Which calipers do you recommend?

[Savage30L]

I need to buy a set of USA-made dial calipers. Which brand would you recommend?

 

[gifbohane]

Cannot think of a "made in USA" brand that is terrific. I tried a lot of the $ 25.00 brands and was never satisfied. Bought MITS and loved them.

Maybe others have a solution..........................

 

[Soonerpesek]

delete

 

[Soonerpesek]

Cannot think of a "made in USA" brand that is terrific. I tried a lot of the $ 25.00 brands and was never satisfied. Bought MITS and loved them.

Starrett comes to mind.....

....but any $25.00 set that checks against a known would work well.........IMO......

 

[mcb]

Starrett comes to mind.....

....but any $25.00 set that checks against a known would work well.........IMO......

Only the Starrett 120 series is still made in the USA. The rest are foreign made.

I am partial to Mitutoyo (Japan) calipers digital or dial. At work I have digital. They are hard to find but Mitutoyo made solar power digital calipers that were awesome, had a set at a former job. My current collection at home is a set of Mitutoyo dial, an old set of Brown and Sharpe dial, and couple of cheaper dial and Vernier sets that live life dangerous. I have a set of cheap Chinese dual unit dial calipers that have probably been used the most simple because they were my first and I am not worried about damaging them. Bough them back when I was poor in grad school (when you could still get deals on ebay) and have been using them ever since. I check the calibration with gauge pins or blocks every once in awhile and they are still pretty close to right on. Not as good as the Mitutoyo's but I paid way less for them. Match the tool to the need.

 

[Walkalong]

Some of the cheap ones are pretty bad, finally bought some $120ish Starrett calipers and am very happy with them.

 

[Kaldor]

I use these from iGaging. For a cheaper set, they are made well. I really like the 8" set for use with comparators and such.

6"
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00INL0BTS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

8"
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00K3PZVKG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Savage30L]

I read the Mitutoyo reviews and ordered the Mitutoyo 505-742J from Amazon, as I need these pretty soon. Thanks for the comments.

 

[lightman]

I have a couple of sets. Both are digital. A $40 pair that I bought from Sinclair several years ago and a newer set of Mitutoyo. They seem to be about equally accurate and/or repeatable but the $40 pair run the battery down if I don't remove it. That can be a pain. If I could do it again I would just pass on the $40 pair and go straight to the more expensive pair.

I suggest buying them from an established vendor, the more expensive sets are often counterfeited.

 

[holl]

I use this one from Amazon. It says an American company, but I guess that doesn't mean their made here. However they work exceptionally well.

 

[Mizar]

Smart decision there, OP - you can't go wrong with Mitutoyo.

 

[Random 8]

https://www.amazon.com/Brown-Sharpe...la-570129495081&ref=&adgrpid=61496776229&th=1 Not US made. SWISS made, and superior to anything I have ever encountered. The Japanese ones come close.

 

[Seedy Character]

Starrett
Mititoyo
Browne & Sharpe

All quality. Take care of them, they will last a lifetime.

 

[Cheesemaker]

I read the Mitutoyo reviews and ordered the Mitutoyo 505-742J from Amazon, as I need these pretty soon. Thanks for the comments.

I like the look of these too. Anyone know for certain they are Japanese made?

 

[Walkalong]

I fibbed, dang memory, I bought Mitutoyo digital calipers.....


Old Mitutoyo dial caliper.


I have an old Brown & Sharp set of both dial caliper and Micrometer in the wooden box. I need to take a pic someday.

 

[Master Blaster]

Starrett held up to decades of use for me.

 

[quartermaster]

Mitutoyos are very accurate. Beware of fake ones tho. There are many links online to identify the fakes.
I’m sure Starrett is great also. I have 2 of their micrometers and love them

 

[Docendo Discimus]

I have Starrett, Mitutoyo, and Brown & Sharpe. They are all nice but my favorite are the Brown & Sharpe. They are super smooth.

 

[LiveLife]

https://www.amazon.com/Brown-Sharpe-599-579-5-Resolution-Specifications/dp/B0002FTZMC/ref=asc_df_B0002FTZMC/?

Not US made. SWISS made

Ummmm ... Comments say these:

"... they stopped putting Swiss made on them ... They are no longer swiss made. They are now made in China."

"These are not the brown and sharpes of yesteryear! They may have the same same model number, but they are nowhere near as smooth, and definitely not made in Switzerland anymore. The description listed Switzerland as the country of origin, but that is wrong! After doing some research it turns out that production of the non ISO rated calipers has moved to China. The real Swiss made ones now have a new model number. Being Swiss made is a huge deal for 2 reasons; they’re Much smoother, and much more accurate! I’m a professional machinist ..."​

 

[JFrank]

I use I gaging digital calipers, they are more than accurate enough for reloading ammunition.

I don’t think a $200 set will make better ammo.

 

[Docendo Discimus]

I bought these in 1998. They were still made in Switzerland then. Maybe the new ones are junk, I don't know never tried them.

 

[Jim Watson]

I do ok with a cheap dial caliper, I figure $10 of its $40 price was for the RCBS trademark.
For the fiddly little bits, I have a pawn shop Starrett micrometer.

I also have a really cheap plastic digital. It only reads to hundredths but is a lot easier than peering at a finely graduated ruler.

 

[JSneezy]

I started off with a set from Harbor Freight. About 6 months later I caught a set of Mitutoyo on sale and jumped at the opportunity. I don't think I've as much as touched the Harbor Freight set since. The Mitutoyo is a lot more repeatable on results, smoother operation, and feel like more care was put into their assembly. They also seem to last a lot longer on one battery than the Harbor Freight set.

 

[edwardware]

For any precision tools I can't find antique made in Switzerland, Germany, or the USA. . . I strongly prefer Mitutoyo. They are a great price/value compromise.

I don't suggest dial calipers, being the worst of all caliper species, but you'll have to pick your poison. I would go vernier (requires excellent vision), or digital (more expensive).

 

[DeepSouth]

I use the Starrett’s my dad bought for trade school in 1969. He made a living with them as a machinist until he retired about 10 years ago… he gave them to me a couple years back, they still work well.