Decent vernier height gauges ?

Clive

With all due respect you are assuming a component failure therefore speculating that all electronics will fail. I am no expert but I have electronic devices dating back to the seventies that still work very well, I have always believed that as in mechanical engineering there are tolerances which have a great influence on the life span of a component and equally the cost and that the same is true of electronic engineering.

I do not believe the electronics used in the likes of an aircraft is deemed guaranteed to fail neither do I accept modern electronics are disposable simple for the reliability, its more because of the rapid advances and the modern believe we must have the latest model even if the one you have is fit for purpose. although this is not generally the case in the home workshop

There's also the issue of lead free solder, which has much lower longevity and reliability than the old sort. It's no surprise that leaded solder is still permitted for medical, military and aerospace purposes, and that solder joints are being designed out where possible.

Edited By jonathan heppel on 15/11/2013 11:32:09

.

I am surprised, and a little disappointed, that no-one chose to challenge this deliberately provocative comment.

Whilst it is true that the Vernier scale is an Analogue device ... the very process of reading it involves a subconcious act of AtoD conversion, and our resulting interpretation is Digital.

[So far as I am aware, it is impractical to interpolate a reading to better resolution than that prescribed by the scale.]

It should not, therefore, be "beyond the wit of man" to devise an instrument that used the Vernier "mechanism" but then used opto-digital methods to determine which pair of marks was [most nearly] aligned. ... The result [now in the digital domain] could then be presented digitally; on a local display, or output to computer.

MichaelG.

Don't mind me, I'm just pondering.

I don't know what you mean by "half baked eastern junk" - I can only speak from my own experience.

I had a 12" digital height gauge as a Christmas present from my wife four or five years ago. THIS one I think. It is, and always has been, fine. The issue of batteries is really irrelevant. I buy packs of SR44/LR44 ( the common type for digital scales) from e*** ( not the cheapest available but branded and dated versions) so I always have spares to hand. When I get down to my last pack I order some more. The height gauge does not eat batteries - provided it is turned off after use! ( although it does have an "auto off" function too. In this state if you press the ON button it has remembered the previous setting.)

There is one distinct advantage with the digital version. If you have a series of marks to make - lets say 12.5mm, 21mm, 3.5mm etc. there is no need to work it out (ie 12.5, 33.5, 37). Just press the reset after making each mark - 0.000 is displayed  - then raise by the required amount.

Pressing the in/mm button converts the reading between Imp/metric

The biggest advantage of all though is that it is MUCH easier to read!

I like it!

Norman

Edited By NJH on 15/11/2013 13:52:25

Why challenge a true statement?

Also, vernier has become vernacular of very vague veracity for various diverse devices

Edited By jonathan heppel on 15/11/2013 14:06:13

I thought that would be obvious from what I wrote later:

Whilst it is true that the Vernier scale is an Analogue device ... the very process of reading it involves a subconcious act of AtoD conversion, and our resulting interpretation is Digital.

MichaelG.

.

Very true, Jonathan

... But let's not encourage such abuse of the man's name.

MichaelG.

Reasonably prices Chesterman 12" one on Homeworkshop I see, get it while you can.

J

.

Absolutey the right attitude Wallace !!

Unfortunately, your eyesight will probably deteriorate before the instrument. ... which, I think, is the main reason why people like the digital readout.

MichaelG.

The onset of winter cold has sent all my digital calipers wobbly Happens every year - fresh batteries should cure!

Grahams 'micrometer' design could be modified to include a rotary encoder (think the sort fitted to some mini-lathe cross and top slide handles), making a digital height gauge within the scope of home construction, but in that case why not modify a digital caliper?

Neil

I own two vernier height gauges, an unamed 10" harden statinless steel which I bought at a second hand stand at the Model Engineer show some 25 years for which I paid £90. A few years later when the factory that I was working at was closing down I bought a 24" Benson for which I paid a princely som of £12. I do have and use digital calipers and the problem that I found is that they don't tend to like the climatic conditions in my workshop where they frozen in winter and cooked in the summer.

One should note, that though you may have pressed the 'OFF' button the caliper has not really switched off but gone into sleep or battery save mode. The typical temperature operating range for these devices is 0 deg C to +40 deg C. I have lost a couple of digital calipers that did not survive the winters, so that now I either remove the battery when I leave the workshop or generally I keep the calipers in the house and take them to workshop as and when I need them.

As my eyesight is starting to go to pot I, reading verniers I now have to use a magnifying glass, whereas with digital I no problems. My biggest bug bear with the cheaper digital calipers is that they will not remember the last reading when they switch off, i.e when you on again the reading is zero irrespective of setting of the jaws of the caliper (and in metric and not imperial that I normally use).

Regards

Luigi

I don't want a digital height gauge. My reason being that, my experience of cheap digital equipment has been negative. The aldi/lidl calipers and a few other bits i have bought over the years have all perished because of cold or getting coolant or oil or something else on them , that sends the display crazy, usually at the time you need them most. Seeing as engineers all the way from Henry Maudsley and his governor micrometer ,to really only the past couple of decades have managed to scrape by with non-digital metrology equipment, i think i'll be fine with a good quality vernier version.

P.s. I am not completely anti-digital, the good quality (read expensive) stuff is good i know, i have a mitutoyo calipers that are excellent, but i do not want to spend mitutoyo money on a height gauge.

Isn't that what I said? Except that you misunderstood what I said, I think. RR would have prepared a list with associated standards, (accuracy, reliability, support, training required etc etc) then sent that to 3 or 4,or more, suppliers. Then having laid out the requirement, check all the responses for compliance with the requirement. Then buy the cheapest of the responses. I know that RR are generally held up as the Gold Standard for all things Engineering, but I doubt if they have an equipment purchasing system that's markedly different to anywhere else in the World.

cheers

Bill

Edited By Bill Pudney on 16/11/2013 01:51:19

Regardless of choice of Height Vernier Chronos are offering a discount at the moment, why not use it?

No connection with Chronos apart from an occasional customer.

Clive

Just want to say that I am in no way against digital devices, and that there is some really quite good kit coming from a few Chinese manufacturers, though by no means all. If I gave the opposite impression, it was because I was defending my belief that ultimately electronics cannot be expected to have the same longevity as more traditional kit. I also championed their ease and speed of use in an earlier post.

I can't easily see a vernier, so I wouldn't have a height gauge, but on the rare occasion I want to measure anything over 12", I love to dig out my 25 quid Etalon 21* verniers and jeweller's loupe.

Verniers tend to be overlooked, and as a result there are some fabulous bargains to be had. You have to spend a great deal of money for similar but more modern quality.

Those with an interest in Verniers per se might like this:

My "Travelling Vernier Microscope" can be configured horizontally or vertically ... and, with the appropriate choice of Object Glass can measure close-up, or across the room.

At great distance, the resolution is [obviously] limited by the optics; but the Vernier scale reads to 0.01mm

... although it must be said; it's not particularly easy to read !!

.

.

I have put more pictures in an Album called TVM.

MichaelG.

Not so! Height gauge extremely useful to measure height of top of workpiece above cnc mill table!