They are the kind of device that either stand anywhere in the lab, or else cannot be obtained anywhere. Provided they are halfway maintained, these very solidly designed manipulators should work fine for another 30 years. These electrical manipulators combine a minimum of drift with the possibility to store, and therefore quickly find, different pipette positions. This can also lead to satisfying results, provided the manipulators are properly maintained. But even with a lot of experience, bringing a drug application pipette in place cannot be as fast as with a microprocessor-controlled device.
Vibration isolation is achieved with inflatable tubes of the size used for wheelbarrows.
Sheets of cardboard or thick paper separate the tubes from the concrete plate and the table the entire construction rests on, respectively, which prolongs their lifetime considerably. Nevertheless, they must occasionally be replaced. So it is not a bad idea to put small wooden blocks under the corners of the concrete plate. So have a few spare tubes ready, they are hard to get in the late afternoon, right during the recording of the week. Optics Patch clamp recordings on cultured cells require an inverted microscope.