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Ok. It's my own fault. I needed (wanted) a dial indicator so I figure I'll pop out to LeeValley.com & order one. Purchased this for $34.50:
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&cat=1,43513,51657&p=32525

Surfing around on Amazon I see this for $22.25 and it comes with a case. The Lee Valley one does not.
http://www.amazon.com/Grizzly-G9849...4&pf_rd_t=1501&pf_rd_p=233144501&pf_rd_i=home

Same exact product. I usually do my homework but for some reason I didn't this time. Don't really feel like dealing with the hassle of returning it. I'm disappointed that Lee Valley priced this thing so much higher. Is this typical of them?

Oh yeah. Shipping was a couple bucks more too.
 
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I'm pretty sure you got your money's worth. The two you linked aren't exactly the same. The dial indicator is (almost certainly) a better quality one on the Lee Valley package.

There seems to be a vast price difference in dial indicators themselves. You can get one at harbor freight for like $12.99 - but then a Starrett can be over $50 and then some. Like all other measuring devices there is a price on high tolerances and durability. Straight edges are a good example of this. It costs money to be so accurate even a speck of dust would throw things off.

The bargain devices probably work perfectly fine for most woodworking tasks, though. Ask a machinist what he pays for his dial indicators. :D
 
Well, don't feel so bad, I had to hunt and hunt to find one here in Japan. It is often the problem of finding the info on where it is sold.

I paid about $65 for mine, it is a good quality brand name, but the base is just a cheapy, the base was another $25......................

Feel any better? :D

A case, who needs a case? I recently threw out about a dozen of those plastic cases, I had them for most every tool, the tools are NOT stored in them, so they just took up space.

My dial indicator lives in a shelf with some other measuring tools.

Cheers!
 
Jason, you know, you're probably right. I just looked at it closer and the actual dial indicators are a little bit different. At least they are in the photo. Can't tell if one is better than the other, though. The bases are exactly the same.

I have no idea what brand the dial indicator actually is. It just says "Dial Indicator" and "Made in China" on the box.
 
rob, if you`re messin` with 1/1000 of an inch you`d be money ahead to buy brown-n-sharpe/starrett or mitutoyo.....at least then you`ll know that your measuring devices are true;)
 
tod, let me ask then, should I be worried about 1/1000's of an inch? I got this thing primarily to tune my table saw but I'm sure I'll find other uses as well. Just don't know what they are yet. Would you still recommend one of those more expensive ones knowing that? I'm not opposed to spending some coin for a good tool but I also don't want to just throw money away, either.
 
rob, look at what comes off your saw......if it`s fine then leave well enough alone....most tablesaws can be trued with no fine measuring devices, simply clamp a piece of mdf to the miter gauge and true by feel if it`s not cutting well......
i use an indicator to set up my 6-knife fingerjoint head and to true the knife grinder but other than that it`s for machine shop use...if you`re wanting to buy some usefull woodworking measuring/layout tools a good protractor such as a starrett or b&s, a nice 6" dial caliper and a good set of trammels will eat a hole in most folks wallet;)
is your saw not cutting well? i`d be happy to walk you through a hillbilly tune-up if it`s not....tod
 
ok i will bite tod:)

i`d be happy to walk you through a hillbilly tune-up if it`s not....tod
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here is my problem,, i saw what a triple grind rip blade could do while at steves:) so i went and used up a gift certificate and got one..the red frued one. well fresh out of the wrapper on cherry it didnt give me the cut steves did:huh: i had checked the saw for runout and its well with in specs. cked the angle as well with a wixey guage read at 89.9 so it shoulda been fine but it wasnt the smooth cut stev had.. so what could be my problem mr tod????
 
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I'm pretty sure you got your money's worth. The two you linked aren't exactly the same. The dial indicator is (almost certainly) a better quality one on the Lee Valley package.

There seems to be a vast price difference in dial indicators themselves. You can get one at harbor freight for like $12.99 - but then a Starrett can be over $50 and then some. Like all other measuring devices there is a price on high tolerances and durability. Straight edges are a good example of this. It costs money to be so accurate even a speck of dust would throw things off.

The bargain devices probably work perfectly fine for most woodworking tasks, though. Ask a machinist what he pays for his dial indicators. :D
A couple of these are in the $200+ range.
I think I would have more peace of mind with the LV than the Griz.
 

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i`d be happy to walk you through a hillbilly tune-up if it`s not....tod
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here is my problem,, i saw what a triple grind rip blade could do while at steves:) so i went and used up a gift certificate and got one..the red frued one. well fresh out of the wrapper on cherry it didnt give me the cut steves did:huh: i had checked the saw for runout and its well with in specs. cked the angle as well with a wixey guage read at 89.9 so it shoulda been fine but it wasnt the smooth cut stev had.. so what could be my problem mr tod????

larry, how`s your fence adjusted? 95% of blades if not all of `em are ground on cnc machines so blade geometry from one to another are very consistant, unless the one you have got kinked? (pretty unlikley)...first thing i`d look at would be fence adjustment.....you are ripping right?
 
larry, how`s your fence adjusted? 95% of blades if not all of `em are ground on cnc machines so blade geometry from one to another are very consistant, unless the one you have got kinked? (pretty unlikley)...first thing i`d look at would be fence adjustment.....you are ripping right?

yup i am ripping tod that is what the blade told me to do:D and then looked at what i got and its still got saw curfs in in it... steves was smooth as silk unlees he hurried the cut.
 
larry, try toeing out your fence just the smallest amount...if you`re seeing tooth marks it`s very likely that the blade is cutting twice, once as it goes down into the wood and again as it comes up. are you having this problem with mdf or just real wood?..if only real wood then adding a splitter sized to the blade you`re using would help, if it`s doing it in mdf then it`s probably a fence issue.....tod
 
real wood!!

ok tod that was one thing steve had that i didnt have so maybe thats the culprit,,the spitter:D did set the fence to touch off previously.. so will go and put steves spiter in tonight and try it again thanks tod
 
Had a similar insident several years ago, a neighbor had just purchased a high dollar saw blade for his RAS (different saw but same problem) his cuts were left with the tale tell swirl and a fuzzy finish (the reason he went an bought a new blade to start with) I checked the blade and found one of the teeth was just slightly wider than the rest. We took it back to the store and they demanded it was true, I stood my ground and demanded they put it on a saw and check it out. They did and "Red Faced" they offered another blade and an appology.... So, because it is a quality blade and all that, it may not be perfect and may be causing your problem. Check for teeth accuracy. Anything mass produced can produce "Within Tollerance" crap.
 
Believe me, there is a difference between cheap dial indicators and good quality ones.

Myself (and yes I am a Machinist by trade) I prefer Starrett or Browne and Sharp, though I also have a Fowler and and a few other cheap brands.

The biggest difference is not really detectable, at least not by the eye or by feel. Its the shock proofing inside the gear train. Tear one of these guys apart and you will see very fine toothed gears drawing up and down on the plunger. Push the plunger and watch those gears churn!!

Every time you pull the dial indicator off a test piece, the plunger shoots down until it slams to a stop at the bottom of its stroke. It does that everytime. The good indicators, the ones made to last at least, have shock proofing to protect the drive train from those repeated shocks.

Will a cheap indicator take that stress? Sure, for awhile anyway, but the more expensive ones last awhile and can be rebuilt. In my line of work, I need the expensive tooling because my career, my reputation and those 15 million dollar yachts, require it. In a family woodworking shop you can get by with a cheap one, just as long as it reads accurately.
 
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