Dial indicator

Texas Nick

Texas Nick

Caught the Bug
Alright guys i have a question. I just bought a Dial Indicator and was wondering two things.

1. Where can I buy a holder for the Dial Indicator.ImageUploadedByWAYALIFE1437604107.950598.jpgImageUploadedByWAYALIFE1437604146.492518.jpg

2. Where do i set up the Indicator to measure the balljoint movement? On the actual BJ, or on the knuckle?
 
You can buy them online. Amazon, Grainger, Msc. Most tooling supply will have them. You can spend anywhere from 20-200 depending on how fancy you want you're holder.

I use them every day in my line of work. They are such a handy tool. Those indicators are great for +- .001. But today I geeked out and bought one that is accurate to +-.00005!
 
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lol nice. Well i made a mistake and thought the holder came with it. but got the wrong one and didnt buy the one with the holder and dont feel like waiting another week for one to come in from online. Do any hardware stores or auto parts places sell them in store?
 
Texas Nick said:
lol nice. Well i made a mistake and thought the holder came with it. but got the wrong one and didnt buy the one with the holder and dont feel like waiting another week for one to come in from online. Do any hardware stores or auto parts places sell them in store?
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Ya, most don't come with them because there are so many shapes, lengths and sizes of holder that people customize. Anyways. There's a chance that a good auto place might have one. But I would google "tool supply" store. That would be your best option.
 
Thats also called a plunge indicator. If you can find one id reccomend a kanetec mag base for it. Im a machinist and use them everyday at work
 
I use them everyday as well. Great tool to have! I use .0001" dial indicators and .00005" test indicators the most. Air gauges and lasers for everything else. Federal, Brown & Sharpe, and Interapid are my go-to stuff. Never had any luck with Starrett or Mitutoyo.

If you don't have a local tooling supply store, the fastest delivery will be from MSC or Production Tool Supply. I buy most of my stuff from a tooling rep or PTS. Amazon and EBAY are also good sources....just have to know what you're looking for. For mag bases I love my Brown & Sharpe with metal tightening knobs. They're pricey but worth it. The plastic stuff tends to break after awhile. For accurate and repeatable measurements the base is almost more important than the indicator itself.
 
I got a magnetic base from harbor freight... I've used it for all kinds of things, but mostly setting up ring and pinions.

It isn't fancy, but it was cheap and certainly gets the job done. Id love to have a nice one, but this seems to do everything I need it to.
 
David1tontj said:
I got a magnetic base from harbor freight... I've used it for all kinds of things, but mostly setting up ring and pinions.

It isn't fancy, but it was cheap and certainly gets the job done. Id love to have a nice one, but this seems to do everything I need it to.
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I have the same setup, it works great for the price. Had it for many years! I've used it to set many ring and pinions also!
 
Nice test indicator!

Same one I use. Just be careful not to max the needle out too often, or you will damage it. Ask me how I know :doh:
 
What problems would one have with Starrett? Their tools are (were?) the benchmark that all other precision tools tried to be. Have they gone to cheaper parts? Foreign sourcing?

As a former Millwright, where I had to be dead on to the 1/10,000th", the brand name had to live up to the hype.
 
Scoop315 said:
What problems would one have with Starrett? Their tools are (were?) the benchmark that all other precision tools tried to be. Have they gone to cheaper parts? Foreign sourcing?

As a former Millwright, where I had to be dead on to the 1/10,000th", the brand name had to live up to the hype.
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Starrett is still makes quality tools. I'm pretty sure they do some of their manufacturing in South America but I could be wrong.
My biggest problem with them is their price. I want to pay for the quality and not the name. That being said, I still have plenty of their stuff.
 
ClarksAdventures said:
Starrett is still makes quality tools. I'm pretty sure they do some of their manufacturing in South America but I could be wrong.
My biggest problem with them is their price. I want to pay for the quality and not the name. That being said, I still have plenty of their stuff.
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Gotcha. I used to align shafts for turbines, and Starrett was the only name you saw on the precision measuring equipment.
 
I should have clarified this better, my apologies. I haven't had good luck with newer Starrett and Mitutoyo stuff. I literally have a box clear full of the newer .0001" Starrett dial indicators for spare parts. Granted, I use them for 100% sorting at work and they get put through hell. The older Starrett indicators, that have a metal dial ring, are leaps and bounds better than the new stuff. When you can find them, they can be had on Ebay for decent prices. I've been slowly replacing these with B&S/TESA indicators and my employees have noticed a huge difference in both accuracy and durability. I do like Starrett's specialty tools like parallels, straight edges, and machinist levels.

None of the newer calipers, indicators, or even gauge pins from Mitutoyo have been worth a damn IMO. My 20yr old B&S calipers were dropped and busted, I replaced with Mitutoyo. Where I used to be confident at .0005" accuracy with my calipers, I'm now hesitant to trust them to even .001". I have XXX tolerance gauge pins and set masters for zeroing the measuring equipment. Within 6 months they we worn out due to poor heat treat. I won't even get into their dial indicators I've tried....
 
Texas Nick, looks like this is a tool that you may only use occasionally. If so, just pick up a mag base from harbor freight for a few bucks. That will be the cheapest option. You can hit MSC, or McMaster Car and get something a little better for a few more bucks. My personal favorite are the Noga flex arm. They are the best in my application, but are pricey. Well worth the money to me.
 
yeah, as nice of indicators that these guys have are awesome. i would never need something that accurate. ill just stick with the one I got from amazon. ill just go the HF route and get a base from there and call it good. :thumb:
 
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