loupes help

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I was wondering what people's opinions of the different loupes companies are. Surgitel, Design for Vision, Orascopic and Sheer Vision are going to be coming by my school soon. I'm pretty sure I'm going to invest in a pair, as I am already starting to have back pain. And, I don't have the best vision to begin with. Anyhow, I would like to know what you guys think about each company. Design for vision is based pretty close to us, so they come by pretty often, but they're going to be having a big "info session", and I would like to go in to it already having some opinions.

Thanks so much for any help.
 
I have Designs for Vision 2.5x and really like them. The frames are extra-sturdy and guaranteed for life. However, they are not for the fashion-conscious... big thick Drew Carey style frames.

We had several reps come to our school and I actually compared DFV and Orascoptic side by side. One thing I noticed was that the DFV 2.5x seemed to be a greater magnification but had a smaller field of view than the Orascoptic. I decided to go with the greater magnification even though DFV was ~$150 more.

You also mentioned that your eyes are bad; I would suggest that you get an eye exam before getting your loupes. I thought I had O.K. vision before dental school but the school MADE us get exams. I was shocked to learn I needed glasses and amazed at the details I was missing without correction.

You'll want to know before ordering whether you are going to wear contacts with them or have the prescription ground in. I had my prescription placed in mine for convenience. (DFV offers one free prescription change over the life of the loupes, so this is not extra.) Overall, I'm very happy with them.

Oh, one more thing. Consider weight when you purchase. My fixed loupes get pretty heavy after 4 hours, I can't imagine what it must feel like to have big clunky flip-ups on all day. Hope some of this helps. 🙂
 
Has anyone ever tried Zeiss 2.5x loupes? they're unfortunately only available in flip-ups
 
www.microsurgeryusa.com They have great zoom loupes. No more set distance! They might not be as good as orascoptic etc. but they are good for the price!


CH
 
obviously you havent done any gold or any indirct techniques, yet, since you are a first year student and about 8 weeks into dentistry, so you really don't need to reply to posts that you are not qualified to answer. I have seen this problem from your posts in many different spots now.


At the lab benches you are not 18" away from your die nor are you looking straight down, so you need more of a 12" distance in some cases less. Also 18" is way to far to look at someone in a chair, it may be alright on a manikin, but again with someone in the chair, unless you are 6'4" or more, that is probably way to much. The standard is 14". Also if you are assisting, zoom loupes are good because you can set them at 25" and see fine just what the work being done is.
 
All three major loupes companies, and most of the students I've spoken to who use them, prominently mention the working distance imposed by loupes as one of the major ergonomic benefits of loupes. 4 months into dental school or not, I'll listen to their credentials until I hear differently from somebody with better ones. Are there occasional exceptions? I don't doubt it. But I'm buying loupes that will be the most useful and the least troublesome the highest frequency of the time.
 
there are obviously both good and bad points to the flip-up design. One advantage is that on the clinic there are circumstances when it is useful to make slight adjustments depending on the type of prep or patient size. Also, there is the option of selling the loupes if for some reason I want to get something else. On the down side, flip-ups are a bit heavier and if I accidentally brush against it while working I might need to waste some time re-adjusting. I have a feeling TTL have a slightly larger field of view just because they are closer to the eye.

Aphistis' point about ergonomics is valid, but my understanding is that the loupes should keep the operator from hunching over; being fixed at 14" is not always better than having the option to go 12-16 (as long as it isn't 5" 🙂 )

However the zeiss models look really nice (functionally and appearance-wise) and if I had money for a second pair I'd get those even though they are not TTL. And I'd get a 4x prismatic model as opposed to a plain galilean.
 
aphistis, man you are one of those types of people that car dealers love. They can tell you anything to sell you a product, and you will thank that they are truthful, but case be, wait until you have some patients under your belt before you go into all the research etc.... Form an opinion on your own, then express it. Don't express an opinion from someone else.


Once you start on people, then you may see what we are talking about. 2" is a lot when your in the chair, and thats about the leadway on loupes. With zoom you can find your comfortable spot rather it be 12, 14, or 16 inches and go with it everytime, no matter what patient you have, no matter if your working on #8 or #1


And not to mention lab work, no lab bench that I have seen is exactly 14 inches away from your eyes. With zooms you don't have to keep picking up the wax to make sure your margins are good, you can keep your loupes on and work at 24" away if need be.
 
Hey Frank Cav, 4x? I had 3.5's prisms, before but got a new set of 2.5's Galilean! I thought 3.5 was a bit too strong, but loved the prisms style! Would you need a light source with the 4's?
 
Originally posted by c132
aphistis, man you are one of those types of people that car dealers love. They can tell you anything to sell you a product, and you will thank that they are truthful, but case be, wait until you have some patients under your belt before you go into all the research etc.... Form an opinion on your own, then express it. Don't express an opinion from someone else.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the complimentary psychological profile. You must believe yourself quite perceptive.

Once you start on people, then you may see what we are talking about. 2" is a lot when your in the chair, and thats about the leadway on loupes. With zoom you can find your comfortable spot rather it be 12, 14, or 16 inches and go with it everytime, no matter what patient you have, no matter if your working on #8 or #1


And not to mention lab work, no lab bench that I have seen is exactly 14 inches away from your eyes. With zooms you don't have to keep picking up the wax to make sure your margins are good, you can keep your loupes on and work at 24" away if need be.
Click to expand...

My earlier sarcasm aside, thanks for this insight. I'll keep it in mind.
 
c132,

I have an Orascoptic headband galilean 2.5x, and it's ok
for most operative procedures but kinda in the way for probing and intraoral exam. I guess I figure for roughly the same price I'd rather be getting more mag. When you said your 3.5s were strong did you mean you got headaches from them? I tested the 4.0 and felt the overhead light was enough... if I got the fiber-optic headlamp I'm afraid I'll go blind 🙂
 
No, the 3.5's were great but since they had so much magnification, the field of view was smaller, and it was harder to see more surrounding teeth. With the prisms, the light isn't that big a deal, i just heard of people adding lights and was wondering about when should you do that! I would love to see a company make a zoom fixed set, that was about 40g instead of the 85 my flips are! They would corner the market!
 
hmm I think lights might be good for someone who does lots of endo, and also for those who are getting old and need more illumination to see the way they did 20 years ago 🙂

The lightest loupes are probably titanium TTL, and the zeiss plastic(?) headmounted galileans. It will be hard to build something that is lightweight and durable, especially since the optics themselves have some weight. I believe my headband style loupes has the advantage of distributing load all around my head instead of concentrated on the bridge of the nose.
 
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