I am looking to purchase a digital micrometer for use during my engine rebuild. I was curious which type of micrometer I am going to need, and what size maximum that it needs to read.

My uncle has a digital dial micrometer that looks a lot like this one, however it is digital instead.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...516568602&rd=1

I was thinking that for machine work you needed a micrometer more along the lines of this type.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...517405950&rd=1

Please correct/help me if I am wrong. I want to make sure the machine work is exact when I do this rebuild.

 

For starters what are you gone to measure?? ID or OD ?? and the max size 0" to 1" or higher??

Also the first items is not a Micrometer, but a dial caliper and is useful in the range of 0" to 6" and will measure both ID & OD dimensions. But not as accurate.

Second item is a 1" to 2" range and is more accurate then item one. But limited to the size of the micrometer.

For what you want to do I would get the dial caliper just for its range. Unless you know the ranges you are going to working with, just don't buy any micrometer because you will need more then one.

 

They make micrometer's in the 0-6" range as well. I have only been able to find a analog dial caliper here in town. Which is fine, however I would prefer a digital one if I am going to be exact. I basically want to check the crank after it has been machined as well as the block machine work to make sure everything is within spec. I will be using plastigague for the most part, however I want to make sure I am getting from the machine shop, what they say I am getting.

Can you explain why a dial caliper would be preferred over a micrometer besides the fact that you can check inside diameter as well. I will check for a digital one online to see if I can find a digital dial caliper.

Also, can these be rented from a local autozone or something alike?

Thanks again for the input. This is going to be my first rebuild by myself. My father is a long time mechanic, however I am trying not to bug him if at all possible since he is getting older and not interested in mechanics anymore.

 

Btw, I did find a digital caliper online. I noticed that it will read all the way up to 6"s as well. I imagine that the 0-6" dial caliper would be just as accurate as the 0-6" micrometer. They both say they garantee to be within .0005

I would consider that to be really accurate.

 

I have a digital caliper from kraegen that reads ID, OD, and depth, got it for under $20 too

It's awesome, measures up to 6" I think, and I used it to help with rebuilding some cylinder heads. That's my personal choice...

 

Yeah I will be purchasing the digital caliper due to the fact that it is only 20 dollars and it is cheap insurance. I will also check into the micrometer that my uncle has. The more tools the better!

 

Accuracy is only as good as the tool. Invest in a set master also. The micrometer would be the more accurate of the two in repeatability.

 

Is set master the brand name? I have never heard of a set master before. I have heard of a master set for bearing sealing...

Do you mean a master set of micrometers?

 

[QUOTE=Silvershark]Is set master the brand name? I have never heard of a set master before. I have heard of a master set for bearing sealing...

Do you mean a master set of micrometers?[/QUOTE

A set master is tool with a know value ( example .651) to check the calibration of your measuring tools. It can be any dimensions, it is used to check and verify your tools.

I suggest you do a web search on measuring tools to better understand the subject before wasting your money on usless measuring equipment . A lot of cheap and worthless stuff on e-bay.

 

I don't think I would be trusting engine measurements to a $20 dial caliper. You need some real micrometers (that usually means spending a reasonable amount of money). Talk to someone at an engine shop to get an idea of what you really need.

 

"however I would prefer a digital one if I am going to be exact."


Learn how to read a standard mic and you can invest in a better tool for the same money.

 

I wouldnt mind spending reasonable money on the tool if I knew what to purchase. I appreciate the insite, however instead of trying to bash me for my ignorance could you please help point me in the right direction..

Thanks again.

 

I didn't bash and I did point.

 

I have been wanting a set of micrometers from 0-6", but i just can't seem to spend ~$900 for 6 tools. I know you can get them cheaper than that, but for a tool like that i don't think i should buy the cheap set.

 

I'm sorry if you were offended by my post and I appologize. I was just saying that all things being equal a digital readout would cost more. You never exactly listed what you wanted to measure so I'll just give you a quick rundown of what you might need.

6" dial caliper- for rough and/or quick measurements.

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/produ...id=00940778000

2-3" mic for checking crank tolerances

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/produ...id=00938603000

there are digital versions of both of these as well

bore guage for checking cylinder wall taper

http://www.tavia.com/cat16.html#3

Without breaking the bank these tools should cover about anything that you would want to check at home. I own tools from craftsman , starret, tavia and others and can tell you that craftsman will measure dead on with just about anything you can buy.

Let me know if you need anything else.
James