Bought a $400 digital height gauge, still use my old mechanical one

Thought the fancy Mitutoyo digital would speed things up on the mill. After 3 weeks of swapping dead batteries and fighting with it in coolant mist, I grabbed my old trusty dial indicator off the shelf. Anyone else find the digital stuff isn't always worth the upgrade?

2 comments

2 Comments

lane.joel11d ago

Know a guy who bought a fancy digital height gauge for his shop, top of the line. Kept it in the drawer after the second time the battery died mid-job and he lost his zero. He told me he spent more time cussing at it than actually using it. Swears by his old mechanical one now, says it just works no matter what. Kinda makes you wonder why we keep chasing the newest gadgets.

skylerm5511d ago

Wait, you're telling me @lane.joel's guy lost his ZERO because the battery died in the middle of a job? That's wild, I couldn't believe it either. I mean, I've had my digital calipers do some annoying stuff, but losing the zero from a dead battery is like a nightmare scenario for any kind of precision work. Makes you wonder if these companies even test their stuff in a real shop environment before selling it. Gotta respect that old mechanical gear that just keeps on ticking no matter how much crap gets thrown at it.