Temperature and digital calipers
I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The
have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? -- Michael Koblic Campbell River, BC |
Temperature and digital calipers
In article , "Michael Koblic" wrote:
I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? Cause is stated in the first sentence of your post... g On a more serious note, though, one suspect is a bad solder joint on a printed circuit board. Open one up; if there's a PCB inside it, examine every solder joint under strong magnification, and see if you find any cracks. |
Temperature and digital calipers
"Michael Koblic" wrote in
: I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? Not sure, but when my Mitutoyo caliper stopped reading reliably above a couple inches, it was because of dirt on the scale where I had been holding it. I gave it a wipe down with alcohol, and it was fine. Doug White |
Temperature and digital calipers
On Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:40:36 -0800, Michael Koblic wrote:
I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. Your description makes it sound like a cold-temperature-related problem, which surprises me because my Harbor-Freight-type calipers work ok at 3 - 4 C (except for it being clumsy to operate the little buttons when wearing insulated gloves). The second set did exactly the same thing today. Try the third one, or better, all three of them in the same time frame and environmental conditions. Also, try zeroing the caliper when it is open about an inch or two and see how far it works each way, and test whether the metric scale has the same problem. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? Maybe they are too cheap and you need to upgrade to superior HF quality ;) calipers. BTW, re low batteries, aside from the LCD blinking (to signal low battery) my calipers seem to work ok for several months with low batteries, even in the cold. (I keep ok batteries in several calipers, but for the less-frequently used ones change the batteries less often.) -- jiw |
Temperature and digital calipers
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Temperature and digital calipers
James Waldby wrote:
On Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:40:36 -0800, Michael Koblic wrote: I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. http://www.biotele.com/digital_caliper.htm Sounds like condensation is messing up the dielectric constant in the sensor gap. It'd be interesting to put the calipers in a bell jar and pump them down to boil off the liquid at 9.5 C. If they suddenly start working, you have a data point. --Winston -- On YouTube, all the tools have volume controls. |
Temperature and digital calipers
On Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:40:36 -0800, the infamous "Michael Koblic"
scrawled the following: I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? The small capacitors on the circuit boards can freeze and explode during cold weather (it happened on my sprinkler timer), so keep them in the house. Batteries can, too, can't they? I've never lived in those extreme climes so I don't have anecdotal evidence. -- It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; it is because we do not dare that they are difficult. -- Seneca |
Temperature and digital calipers
On Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:40:36 -0800, "Michael Koblic"
wrote: I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? It may not be temperature per se, but temp close to where RH condenses. Those calipers have some very high impedance CMOS circuitry. I've had Mitutoyo digital calipers do that, never had a problem with those from HF! |
Temperature and digital calipers
Don Foreman wrote:
(...) It may not be temperature per se, but temp close to where RH condenses. Say! I think you are on to something there, Don. --Winston |
Temperature and digital calipers
In article ,
Jim Stewart wrote: Lewis Hartswick wrote: Michael Koblic wrote: I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? The main "likely cause" is they are cursed DIGITAL. Get a dial caliper and it'll work in any environment. :-) I wished. Fine grit and chips will kill a dial caliper. Just get a regular old vernier caliper and learn to read it? (Magnifying glass optional depending on age :) |
Temperature and digital calipers
"Michael Koblic" wrote in message ... I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? -- Michael Koblic Campbell River, BC ' I would clean the edge of the calipers and see if the roller is slipping. Being cold the bearing may have enough drag to slip on the caliper. |
Temperature and digital calipers
"Bill McKee" wrote in message m... "Michael Koblic" wrote in message ... I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? -- Michael Koblic Campbell River, BC ' I would clean the edge of the calipers and see if the roller is slipping. Being cold the bearing may have enough drag to slip on the caliper. All three are doing this. Cleaning the edges did not help. A quick blast with a hair-dryer did. I suspect the condensation theory is closest to the mark. It is interesting that the calipers will measure OK up to 2", it is only when you go past that that the error begins to show. I take it that this is because the first two inches of the scale are protected by the housing during storage. It's not a big deal as long as one is aware of it. -- Michael Koblic Campbell River, BC |
Temperature and digital calipers
"John Husvar" wrote in message ... Just get a regular old vernier caliper and learn to read it? (Magnifying glass optional depending on age :) As soon as I find one that reads to 0.001". |
Temperature and digital calipers
Michael Koblic wrote:
(...) It's not a big deal as long as one is aware of it. http://www.amazon.com/iTouchless-Sea.../dp/B000N5WJUG --Winston -- On YouTube, all the tools have volume controls. |
Temperature and digital calipers
On 2009-11-26, Michael Koblic wrote:
"John Husvar" wrote in message ... Just get a regular old vernier caliper and learn to read it? (Magnifying glass optional depending on age :) As soon as I find one that reads to 0.001". *Good* ones do. However, if all you've ever seen are the stamped sheet steel ones sold by General, I can understand your problem. But yes -- the magnifying glass does come in with older eyes. Enjoy, DoN. -- Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564 (too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html --- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero --- |
Temperature and digital calipers
On 26 Nov 2009 07:23:58 GMT, "DoN. Nichols" wrote:
On 2009-11-26, Michael Koblic wrote: "John Husvar" wrote in message ... Just get a regular old vernier caliper and learn to read it? (Magnifying glass optional depending on age :) As soon as I find one that reads to 0.001". *Good* ones do. However, if all you've ever seen are the stamped sheet steel ones sold by General, I can understand your problem. But yes -- the magnifying glass does come in with older eyes. Enjoy, DoN. All of my vernier calipers read to 0.001" and some of them aren't what I'd call "Good". Magnifying glass is optional if your eyes come with built-in 5 dioptre magnification, it's one of the few benefits of short sightedness :-) Mark Rand RTFM |
Temperature and digital calipers
Michael Koblic wrote:
"Bill McKee" wrote in message m... "Michael Koblic" wrote in message ... I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? -- Michael Koblic Campbell River, BC ' I would clean the edge of the calipers and see if the roller is slipping. Being cold the bearing may have enough drag to slip on the caliper. All three are doing this. Cleaning the edges did not help. A quick blast with a hair-dryer did. I suspect the condensation theory is closest to the mark. It is interesting that the calipers will measure OK up to 2", it is only when you go past that that the error begins to show. I take it that this is because the first two inches of the scale are protected by the housing during storage. It's not a big deal as long as one is aware of it. Is the 2" point where you may have been holding it in your hand?. I have a Mitutoyo scale and if I hold it long enough at one point then travel the head across there then it will often flag an error, just leaving it for a minute or 2 will sort the problem. I assume it's moisture from my hand on the measuring surface cover. |
Temperature and digital calipers
In article ,
John Husvar wrote: In article , Jim Stewart wrote: Lewis Hartswick wrote: Michael Koblic wrote: I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? The main "likely cause" is they are cursed DIGITAL. Get a dial caliper and it'll work in any environment. :-) I wished. Fine grit and chips will kill a dial caliper. Just get a regular old vernier caliper and learn to read it? (Magnifying glass optional depending on age :) Funny, my 30-year-old vernier reads just fine to .001". My eyes on the other hand -- well, let's just say the magnifying glass wasn't mentioned for its humor value. :) |
Temperature and digital calipers
"David Billington" wrote in message ... Is the 2" point where you may have been holding it in your hand?. I have a Mitutoyo scale and if I hold it long enough at one point then travel the head across there then it will often flag an error, just leaving it for a minute or 2 will sort the problem. I assume it's moisture from my hand on the measuring surface cover. No, 'cos I test them straight out of the box without touching the metal. The 2" mark is where the housing ends. |
Temperature and digital calipers
"Winston" wrote in message ... Michael Koblic wrote: (...) It's not a big deal as long as one is aware of it. http://www.amazon.com/iTouchless-Sea.../dp/B000N5WJUG Vacuum sealer $69.99. Being able to blow hot air - priceless! |
Temperature and digital calipers
DoN. Nichols wrote:
On 2009-11-26, Michael Koblic wrote: "John Husvar" wrote in message ... Just get a regular old vernier caliper and learn to read it? (Magnifying glass optional depending on age :) As soon as I find one that reads to 0.001". *Good* ones do. However, if all you've ever seen are the stamped sheet steel ones sold by General, I can understand your problem. But yes -- the magnifying glass does come in with older eyes. It is not a problem. The cheapest ones I have seen are $515. That is ten of the cheap digital ones and a small lathe. Or I could just blow hot air on mine for free. And save the cost of the magnifying glass... |
Temperature and digital calipers
Michael Koblic wrote:
DoN. Nichols wrote: On 2009-11-26, Michael Koblic wrote: "John Husvar" wrote in message ... Just get a regular old vernier caliper and learn to read it? (Magnifying glass optional depending on age :) As soon as I find one that reads to 0.001". *Good* ones do. However, if all you've ever seen are the stamped sheet steel ones sold by General, I can understand your problem. But yes -- the magnifying glass does come in with older eyes. It is not a problem. The cheapest ones I have seen are $515. That is ten of the cheap digital ones and a small lathe. Or I could just blow hot air on mine for free. And save the cost of the magnifying glass... Ah, just found one for $81 US... |
Temperature and digital calipers
Michael Koblic wrote:
"Winston" wrote in message ... Michael Koblic wrote: (...) It's not a big deal as long as one is aware of it. http://www.amazon.com/iTouchless-Sea.../dp/B000N5WJUG Vacuum sealer $69.99. Being able to blow hot air - priceless! That was a storage suggestion for your calipers. If the problem really is condensation, you would be able to use your calipers full range, out of the box without needing the hot air gun. Seems like a smart young guy could do the same thing with a Tupperware container and a little hand vacuum pump for almost No Money. http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=92474 :) --Winston |
Temperature and digital calipers
Dial calipers are nearly always reliable, as long as they're kept clean and
not dropped. Requiring no batteries is a feature. Readings to .001" usually aren't a problem, with reading glasses if needed. Dial models generally have a numbered scale showing inches in tenth-inches, or mm/cm for metric models, so counting turns isn't required. You've brought up a potential problem for many digital caliper users, I hope I remember the issue if I encounter it. -- WB .......... metalworking projects www.kwagmire.com/metal_proj.html "Michael Koblic" wrote in message ... I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? -- Michael Koblic Campbell River, BC |
Temperature and digital calipers
On Thu, 26 Nov 2009 08:58:35 -0500, John Husvar wrote:
John Husvar wrote: Jim Stewart wrote: Lewis Hartswick wrote: Michael Koblic wrote: I have three sets of cheap digital calipers bought in Canadian Tire. The have all been working fine and agree with a micrometer to within 0.001". Two weeks ago I tried to use the one I keep in the workshop to measure something of the order of 4" when the calipers refused to measure anything past 1.5". I brought them into the house where they started working fine as soon as they warmed up. The second set did exactly the same thing today. The temperature in the workshop is 9.5 deg C. Replacing the battery made no difference. What is the likely cause? The main "likely cause" is they are cursed DIGITAL. Get a dial caliper and it'll work in any environment. :-) I wished. Fine grit and chips will kill a dial caliper. Just get a regular old vernier caliper and learn to read it? (Magnifying glass optional depending on age :) Funny, my 30-year-old vernier reads just fine to .001". My eyes on the other hand -- well, let's just say the magnifying glass wasn't mentioned for its humor value. :) Ah, well; another decade, another diopter. ;-) Cheers! Rich |
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