Hi All,
I've gotten a Rockwell hardness tester without instructions. It seems
to be so simple but I'm having trouble figuring out how to use it. From
what I've found in web searches it seems that there should be a "minor"
load applied and then the "major" load applied by the weights and then
back to the "minor" load to take the reading. I'm not exactly sure how
to apply the "minor" load on my machine. I can turn the base screw to
apply some preload but that hardly seems exact. If anyone has used a
machine similar to this one and could describe the process I'd
appreciate it.

pics at:
http://www.personal.psu.edu/kjm182/pics/hardtester/dial.jpg
http://www.personal.psu.edu/kjm182/pics/hardtester/overall.jpg