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Tool dial indicator rebuild/refurbs?

Tool
C

calgaryguy

Chris
Ive got an older Peacock .001 lug back dial indicator that needs some love. The mechanism is stuck and it needs a new crystal/glass.

Anyone know of a place that can get this working for me again for a acceptable price (vs new)?
 
I looked on ebay for Peacock dial indicators , it's a brand I'm not familiar with , what I did find out quickly is the prices are all over the place .

What I was going to suggest though is to cut your losses and get a new one , the price of refubishing a dial indicator might just exceed the price of a new one .

I've got an Asian dial indicator that needs work , it's a parts donor now .

I've got several dial indicators , some are Asian , some are not , the cheaper ones are almost sacrificial , if they happen to get damaged .
 
Gearhead88 said:
I looked on ebay for Peacock dial indicators , it's a brand I'm not familiar with , what I did find out quickly is the prices are all over the place .

What I was going to suggest though is to cut your losses and get a new one , the price of refubishing a dial indicator might just exceed the price of a new one .

I've got an Asian dial indicator that needs work , it's a parts donor now .

I've got several dial indicators , some are Asian , some are not , the cheaper ones are almost sacrificial , if they happen to get damaged .
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I have new ones. I've had this indicator in the family for about 40 years now and I'm kind of attached to it.
 
Thats why I'm asking. I know Keith Riucker has a guy in the Northern States he sends indicators to and I was curious if there was anyone up here that did the same.

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calgaryguy said:
Thats why I'm asking. I know Keith Riucker has a guy in the Northern States he sends indicators to and I was curious if there was anyone up here that did the same.

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Click to expand...
That would be good to know .

I've got a valve spring tester that would have been tossed in the dumpster had I not asked what they were going to do with it . It still works and was cosmetically in kind of grubby condition . I cleaned it up and painted it last winter when I was painting a few other projects . What I need is the bezel & the crystal .

IMG_1365.JPG

It's a nice red now .

I'm thinking I could find a suitably sized lid off a jar to make a bezel and maybe just use a glass cutter to make a crystal
 
Peacock is Japanese, imo decent enough quality. also imo, unless money doesn't matter because its a heirloom, you can't economically have these things serviced; servicing and shipping is greater than the value of the indicator (used). So, DIY is imo the best option

I can't tell from the photo, is the crystal missing or just in poor shape? Very often you can restore a crystal. Start at say 600 or 1200 emery and work up to 4000 then some brasso. You can get them as good as new. btw, new watch crystals are a couple of bucks (see ebay). If you need a larger one than available there (they are for watches & pocket watches) you can make one. (https://canadianhobbymetalworkers.com/threads/making-a-new-dial-indicator-crystal.5380/) but you will need a crystal press (or hobble something together)

95% of indicators I've serviced just need a cleaning. 4% have a crack jewel and 1% are whatever. Clean them like a watch, and DO not oil.....thats what gums them up.
 
THe photo above isnt my peakcock dial indicator. The crystal on mine was completely busted and is long gone. I think I may try DIY'ing the overhaul myself, but I wanted to ask here first. MR Tool Repair seems to do these for fairly cheap which is why I asked here if there was a Canadian equivalent. I think my Peacock could also use a new pointer installed which requires a a couple of watchmaker tools.
 
I realized after I posted that that wasn't the Peacock. There's various repair/calibration place that come up with a google search, they might be great but most of the time the shipping there and back is more than the value of the used indicator so I've never bothered. I thought there was one in Hamilton they guys were talking about recently. Do a search, I think there are few mentioned here but I can't place them. If you go DIY and I can help, just ask.
 
Is there anything fundamentally different between indicator crystals and watch crystals?

I would think that finding a watch repair place might be a lot easier.
 
Is there anything fundamentally different between indicator crystals and watch crystals?
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Nope, I've replaced many that way. As I said, they're a couple of bucks on ebay - the ones from China (which are perfectly adequate). The only challenge is that the largest size of watch crystal (for a pocket watch) isn't big enough; that's when you have to make one
 
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