Good General Purpose Mount For Test Indicator?

I had several indicator stands, all cheap imports, and it was always a lot of fussing around getting them in position and getting them tight enough to not slip during the indicating. After gronking them down a couple times, the snugs would then fail. Then I threw them all as far as I could. My first Noga, out of the box, was everything the others were not. Smooth, silky, repeatable, fast, and rugged. You just loosen the main knob, pull your indicator to where you want it, and lock it down. After a few uses, you can even get away with not using the nice fine adjust knob most of the time. I can deal with cheap tools, but there is no substitute for a Noga.
 
My experience is identical to Bob's, just re-read his post.

CHuck the grumpy old guy
 
Doubleeboy said:
I am guessing quality. Never had a problem with a Noga, maybe if yours last 20 plus years you will be the smart one, but somehow I doubt it. My rule on cheap tooling is .... if it has moving parts that need to fit well to perform well, spend the money on the good stuff or be prepared for a failure. Its kind of like buying stuff at Harbor Freight, if you don't mind the occasional failure it works out in the end. If you need it to work every day, every time, get the good stuff.

cheers
michael
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I bought 2 Noga knock offs on ebay a couple of months ago. They are well crafted and have good magnets and finish. However, they are quite stiff compared to the beautifully limber action of my genuine Noga. They'll function very well but they come with an advanced case of arthritis.
 
I only recently started using mag bases for my indicators. I have a Last Word Starret indicator I always used, either clamped to my tool holder or in the tailstock chuck. I have fat fingers and heavy hands and it's sometimes a PITA to try and zero out the dial with the mag base without it going all sorts of crazy on me.
 
My used lathe purchase came with a lot of tooling and lathe associated pieces and parts, also including a mini-mill with its load of pieces and parts.
Among all this stuff, were 3 magnetic bases and all sorts of movable arms that attached to the bases that were probably from grizzly. Once I was finally
able and knowledgeable enough to use this stuff, my first task was to simply figure out how to use a 4 jaw chuck. 98% of the frustration in learning to
zero in the 4 jaw was getting the **** indicator in position and keep it from wiggling around. What a PITA! I just knew that the problem was in my own
lack of experience in using these things. After 6 months or so of using these indicator arms and bases I just knew that it was my old man shaky hands
and poor coordination that were responsible for my frustration. Then I was over at a machine shop getting some milling done that was far to big for my
equipment and watched a true machinist use his indicators. WOW so quick and easy. I asked him to show me a little bit about holding the dial indicator
still while making measurements. His answer was "what type of base and arm are you using?" He laughed when I told him my story. His reply was NOGA!
I looked them up on line and thought that this was an awful price to pay for a home shop device. Then lo and behold, Santa Claus was benevolent enough
to send me a Noga of my very own. (thank you dear) The first thing that I noticed besides the beautiful workmanship, was the magnetic base that really
held on. More than 3 times the holding force of my other bases. The silky movement of the arm and its smooth fine adjustment was unbelievable.
I'm sold.
CHuck the grumpy old guy
 
My Noga arrived today. I haven't even put an indicator on it, yet am really glad you guys twisted my arm enough to make me buy it :)

Operation seems very smooth, and the magnetic base really does a great job of locking it down.

I'm sure I will wind up with a few of the import clones for one reason or another, but I also know that I will wind up with another one (and probably more) from Noga. Good stuff!
 
Cavediver said:
enough to make me buy it :)
I'm sure I will wind up with a few of the import clones for one reason or another
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I'm having a hard time following your logic here. If the imports don't come close to the overall function of a Noga, why would you spend any money on an import. Are you a glutton for punishment?
I have two Nogas and have NEVER regretted spending the $$$ on them. They work!
 
I have a few non-machining applications where they would come in handy. I could also see using them instead of those terrible helping hands gizmos when I need to position a wire, small clamp, magnifier, etc.

I just wrapped up a short session in my shop, reinstalling my lathe spindle. The Noga was an absolute blessing while trying to measure play along the spindle axis. Worth every penny.
 
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