Vernier calipers

[Jack Frederick]

What are you using for calipers? Currently I use my FIL’s hand-me-down Helios. I don’t need them often and it is becoming difficult to see the scale. Also with infrequent use it is also a question of, “am I getting this right?” Lee Valley has a digital low cost caliper and I know they make analog dial units as well. Starrett has a dial unit for about $250 but I don’t think my needs justify that kind of expenditure. Much obliged for any suggestions.

[Richard Coers]

I've been very happy with Harbor Freight digital.

[Darrell Bade]

I like Brown & Sharp, they are about $130 I think. Like that they have a thin rod instead of rectangular rod for depth measurements, gets into a lot more places.

[Warren Lake]

the watch took a licking but it kept on ticking. Very easy on batteries as well.

476114

[Bruce Page]

I like Brown & Sharp, they are about $130 I think. Like that they have a thin rod instead of rectangular rod for depth measurements, gets into a lot more places.

B&S dial calipers have been my goto for many years. They have the best feel of any I have ever tried. Batteries not required.

[John Ziebron]

I am a machinist and a woodworker. I have several Mitutoyo digital and analog calipers that I use for metal working. That kind of accuracy and repeatability is not required for woodworking. So on the woodworking side I use Vinca brand calipers. They have always gotten good reviews and are very reasonably priced (https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Calipers-VINCA/s?keywords=Digital+Calipers&rh=n%3A2476630011%2Cp_89%3AVINCA&c=ts&ts_id=2476630011).
Without going into the details of my experiences with Harbor Freight calipers I'll just say they are junk in my opinion.

[Kurt Wyberanec]

I recently bought an igaging absolute and have been very impressed and half the price of the mitutoyo

[Bill Dufour]

The HF digital ones are plenty good enough for wood. Around $20 on sale. The battery will only last one year or less. Any Mitoyos being sold from China are fake. Mitoyo does not make any in China. Lots of fakes on ebay.
I doubt you care about accuracy. You just need repeatability. I got a good digital Mitoyo for $40 at a pawnshop. It is nicer and smoother then a HF version. It was several years out of date on calibration but I do not work to that accuracy. Certainly not in wood.
Connectivity is not needed unless you have CNC and standards to meet.
Bill D

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I bought a stainless-steel Craftsman dial caliper over 40 years ago. They work well today.

[Ray Newman]

Several years ago, a friend bought an "economy" caliper with a digital readout. He says it works quite well for w'dworking, but it does not automatically shut off when not in use. Seems he is always replacing the batteries when he wants to use it.

Have no idea if non-auto shut off units are still available, but it might be something to look into when purchasing.

[Myles Moran]

I have a cheap digital caliper i use for woodworking as well. It's more than accurate enough for wood, and when I'm not using them i take the battery out and leave it in the case so it won't drain the battery. I've read the "off" function on a lot of the cheaper calipers and such just turns the screen off, not the whole circuit, so that's why so many eat batteries.

[Lee Schierer]

I used to use a dial caliper in my shop from time to time. After a few years, the caliper was no longer smooth operating because sawdust had gotten into the rack and pinion of the mechanism. I bought a digital caliper from Harbor Freight for less than $20 and other than replacing batteries it has required no maintenance in more than 15 years. For purposes of woodworking and most other things you would do at home the cheap digital caliper is more than accurate enough. Mine has an off button that seems to work.

[Robert Hayward]

I have two I use. An Igaging dial one that reads in fractions. Also a digital one that gets used mostly for metric measurements.

[Derek Cohen]

The iGaging with fractions is useful for conversions. However, I much prefer a Mitutoyo as they are so reliable (such as returning to precise zero). The battery lasts me years.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Rich Aldrich]

I have a couple of Fowler dial calipers from McMaster Carr - one for the shop and one at work. They are decent. My digital at work are Mitutoyo that are very good

[Steve Eure]

I bought a couple igaging calipers, both digital and analog.. I seem to grab the analog ones more often than not. both are well built and tough as nails. Accurate and cost much less.

[Alex Zeller]

I have a cheap HF 12" digital one and a couple Mitutoyo 6" digital ones. The HF seems to be accurate but it doesn't feel anywhere near as smooth. I leave the battery out of the HF one and it last a lot longer. I use them in combination with an igaging multi gauge to set up blade or router bit height when doing things like stile and rail joints.

[John K Jordan]

Jack,

Your message title says “Vernier” but perhaps you mean calipers of any type. For measuring, I keep a variety of digital and dial calipers. I prefer dial calipers for most things in the shop and use digital when milling/turning metals to precision, measuring shims, etc. I do have my favorites but I find almost any brand works as well as another.

If you did mean vernier (which are a pain to read), I have a drawer full of very cheap verniers I use only for woodturning. I never use them for measuring but mostly to size something to match something else - if the dimension matters I set a caliper to the desired size first then turn the part till the caliper slides over the diameter.

I do have one vernier that’s probably 18” or longer but need it only rarely!

JKJ

[Brian Holcombe]

Mitutoyo please and thank you.

[Phil Gaudio]

Been using the Starrett fractional for years: works great.
https://cdn11.bigcommerce.com/s-4s9liwcv/images/stencil/1280x1280/products/314379/433268/1202F-6-2__77892.1594894041.jpg?c=2

[Jim Becker]

iGaging LCD display for metric, decimal inch and fractional inch. The price was reasonable and it's one of my most used measuring tools it seems sometimes; a lot of that is because of my CNC work, but I use it for any kind of project, honestly.

[Scott Brodersen]

I have the Lee Valley digital one - it's ok but I regret getting a battery-powered caliper. I'd like a half decent analog one.

[Bob Falk]

IMHO, a $25 digital caliper from Amazon is just fine for woodworking.

[Jim Barkelew]

I use my dial calipers and 12 inch machinist scale on almost every project. The scale sits on the rip fence at the table saw. I think my calipers are 40 years old and good as new. 40 years ago I could measure to almost 0.005" tolerance with the scale but my eyes can't do that anymore. I don't see much use for fractional calipers since I have 5 tape measures.

[Charles Coolidge]

My 6" MITUTOYO digital calipers are still going strong after 18 years and the battery lasts forever. Rugged I use them all the time and displays in either inch/metric. I recently added a pair of 8".

[Kurt Wyberanec]

For those who keep saying fine for woodworking I really don't understand... it really depends on what kind of woodwork you're doing... if you're making a slab table then obviously not that important but if you're making things with tight clearances then you need something accurate. For layout in usually measuring to the 32nd for clearances in often measuring to the thousandth so I can add correctly... everyone's work is different. And also what type of equipment you're using makes a difference... I'm not saying I cut to the thou (though you can with an incra fence) but you often have to add parts together.

I'm very impressed with the igaging absolute digital.

[Ron Selzer]

woodworking, analog for me please, no batteries to mess with and no figuring out what x/124's is close to
Have digital for checking bearings and other items that must be accurate to 2 or 3 places
all depends on what you are working on/with

[Robert London]

Lots of name brand calipers aren't what they use to be.

I bought the Quinn digital calipers from Harbor Freight. $49 and nice calipers for the money.

[Brian Holcombe]

For those who keep saying fine for woodworking I really don't understand... it really depends on what kind of woodwork you're doing... if you're making a slab table then obviously not that important but if you're making things with tight clearances then you need something accurate. For layout in usually measuring to the 32nd for clearances in often measuring to the thousandth so I can add correctly... everyone's work is different. And also what type of equipment you're using makes a difference... I'm not saying I cut to the thou (though you can with an incra fence) but you often have to add parts together.

I'm very impressed with the igaging absolute digital.

Keep fighting the good fight!

[Phillip Mitchell]

I have Mitutoyo 6" digital and can switch between Imperial and Metric and read to 0.0000. I use them very often and have come to rely on them for sizing joinery, setting up machines/parts, or anything where accuracy and precision is critical.

Totally depends on what type of projects you're doing as to what level of accuracy you should expect from a set of calipers. Why have measuring devices of questionable quality if you are using them for critical measurments (like joinery or tight clearances or eliminating cumulative error) ? Some of us work to tighter tolerances than others and I think its perfectly reasonable to use higher end measuring devices to acheive that level of precision. I would be questioning the accuracy of a HF or similar unit and not feel like I could trust it in all situtations of if I have other high accuracy measuring devices that need to play nicely and interface with what the caliper is telling me.

[Alan Lightstone]

I have a no-name Chinese one. No clue if it's accurate, but seems to work pretty well for me. No idea where I got it from. Perhaps Peachtree, or Lee-Valley. Eats through batteries, though. I use it on most projects.

That Starrett analog gauge looks amazing. And I'm sure that the Mitutoyo digital gauges are plenty accurate for what we do. At a price.

[Kevin Jenness]

I have had a Mitutoyo for over 35 years which has been very reliable. Buy once cry once. The cheap digital models work well but eat batteries. If I had a cheapie for 35 years I could have bought two Mitutoyos for the battery cost.

I keep a cheap plastic dial caliper https://www.testequipmentdepot.com/general-tools/hand-tools/calipers-and-micrometers/dial-calipers/plastic-dial-caliper-metric-144mm.htm?ref=gbase&msclkid=3328a781f7a416379e05c5b99ee8de6b&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=NGEN%20-%20Bing%20Shopping%20-%20General%20Tools&utm_term=4581046489648385&utm_content=All%20General%20Tools%20Products hanging on a post next to the planer for quick reference and I don't fret if I drop it, but for more critical measurements I get out the Mitutoyo. The rack on the dial caliper does get clogged with dust occasionally and needs a cleaning.

[Keegan Shields]

I would avoid the cheap digital calipers and go with a quality dial caliper.

Also, you might be able to find good deals on nice (Mitutoyo, Starrett, etc.) used Vernier calipers. Pre-pandemic, I picked up a 24" Mitutoyo Vernier model for less ~$100 off eBay.

It shipped in a 40 year old case from South Dakota which gave me confidence in its authenticity. The thing is built like a tank.

Calipers of that size can help a lot with precise marking of (relatively) long distances.

[Bill Dufour]

Starrett custom made some micrometers for the blind. Not sure how they got read. Some kind of Braille markings I suppose.
A fellow student in Jr. College had a HP calculator that talked as she pressed the keys. It read out the answer to her. I do not remember what special provision she used to take a test so we did not all listen to her answers and change ours if need be.
Bill D.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4M48_Vu-ts

[Rod Sheridan]

I have a 6” Mitotoyou digital calliper, works great…..Regards, Rod

[Jim Bixel]

What are you using for calipers? Currently I use my FIL’s hand-me-down Helios. I don’t need them often and it is becoming difficult to see the scale. Also with infrequent use it is also a question of, “am I getting this right?” Lee Valley has a digital low cost caliper and I know they make analog dial units as well. Starrett has a dial unit for about $250 but I don’t think my needs justify that kind of expenditure. Much obliged for any suggestions.

I bought my first vernier calipers 50 years ago when I started working in a machine shop. My eye's where a lot younger then. I have several Mitutoyo calipers and think they are excellent. I do not like dial calipers they are real prone to issues with debris getting between the dial pinion gear and rack. I have seen many screw up's from this over the years. Most guys have all went digital. For 99% of all my woodworking I just use my old veneers and in 50 years I have never replaced the battery! Even with old eyes I can see 0.01" at a very quick glance. I really like using then when I am running my thickness planer.

[Ben Ellenberger]

Mitutoyo vernier calipers I’ve had for 15+years. They are cheaper than dial or digital calipers and you never have to replace batteries.

[Anuj Prateek]

(1) Mitutoyo 500-196-30 digital caliper. Love this one. In last 2 years did not have to change battery. Like inch/mm conversion and any point zero feature.

(2) B&S economy dial caliper. Works good. Does not get used anymore. This was some $50 4-5 years back. It's accurate and measurements match the Mitutoyo.