Mastering the Olympus SZX: Disassembly and Assembly

Read the Edited Video Transcript for ‘Mastering the Olympus SZX: Disassembly and Assembly’

Hi, this is Chad with Munday Scientific. Today we’re going to talk about another very popular microscope — the Olympus SCX. This particular model is the SCX12, but the principles we cover here apply across all SCX models: SCX7, SCX12, SCX9, SCX16, SCX10, and so on. They’re all very similar.

We’ll start from the top, and as usual, Mike’s going to come in to help demonstrate.

This microscope is equipped with a triocular head. One feature many people don’t know about is that your 3 mm Allen wrench is usually stored right here, in the top of the post — if it’s an Olympus stand. If it’s not, we recommend picking up a set of Wiha metric wrenches, which include just about everything you need to work on a microscope. You can also find suitable metric tools at Lowe’s or Home Depot.

Now, let’s talk about the camera adapter — it mounts and removes from the right side. Sometimes there’s a dust cap here if no adapter is installed. The microscope may also come with a standard fixed binocular head or a tilting/adjustable head, depending on your stereo microscope configuration.

Eyepieces & Head Removal

This microscope includes focusable eyepieces, and we’ll go over more details on that later.

To remove the head, locate this screw hole right here. I recommend opening the interpupillary distance all the way to get a good grip on the head. Then, you can simply unscrew and lift it off.

Objective & Focus Mechanism

This microscope features a dual objective turret. The zoom magnification control is here. It also has both coarse and fine focus knobs — coarse on one side, fine on the other.

If your microscope is drifting, meaning the head slowly moves down on its own, it could be due to the
tension ring. Use a small wrench or screwdriver in this rear hole to tighten the tension by turning it toward the wall.

As mentioned, the dual objective turret allows you to screw off the objectives. Always hold them with
two hands — one underneath to catch the objective as it unthreads, and the other to twist.

Continue with ‘Mastering the Olympus SZX: Disassembly and Assembly’

To remove the pod, first take off this large black knob at the back, then slide it off the post. If you need to remove the pod from the focus mechanism, you’ll typically loosen this screw here (sometimes hidden behind a white cap) with a 3 mm or 4 mm Allen wrench.

However, because this unit has a dual objective turret, the usual method won’t work. Instead, you’ll need to:

1. Rotate the turret off-center.
2. Loosen all three 2.5 mm screws holding it in place.
3. Once removed, you can access and loosen this collar to slide off the pod.

If your microscope doesn’t have a dual objective turret, a single port adapter would be in place instead. You must have one or the other to use the microscope.

Base & Lighting

This model includes an illuminated base. Controls include:

• A rheostat for brightness adjustment.
• An on/off switch.
• A mirror below the stage for light redirection.

Some microscopes might also feature:

• A slider for brightfield/darkfield.
• An oblique lighting base with a front knob.

If you ever need to replace the bulb:

1. Unplug the microscope.
2. Loosen the lamp housing.
3. Replace the bulb (6V, 30W).

If changing the bulb doesn’t fix the issue, the lamp house may need to be replaced. We’ll provide a link to purchase a replacement in the video description.

Adjusting the Post

If you’re not getting enough working distance (depending on your objective), you might need a longer post. To replace the post:

1. Remove the lamp house.
2. Use a 3 mm wrench to back off the two screws.

In this case, someone glued the post in, so it’s stuck — but under normal conditions, it should slide out easily.

Reassembly

To reassemble:

1. Insert and tighten the screws for the post.
2. Reinstall the lamp house.
3. Slide on the focus mount, tighten the knob.
4. If using dual focus, attach the pod as shown.
5. Install the objective lens.
6. Finally, reattach the head — align the silver notch on the head with the notch on the body, hold it securely, tighten it, and give it a gentle wiggle to ensure it’s firmly seated.

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That’s everything you need to know about the Olympus SCX microscopes. They’re all quite similar, and they make excellent stereo microscopes.

This particular unit will be completely refurbished and ready to ship.

If you have any questions, feel free to email us at:
📧  or mundaymicroscope.com

If you’re interested in purchasing this or any other stereoscope, check out our e-commerce site:
🛒 microscopemarketplace.com

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