MarriolaV,
I'll take your word on the MIC 10 probe options; I guess I have only ever used the standard probe, not purchased one. The key limitation of Microdur is extraneous vibrations from the workpiece influencing the ultrasonic probe. Small boiler tubes and thin shells are problematic.
In the actual Vickers world there is little difference between 5kg and 10kg if you just want to know bulk hardness. Both make too large an indent to capture hardness of small or narrow features such as a heat-affected zone in welded ferritic steels. In the laboratory a 500g or 1kg load is almost universally used for weld evaluations.
Practically, with the MIC 10 in the field I have found that 320 grit is more than adequate for the normal range of constructional steels. However, if I have difficulty delineating the HAZ clearly I will go one or two steps further, but nothing approaching a mirror finish. There is no hard and fast rule, other than etch it and see after each stage.
"Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but they are not entitled to their own facts."