Thread: What's a good brand of digital caliper?

the only problem i find with vernier calipers is i have to look for the glasses befor using them.

Originally Posted by JillB

I don't have any of the above problems or concerns with my manual vernier calipers

No need for batteries, constant zero resetting etc, and it holds the setting at which it was last used -- but it only has a resolution of 0.02mm e.g, a reading of a workpiece 7.91mm can show on the scale anywhere between 7.90 and 7.92mm, which is good enough for me and my woodworking, considering the thinnest shim on my dado blade setup is 0.1mm.

And that humidity and temperature does tend to change thicknesses

Back to the future ,eh?

In an earlier life I used to work for an engineering firm and the only ones they wanted were digital Mitutoyos which I bought from MTI Qualos in West Heidelberg. I personally have imperial dial calipers by Kanon.

azzruck, Geebung was immortalised by AB Banjo Paterson in one of my my favourite poems " The Geebung Polo Club". Another favourite is Riders in the Stand:

There's some that ride the style, and bump at every stride;
While others sit a long way back, to get a longer ride.
There's some that ride as sailors do, with legs, and arms, and teeth;
And some that ride the horse's neck, and some ride underneath.
But all the finest horsemen out -- the men to Beat the Band --
You'll find amongst the crowd that ride their races in the Stand.

Many thanks to Ironwood for pointing out the $45 deal on M&W digital vernier calipers model MW-110-15DBL at TradeTools. I rang them at Springwood, south of Brisbane, 1500km away. Justin emailed me an online form to complete, emailed it back straight away ( no printing and scanning required), then 24 hrs later (today) the calipers arrived, very securely packaged. Shipping was $10

I opened them up, compared some readings with my old trusty manual calipers, and found that when the jaws closed, the reading reverted to zero OK. Found it a bit odd having to switch it on before it gave a reading

Does anyone know if you have to switch it off after using it, or if it automatically shuts down?

Altogether a very happy shopping experience. Old Gerry Harvey should learn from it

Originally Posted by JillB

Does anyone know if you have to switch it off after using it, or if it automatically shuts down?

Hi Jill,

I wouldn't think you need to turn them off, the CR2032 lithium battery is fairly large by comparison with other digital calipers. I'd guess you would get at least a couple of years continuous on-time.

There are a number of power saving schemes used in Digital Calipers.

1. Mitutoyo, just stays on all the time, batteries last for 3+ years.
2. Anyi, Mahr and some others turn on as soon as you pick them up and move the slide.
3. Some just switch off the display and stay on drawing just about the same power as when they are "on", and you need to press the on button to get them back.
4. Rarer nowadays, but some just stay on and you have to turn them off manually, if you don't turn them off the batteries last no time at all.

I tried to find a manual for the MW-110-15DBL, but nothing on-line that I've found.

So, I think the Moore and Wright is a good choice, and that price is better than anything else I've seen, up to $115 for that same model on some sites.

Nice choice. Now you can switch from inches to metric at will...

Regards
Ray

Ray, the CR2032 battery doesn't necessarily translate in to longer battery life. I have 2 Wixey brand digital devices, a digital fence for my table saw and a digital angle gauge.
Both go through CR2032 batteries at the rate of knots, to the point where I remove the CR2032 battery when the Wixey Angle Gauge is not in use.

Big shed is spot on, i use the CR2032 in a couple of wixey devices that chew thru batteries something shocking. I now open up the battery compartment & slip a small piece of paper under the battery when not in use.

Originally Posted by Big Shed

Ray, the CR2032 battery doesn't necessarily translate in to longer battery life. I have 2 Wixey brand digital devices, a digital fence for my table saw and a digital angle gauge.
Both go through CR2032 batteries at the rate of knots, to the point where I remove the CR2032 battery when the Wixey Angle Gauge is not in use.

Hi Fred,

That says more about the Wixey than the battery I suspect. I guess that's the WR-700 fence attachment?

Some of the el-cheapo digitial calipers, "pretend" to auto power off by just blanking the display, but are still using as much power as if the display was still on.

Originally Posted by From the Wixey web site..

How Long does the battery last if I turn off the readout?
How long does the battery last?
The battery life should be 6 months with the unit turned on or off. Because the readout always maintains the calibration even when it is turned off, it is actually reading all the time. Turning it off only turns off the display which takes almost no power to run. Removing the battery is the only way to conserve it's life but then you have to recalibrate every time.

Not a simple problem to fix, since it's the choices made in the design of the electronics, that are the root cause of the problem.

Both Mahr, and Mitutoyo, and probably others, have their own highly optimized custom chips, which reduce power consumption to the point that you get 2-3 years without powering down, on a battery that is a fraction the size of a CR2032..

Time for someone to make a better digital read out for table-saw fences...

Regards
Ray

PS Just a thought, if you made up a dummy battery the same size as the CR2032, you could run wires to a mains powered 3v plug pack. No more batteries.. Or at least bigger external batteries, you can get rechargeable 1200 mah Lithium (the type used in hi power led torches.)

You're right Ray, some people have actually modified the Wixey read-out by using an AA battery externally.

All that fuss! What is wrong with mechanicals? If you want greater accuracy use a micrometer.

0.01-150mm Fine Dial MECHANICAL CALIPERS Verniers Gauge | eBay

Micrometer Mitutoyo 0-25mm As New condition in case. | eBay

Another vote for the Mitutoyo Digimatic calipers. Mine are in constant use and I wouldn't be without them. I bought mine used through US-bay and they were quite inexpensive. Measuring tools is one area that I don't go cheap in, I don't see any point in buying something I can't trust. I used to find myself using a micrometer a lot more often, however the Mitutoyo calipers are so accurate I will generally simply use them for 99% of the work and only use the micrometer when super-accuracy is required or as a second check. The calipers have never been wrong.

About the only thing I don't like about them is they don't auto-shutoff. I know a lot of professionals like this as a feature, but I'd rather they did. Mind you the battery seems to last a long time.

Regarding the Aldi clipers, I believe they changed them to another supplier. I bought 3 pair with the intention of cutting them up and putting them on machines. In fact they're absolute crap and the only place I can see them going is straight in the bin! A complete waste of money and very disappointing as I'd heard that their earlier ones were quite ok.

Pete

G'Day Ray G.
Attached is the info off the Blackwoods website on the Moore & Wright unit.
I got a set of these.
I'll have a look for the document which came with them in the morning
and if I find it, I'll scan & post it for you.
Cheers, Crowie

Attachment 185037

Other than cost, The best digital calipers you can buy are the solar powered Mitutoyo's. IMO all digital equipment should be solar powered when possible. No batterys ever. Their certainly the best calipers I've ever used.

Pete

Hi All,

Thanks for all the feedback, and discussion. For those that are interested, I ended up choosing the Mahr-Federal for $94, (dirt wipers, lapped slides, 3 year battery life etc.) but mainly because it's a trusted brand, and the quality is good.. that's not to say they are all that much better than a $15 set. The truth is the $15 is excellent value for money, but it's a question of trust and when it comes to measuring something critical, trust is important. (There's a little bit of brand vanity as well )

Unquestioned leader is still the Mitutoyo 500-196 for $139. I think the Mahr, Moore&Wright, InSize, Anyi, Tesa, Browne&Sharpe, (Tesa and Browne&Sharp are the same) Fowler and others are all good. Sylvac, supplies the electronics to Fowler and others, if you want waterproof then these are good

Generally you get what you pay for, but with digital calipers, dearer is not always better.

Best value for money, I think, is, InSize, good quality for $60 Precision Measuring Tools - High Accuracy Electronic Caliper Close would have to be the Moore&Wright mentioned earlier in the thread by Crowie and JillB, for $45 from Trade Tools..

Two warnings,
1. Never buy secondhand calipers, one drop and the tips get bent.
2. Don't buy on ebay without checking the new price elsewhere. I see Mitutoyo 500-196's selling for over $200 on ebay, when you can buy new for $139..

Hope that helps someone.

Regards
Ray