# Fowler Internal Dial Caliper



## arlo (Feb 23, 2013)

At an auction yesterday, I bought two Fowler 52-553-001 dial indicators.  In several on-line tool catalogs, I learned that these are internal calipers and normally look like shown here.




My two indicators have only one arm and lack the screw adjustment shown on the indicator above.  Here are the ones I bought.



When I removed the steel cyliner on the back of the indicator, here's what it looked like.



My conclusion (guess?) is that the second arm is stationary and somehow mounts to the circular piece at the 4 o'clock position.  Does this sound right?  Is it possible to buy a replacement arm?  I didn't see any available at the sites I visited.  If I can buy a replacement, how does it attach?  There are three holes in the circular piece but they are not threaded.  In fact, at first glance it looks like they've got small rivet heads in them.  The second photo shows that the backs of the indicators are heavy steel cylinders.  What is the purpose of this?  The backs pried off pretty easily.  Are there a variety of backs used for different applications?  What is the purpose of the screw adjustor at the 10 o'clock position?

If I can not find replacement parts, it seems to me I could construct a bar with a fixed leg as shown here.  Well, I could make something a lot less professional looking.  Are there complications I'm over-looking?



I appreciate any comments.  Even if it's just that I've got more questions than a five year old.


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## Bill Gruby (Feb 23, 2013)

Is that a magnet on the back? ------ "Billy G"


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## arlo (Feb 23, 2013)

Bill Gruby said:


> Is that a magnet on the back? ------ "Billy G"



No, it's not.  When I first saw it, I thought it was a magnet, too.  My mill's dials are very difficult to read so I often use a magnet to mount an indicator to measure movement.  When I saw these indicators, I thought that using them would save me the step of finding the magnet.  I'm a novice and didn't know what a bore caliper was.


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## Big_John (Feb 24, 2013)

Fowler stuff is pretty much throw away. Fowler doesn't build anything themselves, it's all built on contract for them. Some stuff is OK, and some is crap. 

I haven't had much luck getting Fowler parts in the past. YMMV.


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