Bradells
(BRad)
In my quest for a longer 'poor mans DRO' I found some inexpensive 8" Callipers from the Jungle Delivery Specialists. Seeing 2 ads for what I presumed to be the same device, I decided to see if one was worth the extra $1 or not.
They came in the same packaging...
Nearly identical ... think they're the same?
Well, they are, and one is not worth the extra dollar it was charged for. In fact, they were not even worth all the dollars they charged them for.
First thing, I couldn't get the same reading 3 out of 10 times trying to 'zero' out the calliper. This is probably caused by the extremely poor fit of the reader on the scale. Also the depth reader part was flopping around like a fish.
They've changed how they do the callipers, making them easier to produce by using a very small, but very wide head screw to 'capture' the rod, rather than the 'old' way of using a separate part to 'saddle' the rod in place with 2 screws and the extra bit.
Lastly, it didn't have a direct access to the output pins for an eventual external display. Being the case was all metal, I didn't feel like pulling it apart rather than using their great return policy.
Oh well, back they go.
For more fun, I ordered the next expensive 8" calliper. It had a more usual plastic body to the reader.
It showed up in very similar packaging as the last attempt .... this made me very skeptical ... but since it was green, clearly there is someone else checking over the QC.
The display is your usual. The previous ones would do fractional inches for the wood working crowds, this one doesn't (and I am fine with that!).
It still has the new trend of lesser digits being smaller than just the last digit, but it is clearer than the previous callipers, and doesn't bother me that much (....yet).
It also has the 'new' style of keeping the depth rod in place. This one has very little to no slop.
But sadly, where previous callipers would have a removable rear section exposing the output pins, this one does not.
I guess when the time comes, I'll just 'peel' back that small bit of plastic to expose the pins (hopefully).
I placed it on the bed of the lathe, and I think it will work nicely .. just need to make some brackets to mount the scale off the casting, and a bracket to have the head follow the carriage. Also, need to figure out where to start the scale in relation to the head for the most useful movement of the carriage.... Both for lathe work, and milling (as it is the same base for both operations ... just move the spindle onto a Z slide).
Brad
They came in the same packaging...
Nearly identical ... think they're the same?
Well, they are, and one is not worth the extra dollar it was charged for. In fact, they were not even worth all the dollars they charged them for.
First thing, I couldn't get the same reading 3 out of 10 times trying to 'zero' out the calliper. This is probably caused by the extremely poor fit of the reader on the scale. Also the depth reader part was flopping around like a fish.
They've changed how they do the callipers, making them easier to produce by using a very small, but very wide head screw to 'capture' the rod, rather than the 'old' way of using a separate part to 'saddle' the rod in place with 2 screws and the extra bit.
Lastly, it didn't have a direct access to the output pins for an eventual external display. Being the case was all metal, I didn't feel like pulling it apart rather than using their great return policy.
Oh well, back they go.
For more fun, I ordered the next expensive 8" calliper. It had a more usual plastic body to the reader.
It showed up in very similar packaging as the last attempt .... this made me very skeptical ... but since it was green, clearly there is someone else checking over the QC.
The display is your usual. The previous ones would do fractional inches for the wood working crowds, this one doesn't (and I am fine with that!).
It still has the new trend of lesser digits being smaller than just the last digit, but it is clearer than the previous callipers, and doesn't bother me that much (....yet).
It also has the 'new' style of keeping the depth rod in place. This one has very little to no slop.
But sadly, where previous callipers would have a removable rear section exposing the output pins, this one does not.
I guess when the time comes, I'll just 'peel' back that small bit of plastic to expose the pins (hopefully).
I placed it on the bed of the lathe, and I think it will work nicely .. just need to make some brackets to mount the scale off the casting, and a bracket to have the head follow the carriage. Also, need to figure out where to start the scale in relation to the head for the most useful movement of the carriage.... Both for lathe work, and milling (as it is the same base for both operations ... just move the spindle onto a Z slide).
Brad
