# Does watching YT scribing make you cringe?



## graham-xrf (Mar 6, 2021)

Not scribing scribing in general. I mean the kind I now often see on YouTube, where the Sharpie or layout fluid is there, and the point of the measuring caliper is used. The caliper is tilted slightly to get the other jaw over the edge of the metal, and he scrapes a line into the ink.

Sure - I get it that one might be using a Hong Kong eBay special bought for £8.50, and maybe you can scribe a line so gently the very loved Mitutoyo Analog Dial 6" won't care, but I still can't bring myself to do it!

For about the price of a cheepie digital, (the kind that can't return to it's zero), I got one of those vernier setting things with a roller and a carbide scribing rod sharpened as a one-side wedge.


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## Flyinfool (Mar 6, 2021)

I have an old Mitutoyo that I have been scribing lines with for 20+ years and there is no visible (or measureable by me) wear to the tips.

I also have several cheap HF calipers that also scribe just fine with no damage.

As long as you are only scribing ink and not trying to scribe the metal, it is fine.


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## benmychree (Mar 6, 2021)

Yes, it definitely makes me cringe, and I definitely think less of the folks doing it, it is not a workmanlike way of doing things.


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## mmcmdl (Mar 6, 2021)

I always use my old Tumico verniers for this . They're still going strong after 40+ years , but I also have an extra 15 or so good pairs that I would never use to do this .  Shop quality tools are just that , shop quality .


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## martik777 (Mar 6, 2021)

These are as good as the Mitutoyo's IMO: https://www.ebay.com/itm/6-Digital-...336551&hash=item2c5f505b03:g:LcAAAOSwzrlbbIFG


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## MrWhoopee (Mar 6, 2021)

I would never consider it. I use a combination square and scribe or surface plate and height gage for that purpose.


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## Superburban (Mar 6, 2021)

I'm not one to tell someone how to use their stuff. I have several, and enjoy old Dodge trucks. I hate to see people destroy them off road, but I do not have the money to buy the Dodges, and get the folks to go buy a ford, so all I can do is watch. Unless the folks work for me, or are using my tools, there is nothing I can say, but some day they will be sorry, or maybe they are too dumb to know what they are doing, in that case, ignorance is bliss. But, I also think there is a lot worse stuff on YT, then someone scribing with a caliper tip.    

This will make most anyone cringe, yet they do not care, they are making insane amounts of money from YT. Destroying a brand new truck is nothing to them.


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## mmcmdl (Mar 6, 2021)

This goes back to the shortcuts and secrets of the trade thread someone posted a while back . It's not something I would teach , but it's something I do regularly . I'm in charge of keeping production lines running . Most of these lines produce more $$$$ in a single day than I make in an entire year . Sure , the correct method would be Dykem it up , use the heigth gauge , pull out the protractors , combination squares and the trammels , scribe lines , then cut to a roughing state . You still have to finish machine it . All this is well and fine , if you're not worried or being watched for time . If a $5 set of disposable verniers will do the job , why not ? If you did this in any of the companies I worked for , you wouldn't last long . Time is money .


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## MSBriggs (Mar 7, 2021)

A tool made for this is "hermaphrodite caliper". The point can be easily sharpened, and even replaced.  The drawback is that the tool has to be set against another tool


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## Dabbler (Mar 7, 2021)

I do all the suggested techniques, as well as using my vernier to scribe a line.  I'm the only guy in my group that has multiple hermaphrodite calipers.  

-- When do I use my vernier?  to  lightly scribe softer materials, such as brass, aluminum or annealed steel.  In 40 years you cannot see the rounding over on an optical comparator.  If you need a deep scribe, the other techniques are superior.


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## graham-xrf (Mar 7, 2021)

Superburban said:


> I'm not one to tell someone how to use their stuff. I have several, and enjoy old Dodge trucks. I hate to see people destroy them off road, but I do not have the money to buy the Dodges, and get the folks to go buy a ford, so all I can do is watch. Unless the folks work for me, or are using my tools, there is nothing I can say, but some day they will be sorry, or maybe they are too dumb to know what they are doing, in that case, ignorance is bliss. But, I also think there is a lot worse stuff on YT, then someone scribing with a caliper tip.
> 
> This will make most anyone cringe, yet they do not care, they are making insane amounts of money from YT. Destroying a brand new truck is nothing to them.


That amounts to a car porn snuff movie! Yuk!

I think we live in a world where folk can indulge cringe-worthy stuff, making YT videos funded from their subscribers and adverts. They can even do quite expensive lifestyle stuff - like funding the sailboat that just goes from party to party around the Caribbean.
I wonder we benefit from valuable YT videos showing machinist-related stuff. Some are quite the production that would not happen without Patreon funds.

Am I a bit OCD because I try never to put a spanner down across any working parts of a machine, nor throw cutting tools like files together in a box?


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## vtcnc (Mar 7, 2021)

I guess the problem I have with this technique is accuracy. Hermaphrodite scribes are adjustable so the leg can set down on the perpendicular ledge from the surface you are scribing. No matter how you hard you try, vernier calipers will scribe a little short of your target because of Pythagorus. For example you would have a hard time scribing a bolt circle diameter on a tube using verniers vs a hermaphrodite.

I’ve tried using the verniers to scribe but don’t like it for that reason first and abuse of a precision measuring tool second.

With that said I have zero problem with anyone else using it. I can see it working for roughing and fabrication layout work when precision isn’t critical and if someone is ok using their tool that way then that is good with me.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## tq60 (Mar 7, 2021)

Depends on the level of work.

We have a couple no name dial calipers that we use for most everything in tinker and repair mode.

Real easy to do layout work, need to find the center? measure, divide x 2, mark from each end, lines do not match adjust and repeat...

A Sharpie leaves a good spot, light dragging leaves a nice scratch.

Yes, one could get out many more tools to take a lot longer to make the same mark with not that much more accuracy.

Accuracy that is likely not needed most of the time.

At work time is money, at home time is short.

Too many tasks to do in a limited day so one uses the "best" tool for the job being done to get the job done in best time.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk


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## Bi11Hudson (Mar 7, 2021)

benmychree said:


> Yes, it definitely makes me cringe, and I definitely think less of the folks doing it, it is not a workmanlike way of doing things.





mmcmdl said:


> It's not something I would teach , but it's something I do regularly . I'm in charge of keeping production lines running . Most of these lines produce more $$$$ in a single day than I make in an entire year .  .


In the past, I have worked "production" lines where my time was measured in "Dollars per *Minute*". My most recent job was in a steel mill casting slabs at 40"/minute with a produced value on the order of $100/inch. What that boils down to is *$4K/ minute*. If I could use poor techniques and spoil tools to keep that line going, so be it. There are things I would never consider doing in a home shop that saving a couple of seconds at work was worth more than the tool. 

It took 90 minutes minimum to restart the line if it shut down. If I could keep it going by throwing my drawers in the fire, I would do so. A "dial caliper" is a less precise tool than a micrometer. I have several, mostly second rate accuracy that I do use to mark plastics and "Sharpie" marks. I would never show someone as a way to measure, but I do it all the time. 

Yes, for a "hobby" shop, it makes me cringe, or worst yet, tune that person out as "professional". But, I do it myself on casual work with "casual" tools. Just like bridging a 240 Volt 100 Amp line with pliers. *Never* for me, but at work where time matters. . . 

.


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## NegativeK (Mar 8, 2021)

MrWhoopee said:


> I would never consider it. I use a combination square and scribe or surface plate and height gage for that purpose.


And you can quickly set a square with your calipers, if you want that level of precision.


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## Larry$ (Mar 8, 2021)

I'm guilty and will continue to be. Yes, it is less accurate than a ht. gage and granite which I have & use when required. A set of Fowler digital calipers doesn't seem any the worse for wear because of it. Crude? No, efficient!


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## vtcnc (Mar 8, 2021)

graham-xrf said:


> Am I a bit OCD because I try never to put a spanner down across any working parts of a machine, nor throw cutting tools like files together in a box?



Conscientious. Not OCD.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## MrCrankyface (Mar 8, 2021)

I quite frequently use my mitutoyo caliper to (carefully) scribe on dykem and similar and couldn't care less.
I have a hard time seeing how a hardened steel would be affected in any way by rubbing off some ink.
Sure, if you go full 240lb gorilla you're of course going to damage the caliper.
But looking at my track record, I break things from dropping them, not by using them in ways they're not meant to be used.


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## Lo-Fi (Mar 8, 2021)

It's really easy to forget that the moving jaw sliding away under the body leaves the perfect depth gauge and edge to be scribed against. Requires two hands, though.

That being said, I'm guilty of scribing in dykem with the pointy bits myself. Doesn't seem to do much harm to the hardened calipers, it's the accuracy that's more of a worry. And really, it's not hard to stone out outside edges to get the points nice and pointy...


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## rwm (Mar 8, 2021)

I confess I am confused by some of this. Is the correct technique to use a hermaphrodite caliper or a combination square and a scribe? Furthermore, how do you set the prescribed length on said device? I challenge the idea that using the point of a digital caliper would be less accurate than a hermaphrodite caliper. This would make a great video topic.
Robert


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## tq60 (Mar 8, 2021)

The line is not the final mark...

It is a reference.

If you are cutting to length one will cnfirm by measuring the work. 

Drill bits wonder more than the scratch error.

For hobby level work the error in method is far less than the tolerance of most hobby work for the specific task.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk


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## higgite (Mar 8, 2021)

I saw an Amazon ad for some Mitutoyo hermaphrodite calipers that actually says “Measures in both inch and metric units for versatility of use.”
https://www.amazon.com/Mitutoyo-950...=hermaphrodite+caliper&qid=1615216058&sr=8-29

I almost bought them, but I’m holding out for some that only measure in inches so as I don’t get too confused.

Tom


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## Dabbler (Mar 8, 2021)

@rwm Ergonomically it is easier to stay perpenticular to the sides with a hermaphrodite caliper, but that's jus a nit.  Either way, using one caliper or the other will yield similar results. I'd use the really  cheap ones to make my marks, but 1) I don't have a set, 2) cheap ones a very soft, and then damages is inevitable.  As I stated before, after hundreds of scribe marks, no damage to my Mit vernier, nothing visible, even under a microscope.


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## graham-xrf (Mar 8, 2021)

higgite said:


> I saw an Amazon ad for some Mitutoyo hermaphrodite calipers that actually says “Measures in both inch and metric units for versatility of use.”
> https://www.amazon.com/Mitutoyo-950...=hermaphrodite+caliper&qid=1615216058&sr=8-29
> 
> I almost bought them, but I’m holding out for some that only measure in inches so as I don’t get too confused.
> ...


My vernier version of hermaphrodite caliper manages to offer both inches and centimetres. 
The possibilities for confusion do, to some extent, remain.



Notice the inches scale is divided 1/128" instead of 1/1000", or 1/500", which is maybe sensible given scribe line thickness.
The metric 0.05mm is about 0.002". The imperial 1/128" is nearly 0.008"
I guess it more easily suits fractiony stuff in inches.
@tq60 is right in that the scribe line is to guide the eye when cutting. After that, you measure on the work directly as you go.


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## Bi11Hudson (Mar 8, 2021)

higgite said:


> I saw an Amazon ad for some Mitutoyo hermaphrodite calipers that actually says “Measures in both inch and metric units for versatility of use.”
> https://www.amazon.com/Mitutoyo-950...=hermaphrodite+caliper&qid=1615216058&sr=8-29
> 
> I almost bought them, but I’m holding out for some that only measure in inches so as I don’t get too confused.
> ...


While checking the advert, I noticed that there was an associated scale (ruler) that was also calibrated for Imperial and Metric. Metric must have been on the backside, I can't figure out how they got the point four of 25.4 out of /64ths. In any case, by buying the scale along with the calipers, you could get measurements in inches without confusion. Unless, of course, you had the scale turned over by mistake.


			https://www.amazon.com/Mitutoyo-182-105-Chrome-Tempered-Stainless/dp/B00027958O/ref=pd_bxgy_img_2/133-7104505-4400624?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00027958O&pd_rd_r=6f45fcb8-eca0-4bb6-ac39-1e861742d591&pd_rd_w=3j4zr&pd_rd_wg=AIYUo&pf_rd_p=f325d01c-4658-4593-be83-3e12ca663f0e&pf_rd_r=V6ZGPP4GMP381G1DMT2R&psc=1&refRID=V6ZGPP4GMP381G1DMT2R
		


I had a buddy who had some insight into such measuring. He would measure with a micrometer, mark the cut with chalk, and cut with an axe. I personally would have used a torch, but such differences is what makes the world go 'round.

.


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## Flyinfool (Mar 8, 2021)

OK, just for giggles to see what the error actually is. I figured using the caliper set to 2 inches and used a 1/16 hook over the edge.
The distance of the scribed line from the edge would be 1.999. Only an error of 0.001 inch. If you are machining to that scribed line or center punching for a hole it is dependent on how good you are at eyeballing that line. I am betting that spending an hour to lay it our "correctly" (Clear off the granite, clean it, get out the tools, set up and scribe the line, put the tools back away, cover up the granite) and then eyeballing the final machining will not get you any closer to the desired result. If you are not eyeballing the the final machining then why did you need the line in the first place?

The more you hang over the edge the more the error, the shorter the caliper set distance the greater the error, so everything is variable.
So even with the hermefrodite caliper, if your overhang varies 1/16" over the length of the scribed line, then you still have the same error as the veneer did. And with either letting the tool drift to not being perfectly perpendicular to the scribed line and the edge of the part will also add even more error.

I am now convinced that error is not a valid concern for whether or not to use a calipers for scribing a line in ink. As many have also pointed out that even under magnification there is no detectable wear to the calipers after many many years.


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## Papa Charlie (Mar 8, 2021)

In our world, there is nothing absolute. As has been well pointed out, when we have to get it running, we will do what it takes. I have done things with my tools that I would normally never think of but in production, time is money. It isn't just the loss of product but all the workers standing around and the bills continue. 

It all depends on where you are and what you are doing. Would I misuse a device that is for making precision tooling or doing measuring to confirm spec, no. Would I have one of those tools out on the floor for maintenance work, probably not. 

Now for the home shop, I don't see the need to abuse precision tools. That said one has to define "precision tool". It is a term used pretty loosely.


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## graham-xrf (Mar 8, 2021)

Flyinfool said:


> OK, just for giggles to see what the error actually is. I figured using the caliper set to 2 inches and used a 1/16 hook over the edge.
> The distance of the scribed line from the edge would be 1.999. Only an error of 0.001 inch. If you are machining to that scribed line or center punching for a hole it is dependent on how good you are at eyeballing that line. I am betting that spending an hour to lay it our "correctly" (Clear off the granite, clean it, get out the tools, set up and scribe the line, put the tools back away, cover up the granite) and then eyeballing the final machining will not get you any closer to the desired result. If you are not eyeballing the the final machining then why did you need the line in the first place?
> 
> The more you hang over the edge the more the error, the shorter the caliper set distance the greater the error, so everything is variable.
> ...


Tilt sine error, while theoretically there, was always so tiny it was never the issue.
It was the pressure under sharp points grinding away on a measuring instrument. Maybe unreasonable, but it rucks up my psychology.
Not nearly so bad as seeing the caliper as a handy adjustable spanner, which would be so gross, it would provoke more than a cringe that nobody would question. Umm - has anything like that been tried? Noooo - you kiddin'me!


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## Flyinfool (Mar 8, 2021)

I am sure that calipers have been used as an adjustable wrench, just like micrometers have been used as a C-CLAMP. 

Scribing a line in ink is nowhere near the other possible abuses that can happen. I am guessing the the pressure used to scribe a line in ink is less than the pressure used making a measurement as the tool is designed for. especially as you slide it around with finger pressure to get it all square for the most accurate possible measurement.


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## graham-xrf (Mar 8, 2021)

Papa Charlie said:


> In our world, there is nothing absolute.


I used to think that - but now?
After the struggles with knowing that even now, placing anything on this planet was always a matter of knowing the exact time (Longitude), we now have it that no fundamental units depend on any physical artifact any more, and our standard for length is based on the speed of light.

That being a speed, requires then we have a pretty good standard for what is a second. The clock makers have finally won! It used to be the NIST standard was good to one part in 10^15. They eventually got a second accurate to one in 300 million years. Now this has been surpassed, and nobody is really sure how accurate it is, but may well be less than a second in a time that exceeds the known age of the Universe!

With what I have, I still try to make it as good as I can get it. I have some stuff that is unnecessarily more precise than it needs to be


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## mikey (Mar 8, 2021)

Dabbler said:


> @rwm Ergonomically it is easier to stay perpenticular to the sides with a hermaphrodite caliper, but that's jus a nit.  Either way, using one caliper or the other will yield similar results. I'd use the really  cheap ones to make my marks, but 1) I don't have a set, 2) cheap ones a very soft, and then damages is inevitable.  As I stated before, after hundreds of scribe marks, no damage to my Mit vernier, nothing visible, even under a microscope.



Just for the new guys, guys like Dabbler who have been doing stuff for many years and know how to use calipers to scribe layout lines can do so without damaging a fine caliper. I have hard evidence that this does not apply to some other people. 

I bought a used 4" Mitutoyo dial caliper off eBay. It was really nice and worked fine. It even passed my calibration checks with my gage blocks BUT the edges of the tips are rounded enough to see with the naked eye and there is no question that these fine calipers were used by some bozo to scribe lines in metal, not ink. 

The lesson for me was to not risk my fine Etalon and Mitutoyo calipers for scribing. I bought a cheap Chinese digital caliper for scribing and then I try to use it with what little skill I have.


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## Dabbler (Mar 8, 2021)

@mikey thanks for the comment.  as I said above I only lightly scribe SOFT materials, which is why I've never damaged my Mit.  I have 2 iGauging calipers, and they have stood up as well.  In hard materials or rough cut steel stock I always use a carbide scriber.

Today I'm ordering a Mitutoyo 'absolute' caliper - finally a real measuring device!  my old Mit was a vernier - yes vernier - scale one.


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## mikey (Mar 8, 2021)

I don't know about you, Dabbler, but I'm old enough now that I absolutely love my Mitutoyo digital caliper. I bought a model 500-752-20 and the digits are large enough to see without glasses on. That thing is accurate enough to read dead on with Mitutoyo Grade 0 Cerastone gauge blocks - I was totally amazed! I mean, there was ZERO deviation from those blocks so we're talking at least a 4-6 microinch resolution, possibly better. I honestly don't think you can do better than a Mit digital caliper and for what it's worth, I think you're making a good decision.

I also checked my Etalon analog dial caliper with those blocks and it read dead on, too! Only thing is that I have to use glasses to read it nowadays ...   


​


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## graham-xrf (Mar 8, 2021)

Dabbler said:


> Today I'm ordering a Mitutoyo 'absolute' caliper - finally a real measuring device!  my old Mit was a vernier - yes vernier - scale one.


Oooh - and a touch of envy! I recently (at Christmas) purchased a Mitutoyo Absolute - for my daughter's significant other. I already have the IGaging OriginCal, but once I checked out the Mitutoyo, I think I knew that one day, the next caliper could well be that model.

The OriginCal, like the Mitutoyo, has that property of being able to read zero, relatively independent of the thumb pressure, but the Mitutoyo is that bit better. The OriginCal also lacks auto swicth-off, but uses so little current that it does not seem to matter much if one sometimes forgets.

My 350mm caliper is by Kanon, entirely mechanical. I would say comparable to Mitutoyo. I think I have a bit of a liking for stuff that does not depend on batteries! For @mikey , it has been mentioned in this thread that you can grind and stone on the back edges to restore the points.


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## rwm (Mar 8, 2021)

I have a Mitutoyo 500-752-20 and I like it. The only "problem" I have with it is that damn 4th digit in imperial that only reads 0 or 5. I never work in tenths. The extra digit always causes me to mis-read the number. If I put tape over it I can't read .01mm. Silly problem I know but I have ruined work because of this. 
Robert


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## Dabbler (Mar 8, 2021)

-- for the first 30 years all I had was a 10$ no name mic and that Mit vernier.  

Lately I've managed to obtain a set of Moore and write Mics, from 2-6" and now have it iGauging and the Mit calipers.  I now feel like I can measure almost anything!  (I also have  a cheap 16" digital, and a 24" analog vernier for the bigger stuff)

I'm not a fan of the really inexpensive offsore digital calipers.  I don't like the short interval for battery changes.  For a guy starting out, they'll do.  After all calipers are aproximators, and the real work is done with the micrometer.


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## rwm (Mar 9, 2021)

Ok Graham you talked me into this!



Now stop spending my money!

Robert


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## Braeden P (Mar 9, 2021)

hey guys you will need theses for that one job




__





						123Z-72 Master Vernier Caliper
					

Caliper in Finished Wood Case 72”, Heavy Weight, .001” Grad Case.




					www.starrett.com
				



I love spending other peoples money


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## graham-xrf (Mar 9, 2021)

Braeden P said:


> hey guys you will need theses for that one job
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Really!! ??
That's like enough for (say) a PM lathe AND a mill!
Also - there be no extra special technology for any part of it extending past the first few inches!
Nor would I put any much value in the "Finished Wood Case" as compared to a couple of pallet crates!




So .. No!


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## Lo-Fi (Mar 9, 2021)

Holy metrology, Batman!


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## Braeden P (Mar 9, 2021)

you will only need to win the lottery...twice to pay the thing off


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## Flyinfool (Mar 9, 2021)

With that length it is getting into the realm of at what temperature is the measurement being taken. It may be able to measure to .001 but I bet it shrinks or grows more than that with temperature change.


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## graham-xrf (Mar 9, 2021)

Flyinfool said:


> With that length it is getting into the realm of at what temperature is the measurement being taken. It may be able to measure to .001 but I bet it shrinks or grows more than that with temperature change.


It does make you think about what it takes to get a correct length on anything longer than about a metre.
The 12" steel rule I have says "Standard at 20°C". Suppose it's a bit chilly in the workshop - say 8C, and you are measuring something the whole 12" long. The rule would be 12x(20-8)x11.7E-6) = 0.00112" too short. Kinda defeats the point of bothering to print the standard on the rule.
OK then - say it's freezing! The ruler is 0.0028" too short. Could you see that on a ruler?

Said Starrett vernier might be "Stainless - Hardened" like all the best eBay Chinesium, which has a temperature coefficient that varies some, depending the grade, but if it were 316 with coefficient 16E-6/°C, then a 60 inches measure when it is totally freezing is 0.0192" too short!
In theory, you have to do some arithmetic when you use these things. Also, I don't even know if 316 can be hardened!

So what do you do when the thing is big? Say 7.3m (24ft)? You resort to photogrammetry, where you cover the thing in hundreds of little circle decals that cost about 15c apiece and there are invar bars and bar-code stickers. You take photos with a camera that has had it's imaging sensor "calibrated" so that image software can do "pixel trigonometry" between every pattern recognized centre.

(You have to zoom it).



All the kit plus software can be had for a price comparable to the 72" vernier, but then again, it's not made by Starrett.
Surely the advert is a mistaaike! Anyway - it's too unwieldy to scribe anything except maybe set out a circle for a garden pond! 

[Edit - The Batman reference from @Lo-Fi is acknowledged - I love it! ]


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## Flyinfool (Mar 9, 2021)

I don't think the price on the 72" caliper is a misprint. I found it on many websites for 14K and this is one of the "best" prices I found.




__





						Amazon.com
					





					www.amazon.com


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## higgite (Mar 9, 2021)

Flyinfool said:


> I don't think the price on the 72" caliper is a misprint. I found it on many websites for 14K and this is one of the "best" prices I found.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Starrett 123Z-72 Vernier Caliper - $11,670.40​Customer Reviews - Priceless

Tom


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## Braeden P (Mar 9, 2021)

This is the best review on that


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## graham-xrf (Mar 9, 2021)

Unreasonable!
I recently bought a old Starrett depth gauge for USD equivalent about $14.00 + $7.00 postage. Cleaned up, it is still dead accurate. It looks very well made. So who is still buying Starrett new now?

Maybe a 72" long thing has such a small market, it has to be made up as a special.
Even so - near 15 grand for a caliper is not going to encourage a bigger market.

Even a home hobby project to "extend" a caliper can beat that, and why bother when for small fraction of that ridiculous price, one can buy a glass linear scale, and 1 micron resolution DRO with all the trimmings.


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## rwm (Mar 11, 2021)

I think a good shop project would be to convert a digital caliper to a purpose built marker with a mini ball bearing and a carbide scribe. If you follow the design I posted before it would be fairly simple. Move the scribe against the bearing, hit zero and measure. I don't see a digital one available. I don't like the vernier marking on mine at all.
Robert


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## graham-xrf (Mar 11, 2021)

rwm said:


> I think a good shop project would be to convert a digital caliper to a purpose built marker with a mini ball bearing and a carbide scribe. If you follow the design I posted before it would be fairly simple. Move the scribe against the bearing, hit zero and measure. I don't see a digital one available. I don't like the vernier marking on mine at all.
> Robert


They are on eBay - quite expensive for what they are. One kind with the little wheel that woodworkers use, and the other looks like a sciber.
uk eBay links, but I am sure you can find similar in USA
--> Wheel marker - eBay
--> Digital Scriber - eBay


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