but why

Same 😂

Never heard of that before.. a couple mins should do the job

NO. duh

What's a better guide or source for beginners? Reading the several comments here got me scared.

@@diatomsaus So I haven't checked out any histo videos on youtube in forever because there just wasn't anything good but that could have changed by now. The best way to learn is to watch experienced people that you work with and ask questions. Honestly microtomy is about practice and muscle memory. if you are having specific issues check out ihcworld.com's troubleshooting guide. Just google microtome sectioning troubleshooting.

@@towens1168 Oh wow, thanks for the information! I didn't expect a response on a 2-year-old comment. Nice suggestions there. The lab I work at doesn't deal with sectioning at all, there's a biology one that I don't have access to, they do all the sectioning. I guess I'll try and somehow wiggle in to learn stuff. I'm looking to grow my personal "lab" for microscopy imaging rather than anything professional. Sometimes, these manual microtomes pop up on flea market sites at alright prices.

@@diatomsaus Yeah no problem. So if you're going to be using already prepared blocks that might work. You will still need to buy the chemicals to H&E stain the slides at the very least. I don't think Hematoxylin or Eosin are controlled chemicals so you should be able to get some if you want (I could be wrong about that never looked them up). If you want to prepare your own blocks that gets much more complicated. You need to fix the tissue first and then process it and then you need to be able to embed it. I imagine that could all be done without a processor or an embedding station but it would be a pain at best. Processing takes anywhere from a few hours to overnight. Honestly there's a lot of work and money (and skill) that goes into making a slide. If the imaging is what you're really interested in you might be better off just buying slides.

@@towens1168 Yeah, at the moment I have a big collection of slides. Some vintage, some from preparers such as Klaus Kemp who deals with diatoms, recently (sadly) retired. Out of all the Chinese ones I've tried, I found one university ran company that offers great quality at prices that are a lot higher (similar prices to western companies), but quality is what I'm after so it's fine. Generally, Carolina(dot)com offers exceptional slides to anyone who wants to buy prepared ones, their shipping costs isn't bad either. I've already spent enough money on all the microscope stuff. I've decided to forget about making my own slides unless I get the chances to do so at work (our labs have pretty liberal policies, we can visit for our own projects luckily). A microtome is anywhere from $500-$1000+ with blades being another expensive disposable, along with all the staining chemicals and issues with dust/fibres which sort of warrants a benchtop clean-room assembly cabinet... it's an endless hole. Either way, thanks for your insight!

Please go and do your own video, I'm curious and want to learn

if you do that though now days you will be called slow ext ext

Ik it's been 5years but how has things been for you

I do put the blocks while trimming in ice water when its hot, it prevents from "melting" a bit

@@melaniee467 how to trim...?

It's fixed, chill...

If anything, wear gloves so you don't contaminate your sections but only a few cowboys use their fingers in the water bath

He is handling fixed, dehydrated, xylene-treated, embedded blocks. He is not handling blood or fresh tissues in the video. Stop the safety paranoia.

I have been taught to keep blocks on ice after trimming. Sections just fall off at 4microns