How to prepare UF/UA stain solution (0.75%):

1. Weigh out 37.5mg uranyl formate
2. Heat 5mL water to a boil and then place into a tiny beaker with stir bar
3. Add uranyl formate to beaker + water and stir for 5 min in the dark
4. Add ~10uL 5N NaOH and stir for another 5 min in the dark.  For this step, be very careful to watch for precipitation.  The color should turn a bright yellow, but you don't want to see any precipitation.  If you do, you've added too much NaOH.  Scrap your solution and repeat steps 1-3, adding less NaOH at step 4.
5. Filter solution through 0.5um filter (any size filter is probably fine - we just want to get big chunks out)
6. Wait for it to cool before use.  Hot stain may not work as intended.
7. Keep the stain covered to avoid exposure to light.
8. If you want to freeze tiny aliquots for later use, flash freeze (using LN2) in small eppendorf tubes and place in the -80

How to stain grids:

1. Glow discharge your grids with the carbon face up (30 sec, ~15mA, exact numbers not super important)
2. Apply 2-3uL of sample at 0.1-0.005mg/mL to carbon face of grid (good idea to do a range of concentrations if this is the first time looking at the sample).
3. Let sample incubate on grid for 30 sec
4. Blot off sample
5. Apply buffer or water to carbon face of grid and aspirate off.  Repeat a second time
6. Apply stain solution to carbon face of grid and aspirate off.
7. Apply stain solution to carbon face of grid a second time and wait 30 sec.  Then aspirate off.
8. Grids are now ready to image on the microscope.  They may need a few minutes to dry before going into the column.