[3dem] Subangstrom AutoGrid clipping station

[Patricia Grob]

Hi James,

We had a similar experience with it. We wanted an alternative to the ThermoFisher station and we tested the SubAnstrom station the last couple of months. We don’t have a lot of experience with it yet, so it could be part of the issue, but so far the ring/grids tend to move out of position during clipping under liquid nitrogen. We also tend to lose a bit more C-clips with the clipping tools.

Maybe the design can be slightly modified?

Patricia

_______________________________
Patricia Grob, Ph.D.
Research Specialist
Nogales Lab
HHMI at UC Berkeley
Molecular & Cell Biology Department / QB3,
Stanley Hall #742
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA 94720-3220
Phone: (510)666-3335	Fax: (510)666-3336
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URL: cryoem.berkeley.edu
Email: pgrob at berkeley.edu




> On Jul 7, 2021, at 1:41 PM, Thomas Cleveland <thomas.cleveland at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Hi James,
> 
> We tried this. I really wanted to like it, and maybe if I had kept trying I eventually would have gotten used to it, but I didn't care for it. The hole that the clip and grid fit into was too small to see into easily (you can only look top-down or through a narrow channel, so your depth perception is lacking), so I found it very difficult to tell if the ring and grid were seated/centered correctly before applying the C-clip. In addition, the dimple that the ring fits into is very shallow, so it's also hard to seat the ring just by feel.
> 
> The clip area of the Thermo clipping station is wide open so you can see much better. Only after the ring/grid are seated do you then rotate a metal plate with a guide hole over the grid, through which you apply the clip. I actually didn't realize the reason for the FEI/Thermo design until I tried the SubAngstrom clipping station. Then it became quite obvious why you would want the guide hole to rotate into place *after* the fact, and be out of the way while you are trying to center the grid!
> 
> As an aside, it's important to note that the SubAngstrom clipping tools ONLY work on this SubAngstrom clipping station. They are a lot cheaper and we thought we would save some money by getting them, but they don't work on the Thermo clipping station. The SubAngstrom tool seems to fit in the Thermo clipping station OK, but something is different about the tip and they release the C-clip too early, so it doesn't get into the ring.
> 
> Tom
> 
> On Wed, Jul 7, 2021 at 2:23 PM James Streetley <James.Streetley at glasgow.ac.uk <mailto:James.Streetley at glasgow.ac.uk>> wrote:
> Dear all,
> 
> I’m wondering if anyone could share any experience on the Subangstrom grid clipping station: https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__subangstrom.com_Sample-2DPreparation-3Fproduct-5Fid-3D102&d=DwIFaQ&c=-35OiAkTchMrZOngvJPOeA&r=L7-zyQ-04fFCMRqzLIOnx7H0exGZHwIQe_wMPuY600I&m=kyZtKaoLiJk5g3s6D-rsA9icUEa9C8xNQ5-onLuRMgU&s=Qky5xXTHChwl6nsn0VK6fq4MaWzbpjT9qgaRnrxCfDQ&e=  <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__subangstrom.com_Sample-2DPreparation-3Fproduct-5Fid-3D102&d=DwMGaQ&c=-35OiAkTchMrZOngvJPOeA&r=L7-zyQ-04fFCMRqzLIOnx7H0exGZHwIQe_wMPuY600I&m=_XdOBEqKoE38GQtuoibTbbjduZEvgpqZDgUdqVggqrI&s=a3ZpLCpUGbLZxu07Xk9htywFIppKsWLwZnv9u7P-3Sk&e=>
> 
> As a facility with JEOL instruments, we have no experience with AutoGrids yet and no existing clipping station, but JEOL have produced adaptors for AutoGrids in their CRYO ARM series which we are interested in so will soon need a way of clipping grids.
> 
> Are many labs using the Subangstrom version or sticking with the original Thermo version? Any experience or advice gratefully received!
> 
> Thanks,
> James
> 
> Dr James Streetley
> 
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