Leica Biosystems SM2500 - Manual (Page 11)

11 Leica SM2500
2. Safety
Safety instructions:
Operating the instrument
The instrument may only be operated
by skilled laboratory personnel. It may
only be used for the designated appli-
cation and operated in accordance
with the instructions contained in this
manual!
Before mounting the knife holder make
sure the bearing blocks of the micro-
tome supporting the knife holder are
clean.
Carefully place the preassembled
knife holder onto the microtome bear-
ing blocks from above. Do not slide the
knife holder onto the bearings to pre-
vent the bearing surface from getting
scratched.
Handle microtome knives and blades
with utmost care. Knife and blade
edges are extremely sharp and can
cause severe injuries!
Wear cut-resistant safety gloves when
inserting/removing the knife (see also
chapter 8.1 ‘Additional accessories’).
Prior to inserting the knife, always
tighten one of the knife clamping
screws of the knife holder to secure
the knife holder in position!
Make sure not to misalign the knife
when tightening the knife clamping
screws as this will negatively affect
sectioning results!
Never leave knives/disposable blades
or knife holders with a knife/dispos-
able blade inserted lying around!
Always store knives in the knife case
when not in use!
Never place a knife on a bench with
the edge facing upwards!
Never try to catch a falling knife or
disposable blade!
Always clamp the specimen first and
the knife second!
Always wear protective glasses when
sectioning brittle specimens! - Risk of
splintering!
No liquids may enter the interior of the
instrument during operation!
Always cover the knife edge with the
knife guard during work breaks!
Always remove the knife from the
knife holder when finishing work!
When working with the eccentric ring,
NEVER try to orient the specimen - this
will cause severe damage to the
specimen orientation mechanism!
When knife holder A or C is combined
with the declination blocks, the knife
guard cannot be placed over the knife
edge. Therefore, use extreme caution
when working with this configuration
- wear cut-resistant gloves!