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Noga Clone
- Thread starter kingmt01
- Start date
- Joined
- Jan 9, 2013
- Messages
- 1,020
I got a Noga with magnetic base for Christmas. I now have relegated all other foreign devices I have to the back shelf. There is nothing like a Noga!
The magnetic base holds with at least 3 times the force of all the rest, and that arm! oh that arm! one twist of the knob and its as solid as a solid shaft, then a twist of the knob in the other direction and all of the movable joints are totally free to move wherever you need them. I have four of the "other' bases that I got with my used lathe and they just didn't hold worth a ****. Trying to get a dial indicator in the right position was a pain, and once it was there, every joint and even the base was prone to moving under the "great stress" of the dial indicator plunger! Then I got the Noga and there is no comparison, solid, easy to set up, and a real joy to use. solid as a rock. I thought that the cost was sort of high at roughly 3 to 4 times what the folks at Grizzly etc. charge for theirs, but.......... I see another Noga or two in my shops' near future, and I'm a real cheapskate .
CHuck the grumpy old guy
The magnetic base holds with at least 3 times the force of all the rest, and that arm! oh that arm! one twist of the knob and its as solid as a solid shaft, then a twist of the knob in the other direction and all of the movable joints are totally free to move wherever you need them. I have four of the "other' bases that I got with my used lathe and they just didn't hold worth a ****. Trying to get a dial indicator in the right position was a pain, and once it was there, every joint and even the base was prone to moving under the "great stress" of the dial indicator plunger! Then I got the Noga and there is no comparison, solid, easy to set up, and a real joy to use. solid as a rock. I thought that the cost was sort of high at roughly 3 to 4 times what the folks at Grizzly etc. charge for theirs, but.......... I see another Noga or two in my shops' near future, and I'm a real cheapskate .
CHuck the grumpy old guy
I've never been privileged to use a Nova. I'll agree the knockoff is shotty at best. But it sounds like mine is a little better then yours. I don't have to worry about it once it is mounted. It however won't mount on a 3" cylinder. My biggest problem is I over tighten it & pop it past the snap ring. That is why it is apart in the picture. I just went ahead & took pictures while it was apart since I remembered someone asking. I just made a Arbor for mine to mount in the collet of my mill. I ordered a second one from China the other day. For $11 I've been pretty happy with it.
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2014
- Messages
- 495
Have never had the opportunity to use a Noga, but completely understand the joy of using a high quality tool vs an inexpensive one. But even with that said, the knockoff Noga that Little Machine Shop sells is 1,000% better than the conventional two-bar indicator holder with the one vertical shaft and the one adjustable. You need 3 hands to operate those quickly, whereas the Noga and Noga knockoffs require only two. If there's no way to afford a Noga, at the very least the copy LMS sells is usable, and miles ahead of the two bar setup. Just my .02 worth.
