Just realized those "digital calipers" from Harbor Freight are actually fine

Been using a Mitutoyo for years. Talked all kinds of trash about the cheap ones. Then my buddy left his $20 pair at my shop after a project last month. I tested them against my Mitutoyo on 50 random measurements - different parts, different angles. The difference was never more than 0.002 inches. For 90% of what I do that's plenty close. Now I'm thinking about selling my Mitutoyo and buying three of the cheap ones. Anyone else have a tool snob moment that turned out to be wrong?

2 comments

2 Comments

uma_lopez25d ago

Oh come on, you're falling for the "good enough" trap. That 0.002 inch difference MATTERS when you're doing precision work. I've seen cheap calipers drift way more after a few months of use, especially if you drop them once or get any dust in the mechanism. And good luck getting consistent readings from the cheap ones when the battery starts dying - they start jumping around like crazy. Plus the Mitutoyo feels better in your hand and has that smooth slide action that makes measuring faster and more natural. You're basically saying "my car gets me from A to B so why buy a sports car" and that argument just doesn't hold up for people who actually care about their tools.

jackson.sarah25d ago

Mitutoyo actually uses a .0005 inch resolution, not .002.