i want a MICROSCOPE!!!!

[ccpotato]

i am a GIA student, i want to buy a microscope, but GIA microscope is too expensive is like $4000, does any one know which other brand is good? i saw a gemoro in website, but i am not sure is it a good one. thx!

 

[Nicrez]

Kassoy also sells microscopes, but I think the cheapest I have seen is $3000 for a lesser scope. You may want to look into lab closings or used scopes. Not easy. Microscopes are not cheap, that''s why most people wait for business loans or save up for a while?

I have never heard of Gemoro, but I suggest making sure your optics are good. The base is irrelevant. Zeiss is one of the better ones. Are you in a rush to get one for any reason or can you wait until you can afford a decent one. Kassoy has cheaper scopes than GIA but with decent optics. Getting a cheap scope with bad optics to me is a waste of money...

 

[denverappraiser]

I’m rather fond of the Meiji 8TR but they’re not a whole lot cheaper. I think they're about $3600 but I'm not sure and everything from Japan is getting more expensive by the day.

Lots of people sell it but I'm rather like the guys at www.schoolofgemology.com

Wildman instruments at www.gemproducts.com sells a remanufactured Leica optic head with a GemPro base that’s pretty sweet for $2800.

I wouldn’t buy the Gemoro.

If’ your planning on being a professional in the trade, your microscope is a bad place to cheap out. This is going to be your #1 tool and you will use every day for the rest of your career. You spent all that money to attend GIA, don't undermine yourself now.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ICGA(AGS) NAJA
Professional Jewelry Appraisals in Denver

 

[CaptAubrey]

You get what you pay for with optics.

You can go cheap now, but you may find yourself having outgrown a cheap microscope''s capabilities within a few years.

A bad microscope is a waste of money, no matter what you paid.