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Used to swear by digital calipers for everything, but manual ones changed my mind
I was doing a tight PCB trace layout last week and my digital caliper kept drifting by 0.01mm between checks, drove me nuts. A buddy handed me his old Mitutoyo manual and I got consistent reads on the first try. Anyone else find digital gear overrated for tiny precision work?
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skylerp312mo ago
Oh man, I had basically the same thing happen with a set of digital ones I got from Amazon. They'd show different readings every time I closed them on the same piece, like 0.02mm off just from resting my hand differently. Borrowed a guy's old-school manual mitutoyo at the shop and it was rock solid, just had to get used to the dial again. I mean, for quick shop floor checks digital is fine, but for actual precise layout work I'm totally with you on manual being way more trustworthy.
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paige861mo ago
Yeah, that 0.02mm drift just from hand pressure is the worst. Once you get used to reading a dial caliper it's actually faster for fine adjustments since you can see the movement as you tweak things. Digital is convenient but I feel like it makes you lazy about technique.
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oliviagrant2mo ago
Yeah, that inconsistency drives me crazy too. Manuals just feel more solid.
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