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Which Borescope to buy?

brianwallis

brianwallis

VAF moderator
Greetings, I hope this message finds everyone well. I'm getting in pretty deep with engine work and doing well enough that I need to buy a decent borescope instead of borrowing one. I need one where I can capture pics or also video if possible. I'm on a pretty strict budget. I saw one at Sun'n'Fun from Avery that looked pretty good. In researching the forums, I saw some REALLY nice GE scope photos but it looks like that was 40k. That's about 39.5k or so out of my range :). I would like the ability to put a 90 deg mirror on the tip, it also needs to fit down a spark plug hole as well. I would appreciate any and all suggestions. Brian P Wallis at hot mail is the best contact or PM. No spaces or caps.
So far, the Seeker 400 Wireless borescope seems like it might fit the bill.
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/wirelessvideo400.php

Best
Brian Wallis
 
Last edited:
drat...

Well... The General Brand Seeker 400 Wireless borescope will not fit through a spark plug hole. On to something smaller....

Best
Brian
 
Lenox Autoscope has been a standard for years

I've been wanting my own for a number of years now.

The Lenox unit has been a standard that many know and love.....but at a kilobuck retail its not cheap. It has excellent lighting and can easily inspect valves and such. The really large shops use video/photo units that were designed for dental use, but they are very pricey.

I've been dragging my feet on this the last two years waiting for some better technology using cameras and the like. I've heard good thiings about the Snap-on video unit but have nt used it myself.

In my skywagon group (continentals have more top end issues) there was enough interest a couple years ago to do a group buy on the Lenox unit, got 10% off. I have contact info if enough people are interested, but also looking for newer technology.

Tim
 
I tried a friend's Snap-On this past week and was not impressed. Once in the cylinder, there was very limited movement possible. The mirror that comes with it did little to help. YMMV, but I wouldn't buy one of those.
 
brian, did a search for borescope and came up with your post. have you had any luck finding a reasonably priced unit? it would be nice to get a good look in there once in a while.
 
Borescope

Continental recommends a Lennox Autoscope in their SB03-3 Cylinder inspection procedures. As noted above it is about a $1K (10% discount to Continental customers), but too expensive for me right now. This is a short rigid scope.

I borrowed a friend's flexible borescope (not an Autoscope) to have a look inside my O-200 and I COULDN'T SEE ANYTHING (although I could get a good close up on the outside of the engine).

So the key to a good borescope seems to be:
1. A good light source. If the light in the scope is not adequate try a small flashlight in the lower plug hole.
2. High fiber optic count. This gives better resolution.
 
Rigid scopes are better than flex as they don't use fibers, they are filled with glass with ground lenses on each end and transmit light much better than a flex scope with less distortion. So unless you need a flex scope go with the largest diameter shortest rigid you can use and a good light source. Only bad thing about a rigid scope is if you drop it you'll be sending it in for repair!
 
Thanks Walt. Didn't know that. All I have ever seen in action is the flex and I always thought....ya know, shouldn't this picture be better? I'll head the other direction.
 
rigid scope

Walt said:
Rigid scopes are better than flex as they don't use fibers, they are filled with glass with ground lenses on each end and transmit light much better than a flex scope with less distortion. So unless you need a flex scope go with the largest diameter shortest rigid you can use and a good light source. Only bad thing about a rigid scope is if you drop it you'll be sending it in for repair!
Click to expand...

Also, the led light on the lens end is variable. Very close detail viewing does not require 100% illumination. This feature is effective for close up inspection.
 
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