Jewellers loupes and Magnifying glasses

[GROOVIE COINS 17]

Hello all

In the past I've either used magnifying glasses or the macro lenses that you attached to your cellphone which magnifies the image. 

I've been thinking of getting a proper jewellers loupe for a long time, but there are so many to choose from with different magnifications.

I know the standard for coins is a loupe with 5times magnification when it comes to the Sheldon scale. 

Would it be advisable to stick to a 5x loupe or would a 30 or even 40 times loupe do the job? Is more is always better? My thoughts are with a 10X or greater loupe that imperfections would be visible that would be passed over by a 5 times loupe which could lead miss-identification when it comes to me learning or determining coin grades. Also I would think the focal point of different loupes would differ, which could mean needing to hold the coin closer to the the lense which could in turn leave room for accidental touching.

Any thoughts?

regards Robert

[jwither 17]

The one I currently have is either 5X or 10X though the light burned out long ago.  It is sufficient if you are trying to evaluate coins as NGC or PCGS do.  I have never heard that 30X or 40X is necessary or even useful.  

[GROOVIE COINS 17]

13 hours ago, jwither said:

The one I currently have is either 5X or 10X though the light burned out long ago.  It is sufficient if you are trying to evaluate coins as NGC or PCGS do.  I have never heard that 30X or 40X is necessary or even useful.  

Thank you, I see the larger magnifications are common on the market down here. I think I will avoid them and stick to the standard then.

regards Robert