Thoughts on digital calipers

[Huntinfool]

Anyone prefer these over the regular dial calipers? I see Midway USA has the Frankford Arsenal digital set on sale in the flyer. Looking for insight on if these are ok to use. - Thanks

 

[rockhopper46038]

They aren't great, but let's face it, they are fine for the tolerances in reloading range practice type cartridges. I've got a couple expensive dial calipers and an expensive digital caliper, but for some reasons unimportant to this post I use the $20 Franklin Arsenal for reloading and don't have any issues. If you are used to a dial caliper you won't really find the digital ones faster, but if you don't use a dial caliper all the time you probably will appreciate the digital readout.

 

[jd4320t]

I'm sure they will work fine as long as they're used properly.

 

[Vamptepes]

I have a cheap one electric one. In my experience the cheaps ones are all the same with a different name on them. They work for me and so far have a constant reading. Never had any problems with them. I set my zero everytime I turn them on and they hold it. I do take my battery out between uses because sometimes the cheap ones drain them when they're not on. But im satisfied with mine.

 

[M67]

Still a fan of the old styles, electronics are fast but it's not like the dials are slow, plus no batteries

 

[BKExpress]

I bought Kobalt calipers from Lowes for about $50 and they are heads and tails better than the Franklin Arsenal calipers I also own. Just me two cents.

 

[VERT]

When I started out I bought the dial calipers and beam balance. My thought were no batteries. I grew up with the old dial calipers so no big deal there.

 

[shawnba67]

My dad gave me a set of Starett digital read to the half thousanth. I love them and are as accurate as a micrometer, at least a .0005 one. If you have to go cheap wont be much difference.

 

[ckcollins2003]

I had a cheap Frankford Arsenal caliper from midway at one time. They didn't exactly meet my needs as they never gave the same reading twice. Since they weren't consistent, I couldn't rely on them for my reloads. OAL in certain cartridges can make a huge difference in pressure and to me, my safety and the people that shoot beside me is worth more than cheap equipment. Therefore I spent the money on a good set of dial calipers and have had no problems since.

I'm guessing if you buy an expensive enough set of digital they would be just as good as dial, but I'll probably never try another set of digital for my reloading. Since I spend my time to reload, I want my cartridges as precise as possible, which digital just won't do for you. Just my $0.02...

ETA: http://www.midwayusa.com/product/604242/frankford-arsenal-electronic-caliper-6-stainless-steel These are the ones I had. They worked good for about 2-3 months, then no bueno.

 

[JBTate]

Get the best pair of dial's you can afford and skip the digitals, especially cheap ones.
Digitals can only measure to .0005", but with practice and a good touch you can read better than that with a dial set.
Stick with Starrett or Mitutoyo.
A good set can be had for around $100.
This might be overkill for reloading, I don't know. I do know QC and gauges, though.

 

[sun]

I like the ease of use of Mitutoyo digital calipers. I've been able to try Mitutoyo dial calipers and I didn't like using them as much.
I bought a nice Mitutoyo digital caliper for a little over $100 from a local machine shop supplier years ago before I even had the internet to do comparison shopping with. And then sometime later when I started seeing the $20 calipers for sale, I thought that maybe I had grossly overpaid. But now after many years of use, I've grown to appreciate the quality of the Mitutoyo digital and their longevity. And if I had to do it all over again I wouldn't buy anything else. Mitutoyo makes a good digital caliper and I've used mine for many, many thousands of readings, including measuring lots of rimfire ammo for their over all length.
And considering that I was a novice at using them, being digital made them extremely easy to use, to obtain quick readings and relatively foolproof. And they make it easy to switch back and forth between milimeters and inches.
I'm still surprised at how indispensible a good caliper is and how regularly it gets used. It's good to keep it close by for whenever it's needed.

 

[pdg45acp]

I have 3 digital calipers and a dial. I use the dial mostly, when I do use digital its my 16 year old Fowler.

 

[BKExpress]

I personally like digital. I have had dial calipers in the past and they work great, but digital is just best for me. It's like everything else, buy the best you can afford.

 

[IndyGunworks]

I do take my battery out between uses because sometimes the cheap ones drain them when they're not on.

Wait, I thought they were.....

In my experience the cheaps ones are all the same with a different name on them.

How can they be the same thing just a different name but only the cheap ones drain the battery?



In all seriousness dial calipers take a little bit longer to be really fast at reading them, but once you figure it out and get some practice I think you will find them far surperior to digital, at least amongst the same price range items. I have always found digital ones to be finicky.

 

[rugertoter]

Well, me being a machinist by trade, I have both. All of my stuff is either Mitutoyo or Starett, but I get about the same degree of service out of either. Digital calipers are good for + or - .001 and no closer in my humble opinion. If I have to go smaller, I go to micrometers.

 

[atvdave]

We have both types at work as well. I always seem to use my Starett dial calipers most often.

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

I have various of both kinds and use them as appropriate. But I'm a test & measurement/metrology/autistic kinda guy, so I have appreciation for the features and limitations of each.

 

[bos-94-003]

I had some cheap plastic digitals and they were just that, cheap. I still prefer dial but if you do get digital, get some
metal ones.

 

[churchmouse]

Have a Starret dial caliper. It is within .001 of a micrometer most of the time. Unless you are building a space shuttle most of the work a hobbiest is doing these will do just fine to get you close. Then get out the fine measuring tools.

 

[zfjohnson1989]

I bought some generic digital calipers off of Amazon for about $15; for as often as I reload, they have worked just fine for me. As for their precision and accuracy, I've compared them to Brown & Sharpe dial calipers, and they read the same. I've never seen more than .001" difference.