Dial Indicators of the World1 Spare parts availability. Whether you plan on fixing these yourself, or sending them for professional repair, the work can only be done if the manufacturer makes parts available. A reference to easy availability is made when Long Island Indicator stocks the parts or the manufacturer is willing to sell them without minimums. Sylvac Serial Numbers' title='Sylvac Serial Numbers' />A. All parts easily available. B. Difficult to find, rarely in stock, or high minimum order. C. No parts available2 Bezel and crystal replacement. This should be the easiest do it yourself repair. The crystals get scratched, cloudy, or break and you want to know whether you can install a new one. This hinges on availability of parts, of course see 1A. Easy replacement without special tools. B. Some models are easy, others are not. C. Requires crystal press or other tools3 Repairability. Expandrive 4 on this page. Issuu is a digital publishing platform that makes it simple to publish magazines, catalogs, newspapers, books, and more online. Easily share your publications and get. You can send your indicators to any of numerous repair shops and some indicators just wont be worth repairing. Either theyre poorly built or just not economically worthwhile. A. Worthwhile repairing. B. A close call some models yes, others no. C. Not worth it, or not possible4 Durability. Some items are designed to be thrown away, others will last a life time. The price is usually a reflection of this. You have to decide what its worth to you. Im working on a project involving the need to precisely move a tool based on the measured distance to an object. Okay, yeah, its a CNC mill. Bad Piggies Keygen there. Anyway. Shop from the worlds largest selection and best deals for Blue Willow China Dinnerware. Shop with confidence on eBayA. Well made and will last. B. Good enough for government work C. Poorly made with cheap materials 5 Functional design. Weve seen the insides of all of these and are willing to laud some manufacturers and curse others. Every chain has a weak link and every indicator has something that can use improvement. Understand that this is a highly personal opinion. A. Excellent did you notice that there arent anyB. Good to mediocre. C. Poor to damnable6 Accuracy and precision. All indicators are accurate when new at least, wed like to think so. But many indicators are made with inferior quality components which will not last bearings wear down, spindles become worn, teeth get bent, play develops and repeatability and accuracy eventually suffers. A. Highly reliable over a long period. B. Reliable for moderate use. C. Not reliable for the long run, or questionable to begin with7 Construction. The days of all metal construction are almost over. It all has to do with making an indicator which will be cheaper than the competition from China. Quality often suffers in the process. Plastic bezels, while easy to replace, will break just as easily. Plastic gears, it is our experience, are damaged more often than metal gears. A. All metal construction with minor exceptions. B. Plastic bezels on most models. Make 1.2 Ghz Patch Antenna here. C. Plastic bezels and other plastic components including gears8 Long Range. Indicators with more than one inch of travel are often referred to as travel indicators. These are challenging to build for the manufacturer because of price considerations. The best ones cost the most. Less expensive models often have flimsy bodies which are easily damaged. Starrett models have spindles of soft steel which wear down quickly. Mitutoyo models have been redesigned and are probably the best of these. Kafer models are very sturdy but rack teeth can become damaged. Compac are the best but rarely available, only in metric, and they are outlandishly expensive. A. Expensive and good. B. Racks spindle are easily damaged. C. Dont wear well9 Bezel Rotation. A bezel clamp is used to keep the bezel stationary but most of the time youll need to rotate the bezel for one reason or another. Different manufacturers have come up with different methods to hold the bezel in place yet still allow it to rotate. The newest technique seems to be the o ring which, when functioning correctly has a smooth movement, allows for easy bezel removal and also acts as a moisture seal. Unfortunately the rubber doesnt age well. Solvents may cause it to stretch out of shape and turning the bezel can become difficult or impossible. A little bit of vaseline on the o ring can help. A more reliable method uses metal springs to hold the bezel. These can be bent to produce the desired amount of resistance and they wont give out or change with time. Some manufacturers use 2 or three clips, or little screws, or pieces of wire, etc. We cant decide which method is really best. When the indicators are new, the bezels all turn well. The real test comes with time. Our chart above refers only to the manufacturers newest models. A. Metal spring or other mechanisms which works well. B. Other contrivances, clips, screws, etc. C. Rubber o ring1. Where are they madeWhere theyre made can influence purchasing decisions because we might be interested in adding fuel to a certain economy, or we may have preconceived notions of product superiority based on origin. This information reflects our own prejudices and should probably not be used as a sole determining factor in choosing a particular instrument. A. Made in USAB. Made in Europe. C. Made in Asia. D. Extraterrestrial1. Serial numbers. Serial numbers are an important element for ISO qualification, for calibration certificates, and general record keeping. Even in a less formal setting, the serial number can identify who owns which gage. We should be leery of a gage which has had its serial number scratched out or obliterated. Stolen goods, perhaps A. Engraved or etched serial number. B. C. Without any identifying serial number. For more general information on dial indicators take a look at Dial Indicators For what its worth on page 1.