Digital caliper reccomendation

[209jones]

I have a dial caliper of an unknown make, I bought as used, 30+ yrs ago off the Snap On rep. I learned to read a micrometer about 57 yrs ago, probably a dial caliper too, dad had a machine shop. For reloading, all I want to know is am I hot or cold of the mark I am seeking to achieve, ie; base to datum, which fired case is the longest one on the first firing, how many are about how close to it, did the longest ones grow over the first measurement on the second firing, did the die move the shoulder or not. I use the micrometer to check base and shoulder dia changes, a ball mic to check neck wall thickness. Whatever length or dia I hit the first time is the mark I gauge from and I record them all, I can see if the needle or barrel markings moved from original one way or the other, that's all I want to know about it. I have pin gages I can double check them with as a gauge to check basic accuracy. And I don't have to worry if the battery is good or not, or if a chip is assigning proper values. I just find I have less doubts about a dial caliper or an old mechanical mic.

 

[Websurfer]

My Lyman digital is still serving me well, it has to be at least 20 years old. I feed it batteries as needed, and it keeps chugging along. A+ product

 

[kyotekiller25]

Hey $40 bucks is $40 bucks, mans gotta save $ where he can…

I actually saved $90 from getting a nice used pair on ebay for $60. I'm kinda cheap and look for deals the older I get haha.

 

[SGT. Slaughter]

For the money SHARS makes a good set of digital calipers.

 

[sksshooter]

My new to me calipers arrived in the mail today. All i can say is wow. Ive never had a nice set in my hand before this. I really had no idea just how sloppy my cheapys were. This thing is really solid and operates super smooth. Makes me want to just trash the old ones all together but they will be moved to general shop use. These will not be leaving the bench. Thanks again to 6mmsteve for reaching out and offering these up at a great price.

 

[ToddP]

I just bought a nice used pair of Mitutoyos off a guy from Ebay for $60. I had him take a few extra pics for me so I could make sure they were real. He had no issues with it, which makes it nice that he's not trying to hide anything. And he assured me they were genuine. Can't wait to get them and put em to use.
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Haha! Glad it worked out for you (and the seller). I found that when selling things online, the people wanting the most information/effort from you are the least likely to actually buy. In the case of buying calipers, it absolutely is imperative to prove the part isn't counterfeit. :-(

 

[kyotekiller25]

Haha! Glad it worked out for you (and the seller). I found that when selling things online, the people wanting the most information/effort from you are the least likely to actually buy. In the case of buying calipers, it absolutely is imperative to prove the part isn't counterfeit. :-(

Agreed! Most people I seen didn't have pictures of the caliper slid out so you could see the small curved piece. I messaged a few people and none of them would respond to my extra pictures and questions to make sure they werent counterfeits. This seller had zero issues with it. They should be here tomorrow.

 

[Kittitas George]

Check out Craig's List, I found a Starrett and Mitutoyo micrometers. Each was under $100. Retired machinists, well cared for, clean in the boxes. You may need to search a larger area than just locally. Have a little trust, send the owner a Money Order, you may need to explain the operation, many aren't familiar how we do things here. Each of my purchases were from 4 hours away, but phone calls and explanation went very smoothly.

 

[Dave M.]

Hey I don't know where you live or if you have FB marketplace but I just looked in my area in michigan and i couldn't believe the amount of people selling their Mitutoyo Calipers for $70-150 on there. Maybe that would be something you could look into.

lol. In Michigan??? Maybe it’s because we have the auto industry and a bunch of auto plants and machine shops. Calipers and carbide tool inserts are some of the first things to disappear from the floor. Buy some of those calipers off FB marketplace and I bet you find someone’s name or at least a department number engraved on the back. They are clearly stolen if someone is selling a top notch set of Mito digital calipers for $50. In fact, most people that have the money and sense to buy Mito calipers would never sell them. Detroit area is the epicenter for selling stolen tools and equipment. Go over to Van Dyke near 6 mile in the summer on a Saturday morning and you can buy a brand new $850 Toro lawnmower for $300. I’ve seen it done many times. One time, my brother in law bought one and the guy said it ran great, so I took the gas cap off and smelled the tank, zero gas had ever been in the unit, and there were no signs of use on the deck whatsoever. I asked him if we could put some gas into it and fire it up, he said no problem. We did and it fired up on the second pull. That mower was $450 for a brand new toro $1100 electric start unit. Clearly, it just fell off the truck. I was much younger then and don’t dabble in those shady grey markets anymore. Point is, you can get a ton of great stuff online and in person in the Detroit area, if you don’t care where it came from and who’s expense your deal comes as a result of. Just my two cents and likely only worth one and a half. lol.
Dave

 

[Dave M.]

Check out Craig's List, I found a Starrett and Mitutoyo micrometers. Each was under $100. Retired machinists, well cared for, clean in the boxes. You may need to search a larger area than just locally. Have a little trust, send the owner a Money Order, you may need to explain the operation, many aren't familiar how we do things here. Each of my purchases were from 4 hours away, but phone calls and explanation went very smoothly.

I don’t know a lot of retired machinists (my father included) that have sold the tools of their trade online. Most keep them forever, and if they do decide to part with them, they give them to their children or grand kids. Remember a good salesman will always create a back story that gives the buyer a warm and fuzzy feeling about purchasing the item they are selling. This is the second rule of selling.
Dave

 

[Kittitas George]

I don’t know a lot of retired machinists (my father included) that have sold the tools of their trade online. Most keep them forever, and if they do decide to part with them, they give them to their children or grand kids. Remember a good salesman will always create a back story that gives the buyer a warm and fuzzy feeling about purchasing the item they are selling. This is the second rule of selling.
Dave

There weren't a lot of micrometers for sale, as I said I was searching 4 hours away. Then trying to convince the seller he would have the USPS money order and the micrometer, I was trusting him to be honest. Met a couple of rude dudes. It is hard to sell your tools, I ran in to that 50 years ago. Dad was ill, near 80, but he needed his tools, just in case. I'm kind of in the same situation, shop full of wood working and mechanics tools, I can't really use them, BUT. I have toys I'm the same way about. Big guns (300 win Mag) I won't ever use again, BUT. "DON'T CRY CAUSE IT'S OVER, SMILE BECAUSE IT HAPPENED".

 

[jpjulian]

For the money SHARS makes a good set of digital calipers.

I also have the SHARS. It's not quite as smooth as a Mitutoyo Vernier I have but both calipers read identically whenever I compare the 2.