Mitutoyo digital calipers

[Dabbler]

I was out with @johnnielsen today and he wanted to buy a Mitutoyo Digital caliper off of Kijiji. We went to this guy's front door and he had an Absolute 8" in reasonable condition, working, and far more importantly not fake. I've seen guys try to sell a knock-off as the real thing, and they are pretty laughable (such as misspelling 'absolute', etc).

Anyhow, we buy it, and he says "Do you want another one?" we want to look at it, and he has a nearly new one that he sells us for the same price, in a box, etc. Again checked with an eagle eye for not fake.

Turns out he's a retired machinist that is selling off some stuff he doesn't use anymore.

All in all, a great day. Perhaps it is time to sell off my older 8" Mitutoyo that is the previous generation, as I now have too many digital calipers...

 

[whydontu]

One can never have too many Mitutoyo calipers…

 

[Mcgyver]

One can never have too many Mitutoyo calipers…

agreed. many times I've bought complete tools kit out and sold the duplicates but I usually keep the Mit calipers. Whatever I might get for them, it never seemed enough compared to the warm safe feeling of having a few around the shop and lots tucked away as back ups . I've had numerous Mitutoyo digital micrometer issues, but the calipers have always been rock solid

 

[Susquatch]

agreed. many times I've bought complete tools kit out and sold the duplicates but I usually keep the Mit calipers. Whatever I might get for them, it never seemed enough compared to the warm safe feeling of having a few around the shop and lots tucked away as back ups . I've had numerous Mitutoyo digital micrometer issues, but the calipers have always been rock solid

I love my mitutoyo calipers. But they do have one big fault. They don't turn off after a suitable time period. I often find them dead as a door nail. I bought a whole card (I think it's 50) of spare batteries for them. Like you guys, I have 4 - two in the barn shop and two in my small storage utility room downstairs in the basement. My wife calls it a man cave but it is hardly that. More like a handy little place to work in the house with a small workbench and a few cabinets.

I have a few other calipers I like too. I really like my KBC Fractions caliper. Quite frankly, I don't care if the quality isn't that great. I mostly use it to convert from metric and SAE to fractions of an inch instantly and easily. I just wish I could adjust the maximum precision - 128ths VS 32nds etc. But it's not a big problem cuz you can just nudge it to find the next number up or down.

To be honest though, my favorite caliper of all is my old Mitutoyo Vernier. I think it is 50 years old or so. It is still in mint condition with bullet proof accuracy. Despite (or perhaps because of) a digit career, I'm a big fan of mechanical readouts over digital. Digital can lie - mechanical never does.

Everybody talks about fake mitutoyo calipers, but I don't think I've ever seen one!

 

[Mcgyver]

I love my mitutoyo calipers. But they do have one big fault. They don't turn off after a suitable time period. I often find them dead as a door nail.

Everybody talks about fake mitutoyo calipers, but I don't think I've ever seen one!

hmmmm...could it be that you have? I've got several pairs and would say I get at least 2 years out of a battery. Its the low cost offshore ones that are notorious for battery consumption. I have tried the super cheap sr44 batteries places say Amazon sells....if thats the case it might be part of the problem. I've got the impression they die pretty quickly

 

[Susquatch]

hmmmm...could it be that you have? I've got several pairs and would say I get at least 2 years out of a battery. Its the low cost offshore ones that are notorious for battery consumption. I have tried the super cheap sr44 batteries places say Amazon sells....if thats the case it might be part of the problem. I've got the impression they die pretty quickly

I suppose it's always possible. So outside of the obvious spelling errors, what are the markers of a fake mitutoyo?

Yes, I bought the batteries on Amazon.

Truth is that they last a lot longer than I implied. It's not like I leave them on once and they are dead the next day. But I do have to replace batteries in my Mitu units more often than in my other calipers that turn off automatically. I don't think that should be. In my opinion, a top quality brand like Mitu should have an auto off feature. It's the only fault I have with them.

 

[Mcgyver]

So outside of the obvious spelling errors, what are the markers of a fake mitutoyo?

Not sure....but I always found it amazing that they could successfully copy and produce fairly well a complex item, high precision, electronic, plastics, machining etc. but they make a typo on the name! wtf? How does that happen?

I wonder if there is a way that they could use a block chain technology so you could readily authenticate things like this.

Edit, I suppose the typos may be intentional, getting caught with a container load Mitutotos is not getting caught....vs a container load of fake Mitutoyo's....that's counterfieting which can lead to a criminal charge and confiscation

 

[CalgaryPT]

I'd like to know the telltale signs of a fake as well. A year ago I did some box and pan work to build a drip tray for a retired engineer's BBQ. I wouldn't accept payment, so he gave me this 12" calliper:

 

[YYCHM]

Another not Mitutoyo - beware

My buddy was in the market for a Mitutoyo as there are sales on now through the regular CDN distributors. He mentioned Amazon being cheaper. He wasn't even after a caliper but I just happened to land on this 8". Read the 1-star reviews half way down. I was kind of surprised to see this, but the...

canadianhobbymetalworkers.com

Counterfeit Mitutoyo digital calipers

I posted about this the "must have tools" thread but I thought it might get missed there by someone buying Mitutoyo calipers from a questionable source. I bought a set on Amazon from a 3rd party vendor for a great price ($64). I was assured by the vendor before purchase that they were the real...

canadianhobbymetalworkers.com

 

[CalgaryPT]

Yes, shame on me. I should have looked first. Thanks Craig.

 

[DPittman]

I bought a fake mitutoyo caliper a while back off Amazon and although I've never had the real deal to compare it with, my fake seems like a well built thing and it's as accurate as anything else I've owned HOWEVER the damn thing doesn't have auto off and for that reason it sits in the drawer and is seldom used.

 

[Tom Kitta]

I am still looking hard to find a set cheap. I want to compare them to the Chinese ones I have. Through I doubt they are much better then a quality made Chinese calipers - maybe they last longer in use?

If you check your not junk calipers against a gage block and have a good finger pressure the China stuff is not bad - I would say main complain is fit and finish on cheap ones followed by battery life followed by "maybe" durability. Some may complain about the need to zero more often as well. Actual measuring capability of *digital* not junk calipers from China is excellent, same as DRO. Note this applies to *digital* stuff not mechanical.

 

[PeterT]

Just like there are tricky fake Mitutoyo's there are also fake 'brand name' SR## batteries on Amazon/Ebay. Or sometimes they are real Panasonic for example, but past or approaching best before date. If they specify the date then you need to ask, don't assume. I bought some of those at very good price so the cost metrics were still a good deal. But you have to watch batteries in general because potential leak can make it a more expensive proposition.

For reference I get +2 years use on my Mitutoyo calipers pretty much daily use & many, many forget to turn the switch off. On my lesser used ones like Asimeto or Fowler I just take teh battery out, no big deal. Fake calipers can be hard to detect. The only safe way is but from a tool supplier/dealer. Having said that, there are some perfectly good medium priced brands. Clough42 has a good YouTube episode on this topic specifically.

 

[Tom Kitta]

Just like there are tricky fake Mitutoyo's there are also fake 'brand name' SR## batteries on Amazon/Ebay. Or sometimes they are real Panasonic for example, but past or approaching best before date. If they specify the date then you need to ask, don't assume. I bought some of those at very good price so the cost metrics were still a good deal. But you have to watch batteries in general because potential leak can make it a more expensive proposition.

For reference I get +2 years use on my Mitutoyo calipers pretty much daily use & many, many forget to turn the switch off. On my lesser used ones like Asimeto or Fowler I just take teh battery out, no big deal. Fake calipers can be hard to detect. The only safe way is but from a tool supplier/dealer. Having said that, there are some perfectly good medium priced brands. Clough42 has a good YouTube episode on this topic specifically.

I heard one of the best points of the Mitutoyo brand nowadays is its battery management - Chinese stuff eats them at least 4x as much - not a big deal with today's prices of button batteries but just annoying. Simply components used are more power saving.

 

[Dabbler]

my favorite caliper of all is my old Mitutoyo Vernier

I've had my Mit Vernier for 40 years or more. First measuring instrument I bought, and I love its feel - I prefer the digital ones because the fine lines are getting harder to read on the old vernier.

I now have 6 and 8 inch Mits, 2 very nice 6 inch igaging ones, the mechanical, and the old generation 8" Mit. I was thinking I could free up drawer space and sell the old 8" Mit. It is one I fixed up from JohnN, and I thought I'd give him the proceeds - he has at least 10 calipers, by my count...

Actual measuring capability of *digital* not junk calipers from China is excellent

Several people including AVE, Blondihacks, outsidescrewball (and many more) have done the accuracy and quality check on offshore fake calipers - they do well in the testing, and some of them are well made. I just felt that if I'm buying a used Mit caliper, I should get a real one....

The only safe way is but from a tool supplier/dealer

Agreed.

Chinese stuff eats them (sic batteries) at least 4x as much

Some of the newer ones from banggood and other (including igaging) seem to have mostly fixed this problem

 

[PeterT]

Chinese stuff eats them at least 4x as much - not a big deal with today's prices of button batteries but just annoying. Simply components used are more power saving.

The problem is some yes, some no. There is really no way to know. I think they are slowly getting better on average from what I hear. The only reason I keep the cheapo around is rougher duty like scribing lines & things you should not be doing with your good ones. Just remember on the cheapo to pre-close the jaws & click zero & hope the LCD numbers don't fade off into the sunset...again.

On another note, maybe it's my own impression vs reality - you don't hear people complaining as much about knock-off digital micrometers. Maybe they did a better job cloning or the current drain is lower. But the cost spread is significantly higher. I bought a Shars thread mic & so far so good. Not a battery eater, I love that I can click back & forth between IMP & MET so can do both threads. Came with full set of 60-deg anvils but you can buy other thread forms. Now a Mitutoyo version of that is BIG bucks, at least not in my budget. I've watched Ebay for years & people just know what they are worth, even a dirty one with missing pieces.

 

[Dabbler]

I bought a Shars thread mic

On my wish list. Thanks for the short review - I wondered if it was a good value.

I know a lot of guys use thread wires, but most of my measuring is for instrumentation threads, where 48 TPI is a coarse thread. A good thread mic can do these easily and using wires for very fine threads has me pulling my (remaining) hair out.

 

[CalgaryPT]

Intellectual property law, despite treaties such as the Berne Convention (of which China (LOL) has been a signatory since 1992), is completely unenforceable internationally. It exists for diplomatic purposes only because the individual patents make terrific bargaining chips for bigger economic issues such as tariffs, immigration, foreign debt, etc.

The lawyer who used to do my patent and trademark stuff worked in Asia for years. He always said the best protection you can buy is called speed. Get to market fast, make your money faster, and assume someone is working harder than you in a Chinese sweatshop copying your product. And if this bugs you—suck it up buttercup, because this is the world we live in.

What you don't read about in the context of the few big international settlements awarded by the courts is that rarely does any money change hands after the judgement. Instead, settlements are used like carbon credits—traded by diplomats in bigger disputes, and used as tax credits by companies for share value.

In the pharmaceutical world many diseases likely would be wiped out entirely if intellectual property laws did not exist and you could legally improve on existing products free of charge. But it's a double edge sword because without the guaranteed right of exclusivity afforded by a patent, there is no incentive to innovate...at least as long as money is the primary factor incentivising human beings.

I was recently having a conversation with another forum member about Princess Auto small engines, which are clear knockoffs of Honda engines, but with a handful of improvements in fact. You can bet Honda then incorporates these into their designs in one way or another, and the cycle continues. It's fascinating to imagine the technical improvements to almost every product out there if there were a moratorium on patent rights for a period of time. This is another thing to add to my "To Do List" when I'm in charge of the planet I suppose.

But first on the list will be to ban Cowboy Poetry...that's simply got to go.

[/RANT]

 

[DPittman]

Intellectual property law, despite treaties such as the Berne Convention (of which China (LOL) has been a signatory since 1992), is completely unenforceable internationally. It exists for diplomatic purposes only because the individual patents make terrific bargaining chips for bigger economic issues such as tariffs, immigration, foreign debt, etc.

The lawyer who used to do my patent and trademark stuff worked in Asia for years. He always said the best protection you can buy is called speed. Get to market fast, make your money faster, and assume someone is working harder than you in a Chinese sweatshop copying your product. And if this bugs you—suck it up buttercup, because this is the world we live in.

What you don't read about in the context of the few big international settlements awarded by the courts is that rarely does any money change hands after the judgement. Instead, settlements are used like carbon credits—traded by diplomats in bigger disputes, and used as tax credits by companies for share value.

In the pharmaceutical world many diseases likely would be wiped out entirely if intellectual property laws did not exist and you could legally improve on existing products free of charge. But it's a double edge sword because without the guaranteed right of exclusivity afforded by a patent, there is no incentive to innovate...at least as long as money is the primary factor incentivising human beings.

I was recently having a conversation with another forum member about Princess Auto small engines, which are clear knockoffs of Honda engines, but with a handful of improvements in fact. You can bet Honda then incorporates these into their designs in one way or another, and the cycle continues. It's fascinating to imagine the technical improvements to almost every product out there if there were a moratorium on patent rights for a period of time. This is another thing to add to my "To Do List" when I'm in charge of the planet I suppose.

But first on the list will be to ban Cowboy Poetry...that's simply got to go.

[/RANT]

I'll vote for you. I'm glad to hear someone else with some gumption and common sense has the desire to lead the planet as it should be. I was getting more worried that because I hadn't yet succeeded at being the Supreme dictator of the universe, that everything was just going to be going to hell.

 

[Susquatch]

The lawyer who used to do my patent and trademark stuff worked in Asia for years. He always said the best protection you can buy is called speed. Get to market fast, make your money faster, and assume someone is working harder than you in a Chinese sweatshop copying your product. And if this bugs you—suck it up buttercup, because this is the world we live in.

I agree with everything you said. You summed it up nicely.

But your lawyer only has half the equation. The other half is secrecy. Many an invention created significant wealth without patenting anything. Patents require disclosure. Disclosure means everyone knows (unless you can get away with partial disclosure which rarely works).

I've made a pretty good side income in my life from royalties and patent sales. But I've made even more selling secrets.