# Indicator questions for first time buyer.



## Pinresto (Feb 2, 2015)

Hi All, 
 I'm new to my hobby machinist adventures and need a little guidance. I have a X2 mill and will be buying the lathe to match very soon. I'm focusing on tooling up at the moment but my wish list is getting longer by the day. I want to buy some indicators next but with so many things on the wish list I need to watch what I spend. Decent, entry level quality will be fine for now. I'm not splitting any hairs yet. I love old tools so I always look at the older stuff when its smart. Indicators are a deep subject for a noob. So I have a couple questions. First is brand. I'm familiar with the big names and I've heard many of the smaller ones but I don't always know who is known for better quality.  Below are the main brands I see when looking. Anyone care to put them in order of quality starting with the best?


The other question is a hypothetical. If you were buying a noob 3-4 indicators to get started with what would their characteristics be? Dial, test, travel, graduations, etc? I see so many variations I'm not sure what would suit me best.  I want to buy 3-4 indicators to cover the lathe and mill.  Ill be making small parts for my pinball machines and tooling projects to start with. I see them from .01 to .0005 and with very short to long travels. Different styles and sizes. 
Thank you for helping. It means more to a noob than you think. 

Another thought,
 should I buy new igaging, enco, etc indicators or a used better brand like Starrett? 


Enco 
harbor freight
Fowler 
Starrett
Igaging
Federal
Interapid
Mitutoyo 
Westward
Westhoff
Brown & sharp
Standard
Mueller
Peacock


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## darkzero (Feb 2, 2015)

What the "best" brand is opinionated. It's mostly personal preference. One brand might be "better" than another for a particular measuring tool but it could be vise versa for a different tool. Most any quality name brand will be good.

I personally like Mitutoyo so most of my measuring tools are Mitu. I have very few Starrett and the ones I have are older used. I can't recommend you on what brand you should buy for measuring tools but I for one would rather buy used quality name brand than new China.


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## dracozny (Feb 2, 2015)

well the general rule of you get what you paid for tends to hold true in this but there is always an exception somewhere. here is a couple links for you to consider 
http://www.longislandindicator.com/p14.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOQ724ep9GY


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## davidh (Feb 2, 2015)

my 2 C,  pretty much a matter of how much you got to spend.  i've done enco for a few things, fowler is good mytu is also good.  but higher chines stuff is also good.  i've purchased a raft of different mfg's tools and its really a matter of $$$$$ for the most part.   i figure why put a $10 saddle on a $2 horse for many things. . . .


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## Doubleeboy (Feb 2, 2015)

If you can find Interapid at a good price you cant go wrong.  I have dropped mine twice on a concrete floor, no damage still accurate and very sensitive.  Conversely I made the mistake of buying a Chinese test indicator that went **** up in weeks of delicate use.  Penn Tool has Interapid at good prices every so often.

michael


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## stupoty (Feb 2, 2015)

Thease are my most used indicators.



the mercer one with the cracked glass(plastic) is used for clocking table or sadle movement a lot. It reads 0.001 inch divisions.

the mitutoyo with no clock on it i use for 4 jaw set up it reads 0.01 mm /div 

The finger dial is a brand i cant read, its been better than the previous finger dial  i had as it auto reverse, I was always knocking the revers lever on the old one when i didn't meen to or set it up and realise it was the wrong way after getting it into possition.  The range on this is so small it's sometimes infuriating.

the finger dial indicator is used for indicating on a bore, inspection type stuff and occasionaly 4 jaw set up. It's 0.002mm /div

I've purchased all my indicators second hand and gone for decent brands , miti mercer starrett.  I've only had one arrive that was damaged(stupid packageing). And one i got as a "do er upper it "has 4 inch travel. Needs a gear replaced/fixig.

i have a nice mitutoyo digital clock but i don't use it a lot and when i do it's just for measuring on the surface plate, the digital ones arn't handy if ur trying to use for axis measurement as i don't get the same fealing with looking at numbers compared to concentrating on the rev count and zero mark.


Stuart


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## stupoty (Feb 2, 2015)

I forgot the picture, whoops


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## Holescreek (Feb 2, 2015)

Check Ebay for the best deals on used indicators.  Interapid is #1, B&S #2 and my surprising pick for #3 is Peacock. I've been using the same Interapid since 1981, still maintain calibration on it. My high precision  indicators (.0001 & .00005") are B&S.  We use Peacocks at work, they are extremely tough, easy to repair (factory workers are hard on measuring equipment) and hold calibration very well.  I've bought Interapids at flea markets for $50, steal of the day!


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## j1w2t3 (Feb 2, 2015)

don't forget to check pawn shops  I have got a few good deals there to


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## Dan_S (Feb 2, 2015)

Pinresto said:


> The other question is a hypothetical. If you were buying a noob 3-4 indicators to get started with what would their characteristics be? Dial, test, travel, graduations, etc? I see so many variations I'm not sure what would suit me best.  I want to buy 3-4 indicators to cover the lathe and mill.  Ill be making small parts for my pinball machines and tooling projects to start with. I see them from .01 to .0005 and with very short to long travels. Different styles and sizes.
> Thank you for helping. It means more to a noob than you think.



Id recommend you buy them in this order.
1) 1" travel 0.001" graduated dial
2) 0.03" travel 0.0005" graduated test
3) 0.125" travel 0.0005" graduated dial
4) 0.03" travel 0.0001" graduated test

1 & 2 will get you through almost any project, 3 & 4 come into play when you really need to nitpick something.


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## Bill Gruby (Feb 2, 2015)

Dan_S said:


> Id recommend you buy them in this order.
> 1) 1" travel 0.001" graduated dial
> 2) 0.03" travel 0.0005" graduated test
> 3) 0.125" travel 0.0005" graduated dial
> ...




 Absolutely all of those. I use #1 and #3 the most.

 "Billy G"


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## rgray (Feb 2, 2015)

The good stuff is Swiss. Get on Ebay and find swiss made indicators. Can be found for about the price of new Chinese.


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## Pinresto (Feb 3, 2015)

Two stellar links. I watched and read through them both. The Long Island link has a lot of good brand info. Thanks for those. 






dracozny said:


> well the general rule of you get what you paid for tends to hold true in this but there is always an exception somewhere. here is a couple links for you to consider
> http://www.longislandindicator.com/p14.html
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOQ724ep9GY


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## Pinresto (Feb 3, 2015)

Great info everyone. I'll use the info Dan_s posted on specs while looking. Between the brand recommendations here and on the Long Island site I'll know what to look for. Thanks everyone. I'm off to ebay.......


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## caster (Feb 3, 2015)

Dan_S said:


> Id recommend you buy them in this order.
> 1) 1" travel 0.001" graduated dial
> 2) 0.03" travel 0.0005" graduated test
> 3) 0.125" travel 0.0005" graduated dial
> ...



Using Dans suggestions you will be able to do most anything.  What I would suggest is a good magnetic base and test indicator holder.  My preference is a noga style holder which is simpler to set up. Get the appropriate dove tail holders for the test indicators.

Caster


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## Other Brother (Feb 3, 2015)

The indicator I use the most is an Interapid .0005" and I use it for machine alignments, checking turret alignments, tramming a test bar etc.  When I have to record machine specs on new installs such as squareness, parallelism, flatness etc I use a Mahr Millimess or Supramess indicator due to the tolerances.  When I have to set x-axis zero on a tool/turret or check a tailstock position I will use a Blake co-axial indicator.

It really depends on what I need to do.  You can't go wrong with a B&S, Interapid, or Mitutoyo .0005" test indicator for most set-ups.

Daryl


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## ki4byz (Feb 6, 2015)

One thing to consider if price is an issue is metric indicators.
  They can sometimes be less costly
  99% of the time you’re not concerned with the actual numbers, just the swing of the pointer.
  Myself, what I use,
  Travel indicators, what ever Enco has on sale
  Test indicators, Interapid  
  One big advantage with Interapid, .060 travel compared to the others .015, or .030 travel.


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## Jim2 (Feb 6, 2015)

Not a professional, never worked in a production, jobbing, or other machining job here.  From my perspective, I agree with ki4byz.  I've got two of the 1" travel Chinese indicators that I've used more than anything else.  They've worked fine for the last 10 years.  If they're not as good as the big names, I wouldn't know it.  I do have an older Federal 1" travel as well.  I bought it in lightly used condition for about the same price as the new Chinese.  It does seem to be a slightly better (bigger face) quality, though it has a tendency to stick more than the Chinese indicators.  

I also bought a used Starrett No. 196A back plunger style in the case w/ all the accessories that ended up being kind of a waste of money.  It cost more than any of the others, it has very limited travel (don't remember how much, maybe 0.100"?), and it sticks so bad that it hasn't been out of the box for the last 8 years at least.  

I also have the 0-15-0 test indicator of Chinese make.  It's 10 years old, and has never missed a beat.  I use it frequently, but I'm under no illusions that it is as nice as an interapid or other fine make.  Some day when it fails, I'll replace it with something nicer.  I do notice that the needle will jump 0.0005" when I change direction when I'm lining up the vise.  That would probably drive others nuts, but I'm used to it?

I think a good base is more important than the indicator.  I bought a cheapie when I started machining.  The cheap plastic knobs broke off the first week.  I made some knurl nuts to replace them, and got by that way for over 5 years.  It was always difficult to adjust and just plain hard to use.  I finally got tired of the frustration and bought a Noga.  It's night and day difference!  If it was me, I'd save the money on the indicator and spend it on the mag base and holder!

Jim


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## Brandon1 (Feb 6, 2015)

Buy once cry once. Sometimes it is cheaper to spend more than less. As I get older this seems true more often than not.


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## chips&more (Feb 6, 2015)

An Interapid would be my first choice. And I like Starrett stuff, but their  Last Word indicator is not one of them…Good Luck, Dave.


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## Dan_S (Feb 6, 2015)

Pretty much all of my measuring equipment is Mitutoyo, as to me is seems like the right blend of price, quality, & features.


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## janvanruth (Feb 7, 2015)

if you cant find second hand swiss try second hand german


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## Pinresto (Feb 8, 2015)

Thanks for all the input everyone. I ended up buying a SPI height gage from ebay for $70. From Craigslist I bought a Starrett 25-111, .0001 w/.025 range and a very old Starrett last word 711-f. I paid $50 for the pair and they seem to  work great. I'll buy a shars with 1in of travel just to round out the bunch. I appreciate all the guidance.


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## coolidge (Feb 8, 2015)

Just beware that China is cranking out counterfeits Mitutoyo for one.


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## darkzero (Feb 8, 2015)

coolidge said:


> Just beware that China is cranking out counterfeits Mitutoyo for one.



And those are easy to spot & easy to avoid.


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## Round in circles (Feb 8, 2015)

Brandon1 said:


> Buy once cry once. Sometimes it is cheaper to spend more than less. As I get older this seems true more often than not.



When you get to my age it's a toss up whether you'll outlive the cheap and nasty one :roflmao:


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