Customer Reviews

Anytime Tools Premium DIAL INDICATOR + MAGNETIC BASE w/FINE ADJUSTMENT + 22 pc Indicator Tip POINT SET - AGD SPEC

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I looked at the various on-line dial indicators available and truly wanted a quality machinist product, but I'm retired and not running a jobshop now so after comparing prices, I decided saving money was more important than possibility of some small amount of lost accuracy.

Since I have has the product, I have been quite pleased. If there are flaws, one would be the knurled knob used to tighten the dial gauge to the arm. It is a bit difficult. I added an aluminum extension so the portion used to twist and tighten is beyond the dial case. It could use a box also.

Otherwise, I checked the accuracy with some of my machining equipment and it is close enough I can't find enough error to measure except when the gauge is close to fully depressed. There it had a repeat error within .0012 however. So, big deal. That's certainly acceptable.

I did not find any of the difficulties as expressed by one of the people who claims the dial was difficult to position and the magnetic base twist lever weak. Regardless, those situations exists with the most expensive indicators. Remember, this is a precision instrument, not a hammer. Be gentle with it.

To use it in truing a table saw, first check the blade for true and straighten that. Mine had a runout of .004, and that is acceptable. Then place the runout in a position where the dial indicator is least effected during the course of travel front to rear. I don't use the magnetic base, I remove the vertical post. It is threaded the same as the top hole in my miter gauge and I attach it there.

I had no difficulty in getting the stem of the gauge close to the table with it mounted to the miter gauge, and was able to check my saw and found an error of only.003. That's close enough as heating/cooling alone creates more.

I keep a piece of flat 1/8 stainless stock about 1/2x4.5 drilled each end to accept the gauge and magnetic arm. Using that as an extra, I add greater mobility to the gauge increasing the usefulness of it.

I think it is well worth the price and the range of tips makes this quite useful. The arm is robust, the tightening handles firm, and while it is not the very slick (and very similar) $350.00 Starrett product we used in my shop, it suits my home needs quite well.

Recommended

This is a great little dial indicator with all you need to do some pretty fancy tool setups and measurements. The dial indicator alone is worth the price. The magnetic base and adjustment arms are just like the more expensive ones. I use mine to setup my jointer knives. Makes finding top dead center easy. Can be used alone to set the knives true or in conjunction with the Jointer Pal to speed things up. Also can be used to align the blade on your table saw parallel with the miter slot and fence. Glad I purchased it!

The dial gauge itself really is a proper working unit. however, the method used to attach it to the magnetic base is a poor design; the pinch bolt that goes through the dial gauge bracket is much smaller than it should be causing a lot of lost motion(excess play) if the pinch bolt isn't SUPER tight! I will make up a better method to attach the gauge to the bracket in time. the magnetic base is quite strong, and compared to an earlier reviewer who mentioned that it was weak, I don't have any complaints with it other than it should have been sold with a case, but all in all, one can't really complain about this item because it was VERY reasonably priced!

Dial indicator: It works, but that's the only kind words I can say about it. The unit was either banged around too much in delivery or was just totally uncalibrated from the factory. 0 is around -85 for my unit. Fortunately, the scale can rotate to allow for this.

22 piece tips: They fit. They seem sub-Harbor Freight quality, but they fit.

The magnetic stand: Total garbage. 176 pounds of holding force? HAHAHA! Try ~2 pounds. It cannot hold up the weight of the unit. It is very easy to pry off a wall, engine, fender, etc. The adjustable arm is awful. Barely useable. The shabbiness of this stand is the whole reason I'm taking the time to write this review. It is laughably awful.

Instructions: Totally absent. It's not like it's a hard tool to setup and use, but still. ZERO instructions.

Shipping: inside a paper envelope. I don't even mail CDs in a paper envelope.

Overall: Horrible. Should have hit my local Harbor Freight up instead.

Precision is important in my workshop, this tool exceeds my expectation for quality and usability. Product came promptly and performs exactly as advertised.

The stand has a magnetic on/off and holds well on the solid metal lathe surface. It is not on the zero mark but I think it is made this way since you will place the needle against the item you want to level and adjust to zero. You will want a negative reading also, for low spots on your work, so even if this was on zero to start you would need to push the needle in a full turn on the and back to zero anyway to enable a negative reading. This works well for my uses. Good for reloading and work on my lathe. I would recommend to anyone.

I didn't open the item immediately upon receipt. I tried to use the dial indicator about 2 months after I received it. The threads on the carbide tips were poorly made and would not fit the dial indicator. I contacted AnytimeTools through Amazon.com and after 3 days did not get a response. I then contacted Anytime through the customer service e-mail address and the ultimately received another set of tips which has proper threads. I used the item to measure the runout on a set of automobile disc brake rotors. The runout limit was 0.002 inches which the rotors exceeded. The dial indicator is accurate enough for this type of job.

Essential tool for setting up most machine tools. I found it to be quite usefull.

For the price you can not beat this indicator its works just fine and like I said you can not beat the price. I TRYED

Go to Harbor Freight and spend 1/4 $$ on this piece of junk. The locking clamps have all cracked, and do not hold the dial in position after the first or second time I've tried to tighten them. The horizontal adjusting bar just twists because it was not welded onto the clamp. For a precision measuring tool, this is joke- do not waste your money! Also- it is impossible to remove the sticky "oil" coating this rust bucket was covered in during shipping.