Chainsaw Repair
Chain - Grinders - Filing - Wood Milling - Tools - Welding - Machinist - Mowers - Tillers => Tool Shed => Topic started by: brokenbudget on April 19, 2013, 08:29:43 pm
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so i've been using this mitutoyo caliper for quite some time. like it alot, had it for years. the only issue i have with it is it doesn't have a metric dial. everything i measure needs to be converted from inches to mm's. takes too much time.
(http://i36.tinypic.com/4q3b6u.jpg)
so i decided to order me a new digital caliper. didn't want one of the flimsy box store units. never liked how they 'feel'. at work we use either mitutoyo or fowler. have lots of them. some are worth $600-$700 bux, but can't for the life of me bring myself to poping that much for a caliper. it's just a caliper fer crying oot lowd! so i ordered up this one. we have one in my areas tool crib. works well, very accurate, and tough. and one of the cheapest in the plant. local tool shop wanted $119+tax, no way still too much. http://www.globalindustrial.ca/p/tools/test-measurement/calipers-dial/fowler-6-inch-150mm-xtra-value-cal-electronic-caliper
what's everybody else using for calipers? c'mon you're sitting at home bored and want to do something. might as well throw some pics up :)
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I'm cheap bass, so I got 2 sets of metal digital that do both with a click of a button.
Both of mine look like that fowler one in link, but with black instead of blue.
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I have an old B&S English dial set that I've had for 40 years and I have a 23 year old Mitutoyo digital metric and English 6" set that I have had for 23 years. I had a older Mitutoyo digital set for several years before that.
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the mitutoyo calipers are some good stuff. good solid feel.
cut: i've have some friends that went out and bought the cheap stuff from places like tsc store, canadian tire and even princess auto (like your harbor freight, but better ;D) and even the "good" name brand 'pro-point' can't get a caliper right. i guess i'm just spoiled :) i don't like the feel of a caliper that you can take the slide and move it in the slot any amount. my mitutoyo is almost 40 years old, was used on one of my dads daily jobs alot before i stole it from him and it's still as solid as the day it was new. other than the dial glass (yeah it's actualy glass) being a little scuffed, it's in good shape. i wanted to buy a new mitu, but for what it's going to be used for, i couldn't justify $100 plus. the fowlers feel good, nice and solid. not filimsy. i hate flimsy feeling tools. esspecialy a "precission' measurment tool.
besides that. i'll be bringing the printed copy of my order to work on monday to show the tool ordering guy and my super to show them how much 'ottawa fastener center' is gouging us for tools.
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I always thought the Fowler's were a good value.
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I've got a set of Mitutoyo's about like those pictured . They're okay for some things but I prefer micrometers to get a truely accurate measurement or at least I trust it to be more accurate .
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oh yes i use more accurate tools for proper measurement. but is't nice to have a caliper that's as close as posible.
and one that converts to millimeters.
however they do make digi mics.... :)
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With me it's kinda like teaching an old dog a new trick .I suppose I might have been 12-13 years old when my father who was a tool and die maker early on showed my how to read a set of mics and I've stuck with the old school stuff ever since .Fact my 0 to 1 Starrets once belonged to my great grandfather which my father had carbide tips installed on some time in the late 40's early 50's .Still dead accurate after all these years which at this time is over 100 because great grand dad came from England in the 1890's with the mics in hand or rather in a chest of tools . Many of which I now own .
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I have a dial caliber I cant remember where it came from. Al did you happen to give me this?
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With me it's kinda like teaching an old dog a new trick .I suppose I might have been 12-13 years old when my father who was a tool and die maker early on showed my how to read a set of mics and I've stuck with the old school stuff ever since .Fact my 0 to 1 Starrets once belonged to my great grandfather which my father had carbide tips installed on some time in the late 40's early 50's .Still dead accurate after all these years which at this time is over 100 because great grand dad came from England in the 1890's with the mics in hand or rather in a chest of tools . Many of which I now own .
the only issue i have is conversion from inches to millimeters. i have no problem doing the math for it, but it takes a little longer than just having it right there on the display. im the guy they call lazy when i find a quicker easier way to do something. others are efficient. :)
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On the calipers no they didn't come from me .
That set of verniers I have have both inch and metric .Inch is laid out in tenths . Like I said for most things they are handy.What's really neat about them is you can get accurate internal measuremants on a saw cylinder diameter by just extending the slide through the exhaust port .
I got the verniers at an auction for little of nothing .The mics ,some have been in the family well over 100 years ,some from auctions ,some were given to me .I've got from 0 to 6 or maybe 8" .The larger ones very seldom get used . With any luck ,the Lord tarries someday when I am just a memory they might be in the hands of my grandson . ;)
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I have always liked Mitutoyo, reasonably priced for a quality tool. I have a couple of mics from them that have served me well, I will not waste money on cheap tools unless it is something like an odd size wrench I will only use once. Even then I won't buy off shore crap.
Al, you are fortunate to have those top of the line Starretts, beautiful tools. Make sure your grandson understands what he has and knows how to look after them.
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The bottom cheapy ones are for mm and I get by with them.
(http://chainsawrepair.createaforum.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=1839.0;attach=2959;image)
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This little podunk town once had about a zillion little machine shops which in the late 80's just kind of faded away .Lots and lots of very fine tools and tooling eventually was auctioned off .It was merely a matter of being at the right place at the right time with cash .
I once bought an entire pallett full of lathe chucks for 65 dollars ,Sold half of them for 300 before I ever left the sale .I think that set of dial vernier calipers was under 20 dollars at one of those sales .
Another time I must have been asleep at the switch because they sold an entire collection of 5C collets including square and hex for under 100 bucks .Royal brand to boot .You couldn't have fit them all in a 5 gallon bucket .You win some ,you loose some I guess .
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You win some ,you loose some I guess .
Yep, I was @ state of FL surplus goods warehouse in Tallahassee sold a whole 2 tiered 3'x5' cart full of mic's, reamers, etc you name it it was on that cart. Prison machine shop got all new stuff sold for $50.00. The deal there was each item had a tag you pulled tag and it was yours. I was 6 steps late. Just about cried.
Shep
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Auctions are all about the crowd that attends .Often times on a larger sale there is so much stuff things go rather inexpensively .Conversely I've seen people pay more for used stuff than it can be bought for new at smaller sales .
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my Mitutoyo calipers finally gave up the ghost. won't zero out after a measurement. have a chinese(?) or posibly japenese(?) cal for backup. have an old german vernier style as well, but vision is not what it used to be.
have not purchased a caliper in over 20 years or better, and have no idea what's out there now.
rooting around the web, came across this, comparison of calipers given from folks who repair and calibrate measuring instruments.
http://www.longislandindicator.com/p11.html
interesting reading...... as well as where some brands are actually produced.
not looking to break the bank here.
-joe
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Have had Mitutoyos for years. Great caliper. Bought some SPI calipers a few months ago and they suck!
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so far my 60buck fowler is doing all right. feels good, not loose and flimsy. I have no idea if it has the 'bird wings' or not, never looked :)
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will post a photo of my broken mit, when i get a chance.
mine is 20 years younger than yours brokenbudget, and looks quite bad in comparison.
....the site they mentioned something about a copper part that goes bad. there is no copper anything visible on the outside?
another thing mentioned was the crystal??
always wondered what makes them tick. if i can find my tiny screwdrivers, will find out shortly.
-joe
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the good things i learned:
-headlight restoration kit will work well on the plastic lens (500 grit; 800 grit; rubbing compound)
-throttle body cleaner is the only thing that dissolved 20 years of crud on the gear strip
-dental pick removes stuck metal shavings which you cannot see, from the gear strip (fixed my return to zero problem).
the bad things:
-the screws will not come out no way - no how on mine, without stripping the heads or breaking the screwdriver.
-the two screws on the top of the caliper, next to the lock, control the tension between the gears. (one of these screws was loose).
-the throttle body cleaner can and will seep below the lens (dial side) and render it permanently cloudy.
-joe
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Well that sounds like some pretty good tips.
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fixed my clouded up lens problem with my old calipers.
can't recommend this fix, but can say it worked for me.
my lens clouded up from brake cleaner a while ago while trying to fix the calipers.
before and after.
i twisted the screwdriver to remove the lens....would not suggest to pry.
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This pic of my drill bit gauges are not exactly calipers but they do measure a fine spec.
The one on the left made in Athol, Mass.,USA I have owned since the 1970's.
I thought I needed a spare so I bought the one on the right that's made in China.
Well the Chinese one is crap as it's sizing holes don't match my drill bits and my USA one. >:(
On another note I heard Briggs and Stratton are reopening a Tennessee plant.
Go Trump Go!! ;D
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I use a set of mics to measure drill bits .I have a lot of tap drill sizes commented to memory .Those I don't it's just one thread spacing subtracted from the screw size . Usually close,is close enough depending on what it is .