What Did You Buy Today?

SouthernChap said:
Ah, okay, sorry, that sounds about right. I got the impression that the Facom calipers were much cheaper.

In which case, don't bother with the Clough42 video. It's really quite long, and really not that interesting unless one has bought counterfeit Mitutoyo Digital calipers!:grin:
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They are now, but not when I originally purchased :( ahh well.
 
ChazzC said:
That Albrecht chuck looks like it may be mounted on a sensitive arbor: arbor mounts in a collet and the non-rotating knurled ring allows the chuck to be pulled down to give very good feel when drilling small holes.
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That's what I thought when I first found it... but I can't get any movement at all out of the arbor. I'm still halfway convinced that it is a sensitive arbor... more investigation is needed.

To answer your first question... I gave $800 for all five boxes and all the contents. It wasn't a steal, but I think I did ok...

-Bear
 
dkemppai said:
My preference it is to make everything I can.

However, what is actually made varies based on the rate of return on my investment (time and materials). It's the economy of making something yourself, compared to just buying it outright.

Some projects have a really great 'bang for the buck'. Those are easy.

Some projects offer little to no return on investment, and those are harder to justify. (Unless you're laying around doing nothing, and have time to spare)

Some are just stupid to make. Something that you can buy for $10, but needs $20 in materials. Someone else has already applied the economy of scale to that project, just buy it!

Applying this approach, it's easy to decide what to buy vs. what to make.

I completely understand wanting to make everything. I question anyone who says it's the best use of their time to do so.
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This is usually my main consideration. My most recent project is getting a military generator up and running. The first part of the project was to change all the fluids and filters. That's when I found this particular unit uses now somewhat obsolete oil filters and a gasket specific to the Onan engine.

I tried finding the gasket(s) locally and online, but initially struck out. That's when I decided it might make sense to cut my own out of rubber stock. I went to the shop to see if I had the materials to make a punch and die, but no luck. Then it was back online to for check prices on stock. It didn't take long to find what I was looking for, but the prices were prohibitive to say the least.

Stock alone was going to be in the $150.00 range, plus several hours in the shop to make the punch & die set. Then I would have to spend another $30.00 on gasket material and some time to punch them out. I wasn't all that excited to spend $180.00 on materials alone for gaskets that cost between $.36 and $3.00 depending on where they're purchased.

As luck would have it, I was able to source the gaskets I needed from a supply house that previously said they were on back order. I ended up spending a little over $20.00 for half a dozen gaskets and shipping. If all goes as planned, they'll be here in a couple days.
 
WobblyHand said:
You sure it is real? Where did you get it?
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Bought it probably 10-15 years ago, MSC or something like that. It was before there were good knockoffs of this stuff, IIRC. Everything about it screams legit. Documentation, box all match my other legit Mitutoyo stuff. Fit and feel are just like you expect from Mit. Even little things like the circuit board visible under battery holder, gold plated circuit board pads, and gold plated battery spring contacts. This one eats a battery every few years, and that's about as often as I use it. The Mit calipers will go over a decade on the same battery...
 
projectnut said:
This is usually my main consideration. My most recent project is getting a military generator up and running. The first part of the project was to change all the fluids and filters. That's when I found this particular unit uses now somewhat obsolete oil filters and a gasket specific to the Onan engine.

I tried finding the gasket(s) locally and online, but initially struck out. That's when I decided it might make sense to cut my own out of rubber stock. I went to the shop to see if I had the materials to make a punch and die, but no luck. Then it was back online to for check prices on stock. It didn't take long to find what I was looking for, but the prices were prohibitive to say the least.

Stock alone was going to be in the $150.00 range, plus several hours in the shop to make the punch & die set. Then I would have to spend another $30.00 on gasket material and some time to punch them out. I wasn't all that excited to spend $180.00 on materials alone for gaskets that cost between $.36 and $3.00 depending on where they're purchased.

As luck would have it, I was able to source the gaskets I needed from a supply house that previously said they were on back order. I ended up spending a little over $20.00 for half a dozen gaskets and shipping. If all goes as planned, they'll be here in a couple days.
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Is it possible to machine an adapter that would allow the use of more common filters and gaskets? Asking for a friend....
 
Adaptors are available for more modern spin on filters. Unfortunately they cost around $150.00. They are quite complex and would be tough to duplicate without a print or part in hand.

To complicate things I have 6 of the old style filters in stock
 
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