This is description of this part:
Side-travel mechanism complete with specimen holder and spring-loaded specimen clamp for the round rotating XY mechanical microscope stage used on Carl Zeiss microscopes (Oberkochen, West Germany).
These microscope stages were fitted to, among others:
- Zeiss Standard WL / WL 89
- Zeiss Universal
- Zeiss Photomicroscope (PM / Phomi)
- Zeiss Photomicroscope II (PM II / Phomi II)
- Zeiss Photomicroscope III (PM3 RS / Phomi III)
- Zeiss Ultraphot
The round Zeiss stages used on this microscope series incorporate the front-to-back travel mechanism within the main stage body. The side-to-side movement, however, is integrated into the specimen holder assembly itself. That is exactly the stage component presented here.
This is a component of the microscope stage rather than a component dedicated to a particular microscope model. Since this stage can be fitted to many Carl Zeiss microscopes, this specimen holder assembly is likewise compatible with numerous Carl Zeiss models.
This complete assembly consists of the following components:
- side-travel control knob
- internal worm shaft providing lateral movement
- specimen holder with spring-loaded specimen clamp
- the specimen holder is mounted on a carriage travelling along the worm shaft
Important: although this component belongs to a round rotating microscope stage, it is not part of a polarizing stage. It belongs to a standard transmitted-light stage intended for bright-field and dark-field microscopy.
The following dimensions determine compatibility and whether this assembly can be installed on a particular microscope stage:
- spacing of the two side locating pins: 33.5 mm, measured from the outside edge of one pin to the outside edge of the other
- diameter of the locating pins: 2.5 mm each
- centre-to-centre spacing of the locating pins: 31.5 mm
- diameter of the central mounting screw securing the assembly to the stage: 3 mm
- location of the mounting screw: centrally positioned between the locating pins
If the spacing of the locating pins matches, this assembly can also be installed on microscope stages manufactured by other companies.
Individual components of this assembly are frequently damaged. Replacing the complete assembly offered here can solve, among others, the following problems:
- when the side-travel control knob has been broken, bent or otherwise damaged; this is common because the knob protrudes beyond the outline of the microscope stage and is mounted on a relatively slender shaft
- when the mounting screw securing the complete assembly to the stage breaks; this is also common because the assembly projects beyond the flat surface of the stage
- when the worm shaft becomes worn, causing the specimen holder to move unevenly or, in some cases, preventing movement altogether
- when the spring inside the specimen clamp breaks; this is a well-known weakness of this design
The gallery photographs show the exact dimensions of this component. The final photographs additionally show the complete microscope stage from which this specimen holder assembly was removed. An arrow indicates the exact stage component being offered, making visual compatibility easy to verify. The accompanying video also demonstrates the operation of the spring-loaded specimen clamp.
What is this part needed for?
- if you have a stage that is missing the specimen holder
- if you want to install this holder on a stage in a microscope from another manufacturer
