Quest for good fine-tipped forceps - completed.

Have questions about the equipment used for macro- or micro- photography? Post those questions in this forum.

Moderators: rjlittlefield, ChrisR, Chris S., Pau

GaryB
Posts: 521
Joined: Fri Jul 29, 2016 12:18 pm

Post by GaryB »

I got a set of the Vetus ESD's, they're pretty good for the 8 or 9 bucks I paid for a set of 6 on Amazon. I have to say they're very nice quality, I wasn't expecting much for the low price but I was pleasantly surprised at the accuracy.

mjkzz
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Location: California/Shenzhen
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Post by mjkzz »

got a set, I can use them to pick up some fine hair, the best, thanks.

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ray_parkhurst
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Location: Santa Clara, CA, USA
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Post by ray_parkhurst »

I've tried many brands and styles of tweezer/forceps and have never found a pair that met my needs for various microelectronic purposes. I always end up spending an hour with sharpening stones and fine sandpapers to sharpen and shape them to my satisfaction. I highly recommend learning to do it yourself, epecially since they do wear and need to be reconditioned, and it's much cheaper to sharpen and shape than to buy a new pair.

ChrisR
Site Admin
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Post by ChrisR »

It never occurred to me that people didn't grind their tweezers. A very fine natural stone [edit] and a jeweller's loupe, live with my small tools collection. Along with screwdriver reshaping tools.
I recently learned how stressful experiences teach our intuition, which is passed down through DNA - epigenetics. After a couple of generations of watchmakers, the sight of a frail screw makes me reach for the fine stone, and a stock of tuned screwdrivers!
Last edited by ChrisR on Sun Mar 12, 2017 2:42 am, edited 1 time in total.
Chris R

Beatsy
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Location: Malvern, UK

Post by Beatsy »

Yes - I always "dress" the tips of my forceps too. Worth noting that you need to proceed slowly and gently with fine emery paper or whetstone on these super fine tips. It doesn't take long to grind away quite a proportion off the end - even if they are titanium. A good loupe, or even a stereo are your friends here. I always aim to leave as much meat as practical at the tip, only narrowing down to a fine point in one plane (if needed) but keeping the tip as thick as possible in the "squeezing direction". Too needle-pointed and the tips can gradually splay open when picking up hard stuff (sand, microfossils etc).

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