Calipers

I think you might be talking about the eggplant shaped thing with a screw and nut to adjust the arms?

I believe they are used to transfer the measurement of irregularly shaped objects to a ruler or other measuring device rather than making a measurement themselves.

Search for outside calipers. There are also inside calipers.

That's the thing.

Yes usually, but I think I've seen some that do rough measurement.

Thanks, that worked in google. I was searching in retailer sites.

I bought this caliper on Aliexpress just for fun

Got it and measures very good (I had a good quality vernier as reference)

Amazing at that low cost

Cheers

Klaus

tirsdag den 14. januar 2020 kl. 19.29.45 UTC+1 skrev snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com:

afaict the biggest issue people have with cheap calipers is that they don't last very long on battery it's not really a high precision instrument anyway, there's a reason they are also called very-nears

snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@googlegroups.com:

Feed china your money?

Those on Amazon are only like $9.

How much was your shipping?

I do not trust China sites for online buying.

I saw this today on another group. The poster was complaining about short battery life of Harbor Freight meters and bought this instead.

But I haven't got an answer about battery life on that unit from him yet, it has only been a few hours. The Aliexpress uses an LR44 rated 120mah and the Amazon one uses a CR2032 Rated 235mah. And for whatever it means, The LR44 is 1.5V and the CR2032 is 3V. Mikek

amdx wrote in news:qvlam3$9lm$ snipped-for-privacy@dont-email.me:

I place my calipers in their case when I am not using them. 5 seconds of my time to remove the battery and place it in its cutout is zero cost. I am not bothered by the additional labor or lack or ready access.

Another way is to make a thin film strip to place in the battery pocket to "turn it off".

laptops, battery operated drills, keep their battery in. they are made for it. the caliper folks simply want to take up less space or cannot be bothered by installing a watchdog like those in small weighing scales.

The problem with the cheap ones is that they don't really "turn off", they just disable the display.

I had a couple, but they were always out of service, so I went and bought a reputable brand. Only $40 and much less time wasted.

AliExpless also has sellers of ones that take CR2032 batteries. Finding a seller is kind of a task.

Dan

It's the same issue with digital meat thermometers. Mine lasted a few months then I got one with a mechanical dial and never bothered changing the battery in the other one. I'd prefer mechanical calipers too.

Also, you know they use various design tricks in digital watches to make the battery last 10 years, and they don't use those tricks in other devices, but thoughtless (ISTM) designers use watch batteries anyway. If they made the housing a little bigger they could have used AAA or AA batteries. That goes for calipers and meat thermometers too.

How long does the battery last? I have a bunch of different ones but they drive me nuts since the battery runs out while they are sitting on the shelf. Some are a real pain to replace the battery. We need a USB rechargeable one.

Like a switch would add so much to the price.

Oh, they have a switch. It just disables the display :(

That would be good with a little double layer capacitor. Plug it in for a second and use it for 20 minutes. No need for a lithium battery. That would allow you to keep the inch/metric versatility that mechanical units lack.

Solar cells. You cant use them in the dark, anyway

Rich S wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@googlegroups.com:

Long jaw calipers. The beam will never be curved.

I buy instruments for accuracy, repeatability, reliability and durability. Measurements can directly affect the quality of what is being designed and manufactured. I believe high quality calipers are worth the cost and have bought Mitutoyo and starret. Personally the cost of new is beyond what I can reasonably spend however there can be good finds on the used market. To each their own

three_jeeps wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@googlegroups.com:

IF you were trying to measure down to 10 thousandths inch increments sure. But for standard down to a thousandth... The cheap stuff will give the same reading repeatably, every time.

Same thing for cheap electronic scales. The $15 El Cheapo that resolves to hundredths of a gram is just as good as the $500 model. Some even do parts counting and still fall in at below a $20.

A cheap yardstick and a nice steel rule both work fine for most things. If you want to make fine resolution cut lengths, you use the steel tape that resolves to 32nd inch marks. Otherwise the yardstick works fine and they are a dime each. There was a time when they were a dime a dozen.

Knowing what work for a given job matters. If I am doing basic voltage readings on an AC line branch, I am NOT going to be putting my $600 Fluke at risk. I can use the Harbor Freight $25 meter all day long.