Moisture Meter recommendations?

[Chip Sutherland]

Got a bunch of thick maple blanks and a commission job so I need to sort out the blanks to find the driest ones for my project. I usually don't worry about moisture but seems like a good time to get one since I have a short turnaround for delivery. Looking for input from this forum from folks who use them. Thanks.

[Cody Colston]

If you want a good one, be prepared to spend over $200. A Delmhorst J-2000 is a good one. Get a slide hammer to go with it to check thick blanks.

[Jeffrey J Smith]

Chip, at the risk of exposing myself as overly frugal and a not very astute user of technology and tools, I'm going to admit that I've been using a combination moisture meter/stud finder/metal detector/voltage detector that I picked up when my old stud finder died a few of years ago. Not sure where I got it, it has no company name or even a product name on it. It must have cost me way less than $20 bucks; It looks like a fugitive from Harbor Freight.
That said, I've been using it regularly as a moisture meter for over 3 years. It works great. I checked it against a friend's expensive meter and it was within a few points. I don't know if the numbers are accurate, I tend to look at them in a relative sense - when the meter shows less than 10-12% on a roughed out blank, I'm good to go.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Yep I am cheap and bought one at Lowe's for $21.95. Works and is as accurate as the $200 one at the lumber yard.

[Doug Herzberg]

I bought a Lignomat Mini-Ligno on Amazon. It was a bit more than $20, but not too expensive. I don't use it a lot, but it seems to be fairly consistent and gives me the same readings as my friend's high end pinless meter. It doesn't claim to measure really thick stock at the center, though.

The maple I've worked with has moved a lot when it is green, so I think you're right to be concerned.

[Joseph M Lary]

I bought the Lowes meter , it works for me gives me a general idea of the moisture.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

I got a mini ligno too. Seems to work well, although I don't know how any others work. I have nothing to compare to. Seems to me that you have a limited use buy. I would go as cheap as you can. Can you borrow one?

[James Combs]

+1 on the cheaper version, I think mine was $29.95 at Lowes. Works great for me. As to center moisture content of a large slab I will trim an end off and check the moisture at the center of the cut or if a large blank I will check the mid area of the blank after rounding with the bandsaw. No issues to date.

[Scott Hackler]

I bought one of the el cheapos and used it about 4 times in the last 2 years. For me (even though it works) it's a pretty useless device and I find I don't use it at all. Sure am glad I only spent about $25!

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

You know the cheapo everyone is talking about?? The one that came from Lowes? I walked in there one day and they were on sale for 10 bucke each. They had six left and I walked out with all six. I kept one and gave presents to friends. After I thought about it I realized I just bought my $30 cheapo for $60. Go figure!! I do have happy friends, though. Here is the point. I also own a Professional Lignomat and have tested the cheapo against it for accuracy. They are so close I would never recommend a $350 meter to a friend who only uses it to determine when to second turn a bowl.

[Curt Harms]

I have a mini-ligno with the LED indicators. They are supposed to self calibrate so remain accurate. Rather than being overly concerned about absolute numbers, I'll check some wood that's been in the same location for several months and compare its reading to the 'new' stuff. If they read the same, I figure the 'new' stuff is very close to EMC. Also, it can be instructive to check the same piece's face,edge and end grain readings. They probably won't be exactly the same, at least mine aren't. I think face grain is 'official'.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Chip - this is what I picked up at Lowes - on sale for $10. General Tools (http://www.lowes.com/pd_78059-56005-MMD4E_0__?productId=3136919&cm_mmc=SCE_gps-_-gps-_-gps-_-3136919&CAWELAID=1024196475) Have used it a few times when I needed to make certain a piece of wood was dry and it worked for me!

[Pat Scott]

With the el-cheapo's, don't you worry about different wood densities? I have a Wagner MMC205 pinless meter and am able to select different SG (Specific Gravity) depending on the wood species for more accurate readings.

[Doug Herzberg]

Hey Pat. With my Mini Ligno, there are two densities, hardwood and softwood. That wasn't clear until after I bought the meter. In fact, I had to call the company to confirm that's all it does. No temperature compensation either, if I recall correctly. Maybe there's a chart. I guess if you really care about these things, you have to spend the money. But for bowls, I'm not sure it matters.

I like Curt's idea about comparing the reading to wood that's been on location for awhile, regardless of what the actual number is.

[Richard Jones]

I also have the same one like Steve mentioned above, and I do what Curt does: read a sample spot on a piece of trim in my shop. Compare to piece in question. I've been very satisfied with the instrument so far. I've even go so far as to test and mark several boxes to see what the readings are later. At the very least, it's easy to compare.