Does the cuckoo pop out of the little yellow door?!  

Well it works, even when using a makeshift phototube. I haven't cleared a space for the unit yet so I used a 5 MP CCD for this shot (5 image focus stack) as the 20 MP one was mounted to something else, and so it is well short of the resolution that it would normally deliver and the CCD will not be perfectly on axis either. This is an image of a tropical seedpod at the lowest magnification available (the distance between the 'eyes' is about 5 mm). I have included a picture of the setup for scale.




Setup.

That is mad Pete

- in a very good way

A different world at such magnification

The three pedals I've been waiting for from Andertons are now in stock, and are being delivered tomorrow morning.  That leaves one pedal to arrive, one pedal still to purchase - (yes, I know) but if, and only if, I see it decently discounted or can pick up a used model - and the 10 x 15cm patch cords I'm having made up to link the pedals on the board.  Then I can actually start velcro-ing stuff and physically building my board. The pedal I still want to add isn't crucial, and it'll be the last pedal in the chain.

There is light at the end of the tunnel, and for once it doesn't appear to be a train.

Smooth!

That's pretty much the whole idea, John.  It's almost a last throw of the dice for me as I've got Arthritis in both hands now and I'm trying to figure out a way I can still make music. My idea is to let the instrument, the pedals, and the studio, do more of the work.  I want to be able to almost "sculpt" the sounds.  If it doesn't work then I know it really is time to start selling my gear.

Anyway, getting this thread back on track, my final pedal arrived a few minutes ago, so all I'm waiting for now is the patch leads I'm having made - Van Damme "PRO GRADE" cable + Rean 6.35mm "pancake" plugs.  I went for uniformity rather than a Rainbow Nation look, so they're all orange. 

A new addition to the M420 setup.

Although the Relio units work very well with the M420, in the UK I usually use fibre-optic lamps with the Tessovar to minimise heat input. While looking for a set of large polarisers I stumbled upon a fibre-optic ring light with two polarisers that was perfect for the job (they should arrive on Monday): the ring-light will fit the M420 also. And so of course I needed to buy a fibre-optic generator to go with it!

Anyway, here is the M420 setup plus a fibre-optic illuminator (normally I would place it to the rear and position one head to each side, but this suited what I was looking at and saved me having to move the microscope / printer (the M420 still hasn't found a proper home). As you can see, the unit is a Leica ML2500 LCD and has a 'calibrated' colour temperature output selected by the click-stops on the intensity control (left hand knob): I have not yet checked it with a meter, but it seems about right. The right hand knob also controls light output, but using aperture plates and so does not shift the colour temperature once it is set. There is also a filter wheel recessed into the right hand side of the casing that can be populated with coloured filters (there are none in it) for special effects, fluorescence excitation etc (maybe IR too, I'll have to have a look). It uses a 24V 250W halogen lamp and so has a cooling fan in it so it is not silent, but not especially noisy either.

Although badged as a Leica unit (and no doubt specified by them too), it is made by Schott and the fibre optic heads are interchangeable and use a standard bayonet in common with other Schott units and come as single and multiple swan necks (as here) which can be fitted with focusing heads etc, fully flexible heads, ring lights, dark-field illuminators etc.