Dear Confocal List--
    Thanks very much to all of you for helping me out--I think I can now
make avery strong statement that they are not cheap... Here is a brief
summary in case anyone else was curious.
 
1.  Zeiss LSM 310 confocal microscopte with a SiliconGraphics work station
for image analysis.  About 4 years ago the purcase price was approximately
$350,000 in US funds!!  And you spend around $20,000 per year in service
contracts.
 
2.  The microscope itself is likely to be close to $40,000 Canadian
(assuming $1.30 Canadian to the US dollar). My guess is that you are
looking at closer to $150,000 - $200,000 Canadian depending on laser(s)
and computers.
 
3.  With a little cut-'n-paste of components, I believe you can get under
$50K, of which about 30 is for the optics train.
 
4. I sure would like to know the company that makes a true confocal for
under $50K!!!!!
 
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        Kimberly A. Dwyer, M.S.         Clinical Mechanics Group
        [log in to unmask]             Mechanical Engineering
        http://conn.me.queensu.ca/dwyer/dwyer.htm
                Queen's University, Kingston, Canada
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