I've Been Proven Wrong About Calipers!

Boss isn't all too happy about me watching this on company time, but he accepted that this is "research" for reliable workshop tools.

When measuring the accuracy of the depth measurements, I recommend using a gauge block/parallel on the bottom side instead of the wooden table. In the cases you tested, you were measuring the inconsistencies in the table as well as the calipers too. Thank you for the video!

CNC machinist here , we use only Starrett and Mitutoyo.. been using the same set of Mitutoyos for 13 years, still working beautifully

As a cnc machinist there is a reason Starrett, Mitutoyo, Brown&Sharpe, Fowler, Swiss Precision Instruments, and Interapid are the standard for measuring instruments. They are way more reliable than anything else.

I work in a tech school machine shop, we've bounced around the "cheaper" brands quite a bit. We have multiple groups of 16 people working with calipers and micrometers every day all semester long. The thing with most of the random chinese junk measurement products is that everything works fairly well AT FIRST but you really start to see the differences after 1-2 months of daily use. The cheaper ones will stop being useable pretty quick. If we spend over ~$35, they last around 3-4 semesters with daily use (barring any damage from dropping). if we spend less than $30, they only last about a month, so it's easy to see where the drop in quality occurs. The materials are just sub-par, but you can't really see that initially, it's only after cycling them a couple hundred times before they literally fall apart.

I work in an aerospace machine shop. a few things: 1. All of these calipers have an accuracy rating of +-.001", and you shouldn't use them beyond that. If you need a precise reading, obviously use a more accurate tool. 2. We calibrate our calipers in-house every 6 months. From the cheapest harbor freight to the most expensive mitutoyo calipers, they all *can* calibrate. Usually the cheapest ones have manufacturing issues involving grit in them, burrs on the edges etc. A little sanding with fine sand paper can clean up most all of them. 3. The "absolute" feature of the Mitutoyo - Basically every single caliper made these days "works" the same way - any time you open or close the jaws, it will read accurately any won't need to be reset... It's just that the other ones do it by having a low-power circuit remaining "on" all the time, to keep track of the pulses. This *could* lead to lower battery life, but even on my cheap 4" Harbor Freight set, it still lasts multiple years. And, yes, it will maintain a zero for months(between calibrations). 4. There are some Mitutoyo "clones" out there - I bought a 12" set for under $50, KNOWING it couldn't be a real one... but even side-by-side with a legit one it's basically impossible to tell the difference. And, yes, it was just as accurate. 5. The biggest reason for a caliper to fail calibration is due to wear/use - getting the nibs beat up, or the tips wearing down. Dial calipers also have issues with metal chips getting on the rack and damaging the tiny gears. I ended up switching from quality Mitutoyo dial calipers to cheap digital ones after destroying a couple of sets... and my dirt cheap set has calibrated just fine for 5+ years now.

Tiny tip: the "CR" numbers are the dimensions of the cell in millimeters. First 2 digits is diameter, the second is depth sans comma. So a 2032 cell is 20mm diameter, and 3.2mm thick.

Here’s the list of calipers and there’s more information in the video description. Thank you all for continuing to suggest future topics for future reviews. Looking forward to reading your comments! Best regards, Todd Werka: https://amzn.to/3QNKJCg NEIKO: https://amzn.to/4hNDzJ8 Starrett: https://amzn.to/3ZVk2Rf Fowler: https://amzn.to/3FIlu1V Mitutoyo: https://amzn.to/3TM1XkO INSIZE: https://amzn.to/4enWuds Hardell: https://amzn.to/3FSkWq9 Kynup: https://amzn.to/3Y5bXZ3 Vinca: https://amzn.to/3Y01r5m S&F: https://amzn.to/3FCXhdx Jiavarry(New Name: Simhevn): https://amzn.to/4l2Fufp Johnson Level & Tool: https://amzn.to/4c0OOwA Louisware: https://amzn.to/3Y2sqgC Adoric(New Name: Bordstract): https://amzn.to/4kY7iBE Pittsburgh and Quinn available at Harbor Freight

My uncle passed on a set of Mitutoyo calipers to me when I was in 8th grade. Graduated ME now, I still use them daily. Last time they were calibrated was in 1999, and they still work great.

Precision measurement is the foundation of everything we do! 🔬 Thanks for this rigorous test. In our CNC machining and quality control, we rely on this level of accuracy to ensure every part we deliver meets spec. Fantastic comparison as always!