What is a dissecting microscope?

A dissecting microscope is often called a stereo microscope, or sometimes just referred to as a stereoscope. Their name originates from their typical use in a science laboratory for dissecting animal specimens.  However, most of their actual applications are for something totally different than dissection.  Aside, from using the dissection microscope in a classroom environment for dissecting animals, the instrument can be used for applications such as coin and stamp collecting, inspection of small manufactured components, looking at nature items from a field trip, circuit board repair, cellphone repair, gemstone grading, and identification of insects in the entomology field. They can also be used for identifying botanical specimens.

There are different types of dissection microscopes. Most of the cheaper versions are just binocular, with two eye pieces. Some of the other high grade versions have a top trinocular port for attaching camera and video equipment. The cheaper ones also have fixed magnification, while the more expensive ones have a zoom feature allowing continuously variable magnification over the complete zoom range.  Different zoom objectives give different ranges of zoom, with the higher ranges costing more.  Whatever your application is for a dissecting microscope, please contact us so that we may assist you with your search and selection of this type of stereo microscope.