Which Optivisor Do You Use?

[Mungo]

I'm trying to determine which lense power to get, and was wondering if anyone uses these. If so, which lense do you have? I realize this is very subjective, but if there is a consensus, then I'll go with that. Thanks.

[BigJake]

Mungo,

Mine are 4x and that's about right for me for carving, gunstock checkering. etc. Mine came from Enco about 20 years ago so I don't know if they still carry them.

[camano ridge]

I willbe down in the shop later this evening I don't remember the brand on mie I think I got themat Woodcrafters and they came with interchangable lenses I think 3 or 4 different lenses.

[CTaylorJr]

No name brand with a 3.5x magnification. Works pretty good, but not as crisp as the actual Optivisor I wear at my father's.

[Not Awl Together]

My Optivisor has a 3x lens, seems to be about right when I need it. I wear tri-focal glasses to correct for being farsighted so your needs may differ.

[jfdavis58]

This is a question I faced at one point. I do a variety of hand-crafts and already wear bifocals so which power is best? I had a cheap visor from I don't know where so... Lucky for me there is a lot of hand crafting in my area and people are generally open to letting you try things if you show a respectful interest. In the end I went to a place called Rio Grande (Jewelry Supply) and bought the whole kit: visor, 2,3,4,5,7 &10X, loupe (forget the magnification-but I bought an extra to use both eyes) and a relatively hard plastic case to store everything. There is also a battery powered light. Seemed pricy at the time ($200+a little), but totally indispensable now. I use the 2X and 3X for all kinds of normal distance work including carving and tooling leather. They work pretty good when the work is 14-18 inches from my face with a depth of field that keeps tools scattered around the work area in discernible clarity. By the time you cycle to the 10X the depth of field is about 1/4 inch and the focal distance is 2-3 inches from the eye; but I can see small nicks and tarnish on blade edges! I use the loupe the least but I just checked the instruction sheet for X. It's 2.5 times more magnification. Rio Grande ships fast and the cost is reasonable.