I've purchased 2 used Bauche and Lombe Stereo Microscopes over Ebay.
Leica are the same microscopes with a light source. Even 20 years
old the units are clear.
Since I don't know what cheap means to you, I paid $400 USD for
these units. Shipping is always a pain, as they need to packaged
well and if they come with a base and boom setup, they weigh more.
These are the same stereo zoom microscopes that I've used in
industry since the 1970's.
There are litterally hundreds of stereo zoom microscopes on Ebay.
Many are brand new.
Hope that helps.
Mike
--- In
Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "derekhawkins" <eldata@m...>
wrote:
>
> Need one of these for fine pitch SMD work. The microscopy groups
have
> deemed just about all made in China to be crap unless they are
Zeiss,
> Olympus, Nikon or Lieca brands. Are there any favorable opinions
on
> cheap Chinese no-name brands used for SMD work?
>