# Poor mans DRO



## Charley Davidson (Jul 2, 2012)

I added another feature to my indicator holder, I fitted my digital calipers to it so I can get an accurate measurement on my X axis as there are no markings on that wheel. I also started working on details to attach it to my mill quill. Right now I'm taking a :coffeebreak: went in at 4am as it's cooled off a bit (under 100)hew:

It's actually a really cool devise, as in everything I build it needs some revisions. I'm gonna use a strong rubber band to make it work when moving the saddle towards the tail stock, It also can be mounted on the other side of the saddle if need be. I can zero it out at any point and will read from zero in both directions.


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## jumps4 (Jul 2, 2012)

nice charley i did the same it works well except on fast feeds it's a bit slow to update
one thing i have noticed about the hf calipers is they are not all the same the memory is not available in a lot of new ones. if they time out and turn off they will start at zero instead of the last location.the memory is nice for making a lot of parts the same without rezero. I open the box and check first now. the guy at the store didn't like it untill i replied how many times do you want to make out return forms because i'll return it untill i find one that works. oh and wrap it in saran wrap if you want it to last, i forgot and spray cleaned my lathe killed a 12" and a 6" and a 4" all in one cleaning duhhhh
steve


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## Charley Davidson (Jul 2, 2012)

Thanks for the tip.  I'd like to find some cheap digital height gauges to make some DRO's out of for both the lathe and mill.  My eyesight is terrible and getting worse so I have a hard time reading the dials plus the dro's eliminate backlash issues.


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## xalky (Jul 2, 2012)

Thats why DRO is so nice. Backlash becomes a non-issue. For that reason alone they are worth every bit of effort to implement. They're also nice when working off a print, the time they save not having to calculate distances is unreal. I have an x/y on my Bridgeport but I dont have anything on my lathe yet. I don't think I'm gonna waste too much effort upgrading my little SB9 to DRO. When I get that 13x40 that drops down from heaven...you can be sure i'll spend the money to get DRO on it.

Marcel


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