Internet Modeler : New Releases : Tools RSS News Feed

Light Craft Standard Headband Magnifier Kit

By Matt Bittner

To be truthful, when I was offered to review the Light Craft Standard Headband Magnifier Kit to review I was a little reluctant. I recently received a Bausch & Lomb headband magnifier for last Christmas and really didn't think how that could be improved upon. I've had no problems with it at all.

So, I decided to give the Light Craft magnifier a chance. You'll notice that not only does it come with four separate magnification lenses, but it also has a built-in light. That definitely intriqued me.

When I first received the Light Craft headband I tried all four lenses (it comes with 1.2x, 1.8x, 2.5x and 3.5x). 3.5x was actually difficult to focus with, while 1.2x and 1.8x only enhanced everything "a little". So, the 2.5x was the lens for me. Ironically (yeah, right) it's the same lens I have mounted in my Bausch and Lomb. Hey, you never know.

The next round of modeling I did I used both the Bausch & Lomb and the Light Craft magnifiers, comparing as I went along. While the Bausch & Lomb is still a great magnifier, for some reason the Light Craft was a little "crisper", if that makes sense. I believe it's because of the distance of the lens to my eyes. The Light Craft headband has two "settings" where you can place the lens - closer or farther to the eyes. I chose the farther one "not knowing", and it worked well.

Can you put muliple lenses on the Light Craft and have it work? To be truthful I haven't tried as 2.5x is perfect for me. I suspect you could, but one of them would have to be a thinner lens, since there's only a few millimeter separating the two lens locations.

Okay, how about the light. If you're like me and have your workbench very well lit, there's not much the light is going to do for you. If you have a complex curve (maybe the inside of a fuselage) where your workbench light just isn't reaching it would work. But if it's on a flat-ish surface the light will do little good. However, if you find you're working in an area without the same well lit area of your workbench - say at a contest, where you're trying to glue something back on that fell off during transit - then the light will work to its best advantage. The light uses a "peanut bulb" and two AA batteries. The kit comes with a rubber tube to help loosen and tighten the bulb (a must when you get it out of the package - trust me) so don't lose it. My suggestion is to put the rubber tube in the same box the lenses are in. That way you don't lose it.

Not only does the visor push up, out of the way, but the lens also flips away from the face. Adjustment to the head is easy. Tightening the visor to the headband is also easy with the two screws on the side of the headband.

Conclusion

Do I recommend the Light Craft Standard Headband Magnifier Kit? Definitely! For me personally it works better than the Bausch & Lomb I currently have. Having the added light is a bonus especially trying to see in a complex curve.

My thanks to Billing Boats USA for sending the magnifier to review.