[xmokshax]

i'm looking to buy some calipers to make accurate small-scale measurements easier. i see that harbor freight stocks a line of Cen-tech calipers, but i'm a bit dubious of their quality. my question is this: is it worth it to spend a bit more on calipers from somewhere other than harbor freight, or are the ones they stock actually good quality? if they're not, can someone recommend a better caliper that would be worth my time?

 

[Pars]

I've got this one from Harbor Freight, and haven't had any problems with it. Seems to look identical to ones I've seen elsewhere for much higher prices.

 

[beerguy0]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pars /img/forum/go_quote.gif I've got this one from Harbor Freight, and haven't had any problems with it. Seems to look identical to ones I've seen elsewhere for much higher prices.

I've got the 8" version of that caliper, and haven't had any problems at all in almost three years. I'm using them at work, so I have to send them to our calibration lab every 18 months to be checked. They rate the accuracy at +/-.003", FWIW.

 

[ericj]

The centech digital calipers work fine for less-than-laboratory-grade measurements - which is fine, if you needed utmost precision you wouldn't be asking this.

My only advice:

If you don't need them right now, wait until they go on sale. they go on sale frequently. 'course, this goes for almost anything at HF.

Buy some extra LR44 batteries. The calipers will sometimes turn on inside the case just because you knocked it around a bit. My first battery in my calipers lasted a good year, but my friend goes through them every few months. It might be that his kids are playing with it, though.

 

[Blind Tree Frog]

Random aside question, any gain to calipers over a micrometer?

 

[tomb]

Micrometers are pretty inconvenient at measuring multiple parts with various shapes and sizes - very good for measuring leads or wire strand diameters, not so good at measuring the height of an electrolytic cap, or the height of a pot shaft from the surface of a board.

I second the other posters about the Harbor Freight Calipers. However, I think their dial versions are better if you can still find them - they may be at a better price because they're trying to get rid of them, I think.

Stay away from the glass-filled plastic composite digital calipers at HF - they're worthless.

 

[tangent]

I'm a big fan of digital instruments, but I've never been able to talk myself into a digital caliper over a dial caliper. The only advantage I can see is convenience, and it comes at too high a cost. In some other instruments, digital actually lets you see things you can't with analog, like with DMMs where the scale on analog meters just doesn't have the same resolution. Not so with calipers. Digital just makes the designer's job harder, because you've taken an instrument that's already good at showing accurate measurements and had to graft on another instrument -- basically a digital voltmeter -- that must have at least as much accuracy.

 

[Blind Tree Frog]

The digital ones do tend have the advantage of being able to be zeroed as they age and things might slowly get out of whack. Most all analog tools I've seen (at least lower to mid cost ones) don't tend to offer that.

course, cheap digitals might lack that feature as well.

 

[tomb]

Every dial caliper I've seen has a zero adjustment. The ones at Harbor Freight certainly do.

EDIT: You close the jaws, unscrew the little thumbscrew on the dial and rotate it until the zero is under the needle - pretty straightforward.

 

[Blind Tree Frog]

Nifty.

 

[xmokshax]

excellent... thanks for the feedback, everyone. i'm leaning towards getting the 8-inch digital calipers from harbor freight, but i might look around a bit and see if i can find some inexpensive dial calipers as well.

 

[dcheming]

I bought the 8" Centech digital caliper from HF when it was on sale for $20. Having those extra two inches has come in very handy on numerous projects, especially on case layout work. Of course these calipers aren't super accurate but they're plenty fine for the projects I do here at home (if you were working at a production machine shop it would be a different story though). I use these calipers on pretty much every project I do so the money was definitely well spent.

 

[xmokshax]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dcheming /img/forum/go_quote.gif I bought the 8" Centech digital caliper from HF when it was on sale for $20. Having those extra two inches has come in very handy on numerous projects, especially on case layout work. Of course these calipers aren't super accurate but they're plenty fine for the projects I do here at home (if you were working at a production machine shop it would be a different story though). I use these calipers on pretty much every project I do so the money was definitely well spent.

i think i'll probably go with those. they're not QUITE as good a deal right now - 22.99 - but that's close enough for me. i'll eat the extra $3.

 

[dcheming]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xmokshax /img/forum/go_quote.gif i think i'll probably go with those. they're not QUITE as good a deal right now - 22.99 - but that's close enough for me. i'll eat the extra $3.

That's still a good deal, they were $39.95 at the Salem HF last week when I went.

 

[tangent]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xmokshax /img/forum/go_quote.gif see if i can find some inexpensive dial calipers as well.

Or, spend the money you would have on the digital one on a better dial caliper. For the price difference, you can move up from a pretty cheesy caliper to a machinist-grade one.