dial calipers

[jimflam]

I am looking for a good source for a middle of the road dial calipers.

 

[Preacher]

MITUTOYO is a bit better than middle of the road, but it's not a place to worry as far as quality is concerned...

 

[Surfdude_007]

Well, middle of the road. What does that exactly mean? I think you need to give us a standard as to middle of the road price or accuracy, digital or vernier? Mitituyo's are ok, I have Starrett's, but there are a number or manufacturers who have similar product lines. If you look at Mitituyo's cheap digital line. you find that they are similar, if not the same as products that Starrett and Mahr sell. Just which logo you want on the calipers.

 

[JRS]

Well, middle of the road. What does that exactly mean? I think you need to give us a standard as to middle of the road price or accuracy, digital or vernier? Mitituyo's are ok, I have Starrett's, but there are a number or manufacturers who have similar product lines. If you look at Mitituyo's cheap digital line. you find that they are similar, if not the same as products that Starrett and Mahr sell. Just which logo you want on the calipers.

You might want to take a look at the Long Island Indicator Service web site. This is a very knowledgeable group of people who have been in business for many years. Most of the time, their prices are in line with other vendors. They explain which brands work and which not to spend your hard earned money on.

 

[butchlambert]

You will find more Mitutoyo calipers in the machineshop with Brown and Sharpe after that. I believe Starrett will run a distant third.
Butch

 

[SS427]

This is an observation I made recently, so don't anyone get their panties in a bunch.

I have an inexpensive Cabela brand caliper I compared to a Mitutoyo my brother-in-law uses for precision metal working. The Mitutoyo felt like it ran on greased bearings and the Cabela brand felt clunky in comparision. However, I got about the same readings measuring multiple objects with both tools. I felt more confident in the Mitutoyo readings, however with the Cabela tool I'm confident the measurements were within a half thousandths of the Mitutoyo.

I can't say this would be the case with all inexpensive calipers, but it was with mine. If I had the money I would buy the Mitutoyo, and would buy a new one each time I dropped it. For now I will continue to use the one I have with a high degree of confidence.

 

[Kenny474]

In all reality, the calipers sold by most reloading tool companies are usually accurate enough for most general work. If it needs to be exact, you should really be using a micrometer anyway.

I have a set of cheapies I picked up at the local auto parts store, as well as a cheap digital from harbor freight and a set of RCBS dials, and they are all really close to my Starrett's. Plenty close enough for most reloading uses. It's more important they be consistent than measure dead nuts accurate. As long as they are within a half thou you should be ok, and most will do that just fine.

 

[DaveWhite]

It depends. if you want to read to 0.01, you can probably get by with the low end plastic models.

If you want to read to 0.001 or finer, then the tool may be limited if the quality is not there.

I bought Starretts about ten years ago and expect they will still be fine tools long after I am gone. Just a question of how much you have to spend and really how important that measurement is...

 

[Kenny474]

I would steer clear of any precision measuring instrument made of plastic.

Just buy a set of steel dial calipers from RCBS (MSRP $51.95) and you should be all set.