Loupe Recommendation

Personally, I am a huge fan of the Eschenbach 3x6x9x loupes. It has two lenses, a 3x and 6x, which combine to make a 9x, which is enough for what I need. Unfortunately, it is prohibitively expensive since it retails for around $100 new. I managed to get a great deal on one from a dealer friend of mine who had an extra. The Bausch and Lomb line of loupes are all pretty nice, and if I remember correctly they have a similar 3x4x7x loupe, although the difference in quality is quite astounding.

What I use is rather unconventional, but I found it works great when visiting shops. I use a Peak 8X loupe. I uses 2 lenses and gives me less eyestrain than those tiny folding loupes. Retails around $30.

If you go on e-bay and search for "loupe" you'll find a lot for under $10. If your eyes are good, you can pretty much get any one of them. I like the metallic "jewelers" loops that swing out.

Ideally you'd get one that had two lenses that you could combine - maybe a 2x and a 4x or 5x.

Basically, if you're going to spend bucks (more than $25) on a loupe, I wouldn't get one online - I'd wait for a coin show or visit a few coin shops. But if you need one now, just buy a cheap one online - they work ok.