China telescoping gauge problem

[ericc]

Hi. I bought a pouch of Chinese made telescoping gauges from the dollar box at a garage sale. I have a few good ones, and reviews on the Internet say that the China ones are rough but workable. I noticed that one of the ends did not telescope in, and searched for a way to repair the gauge. There was a video on the Internet that showed how they work and how they are disassembled. Most people probably know this, so I won't explain, except I will note that the inner plunger has a slot along it that a pin rides in. The bottom of this slot must be very smooth, so that the pin can pinch the plunger and hold a measurement. If there are "potholes" in the bottom of the slot, the measurement will be thrown off as the pin is tightened. If the irregularities are large, some dimensions will be inaccessible for measurement. If the irregularity is a hole that goes all the way through the bottom, the pin will drop in, and the telescoping gauge will jam. This is what happened.

Pictures or it didn't happen.

 

[Nogoingback]

It's a good thing you only spent a dollar.

 

[ericc]

It's a good thing you only spent a dollar.

You bet, but I still hate wasting money. There was some other stuff in the dollar box. New York twist drill and CTD new packs and Swiss Grobet needle file kits. These turned out to be high quality and very nice.

I thought I was good with the TIG welder, but that hole is going to be hard to fill. Then, there's all those pits.

 

[pontiac428]

I hated my Chinesium telescoping gauges for a long time before breaking down and buying some German ones (at what felt like the cost of selling my upper row of teeth). They are smoother and work a lot better, but they are still fiddly telescoping gauges. A dial bore gauge solved it for me.

 

[rgray]

I thought I was good with the TIG welder, but that hole is going to be hard to fill. Then, there's all those pits.

Yep . Have had the same experience. Throw it away and search for a starrett in that size.
The larger chinese ones are somewhat salvageable, but the small ones are thin.

 

[MrWhoopee]

I've been ****** off since I discovered that my Starrett set (up to 6 in.) disappeared from my toolbox before I removed it from the business. Adding to the insult, they have my name prominently engraved on each one. After reading up, the Chinese made ones just don't look the attractive. I can live without them, having inside mics, etc., but it still pisses me off.

 

[savarin]

I was given a free set of those and soon found out why.
However with a bit of patience I managed to smooth them out with some 1000 wet and dry plus a bit of oil and they all work pretty smoothly now.
Mind you I have no experience against which to judge them from any other makes but they do the job for my fumbling.

 

[NCjeeper]

Looks like the end is flat and no radius. Or is that just the camera angle?

 

[mikey]

Watch eBay for a set of Yuasa telescoping gauges. They are identical to those sold by Mitutoyo but go for much less. I have a set of both brands and have compared them carefully.

 

[ericc]

Looks like the end is flat and no radius. Or is that just the camera angle?

It's the camera angle. The camera is a cheap cellphone with a loupe held against it. The ends are radiused fine.

savarin is correct about them sliding roughly, but that is not the main problem here. The pin falls in, and game over.