flexibility but a more detailed view on what I'm working
on (and where it doesn't matter that I can't see all the other stuff
as clearly as with my readers). Like, I can see the carb, brake
caliper or 3D printer, even without glasses but now I need to do
something detailed.

4) Super magnifiers: When I'm stationary and working on something
superfine and need to see very small things. Like I have taken
something to bits and generally cleaned it all up, now I want to check
the individual bits to ensure they are all ok (blocked jets, good
solder joints, repaired PCB tracks etc). Or when assembling electronic
projects that require the use of very small components. [1]

4a) If I am working on something on a desk whilst sitting I could also
use a bench mounted binocular microscope.

The latter are the devices where I was hoping for some practical
feedback on as there are several solutions available and some may be
better than others in my usage scenario.

Some of the shrouded visor type seem to need lenses added multiply to
get greater magnification and I'm not sure how well that might work if
they are plastic lenses or are dirty (I sometimes get a face full of
brake / carb cleaner and that would also go on and could dissolve
plastic lenses)? ;-(

The skeleton frame type look like they are worn like glasses and so
require glasses swap every time I go between detail and general.

Ah, VR goggles with a pair of cameras on the front and voice
recognition zoom function, like you see on all Sci-Fi films. ;-)


Cheers, T i m