coaxial indicator

A

alinwa

oft dis'd member
I've never used nor even held one of these..... could it be mounted in the tailstock and used to reach into barrel and chamber bores?

Can this unit be used as a "long stem indicator?"

tx
al
 
Al,
Anything is possible, but they're not made for that & they read in .001. You could put one in the headstock & indicate the tailstock into alignment, but that's about it. They are of more use in the mill, but your mileage may vary.

Why in the world are you worrying about this at 1:40 AM?

Regards,
Ron
 
alinwa said:
I've never used nor even held one of these..... could it be mounted in the tailstock and used to reach into barrel and chamber bores?

Can this unit be used as a "long stem indicator?"

tx
al
Click to expand...

Al,

The point or stylus on my Blake Co-Ax is only an inch or two long, and the ball on it's tip is pretty substantial. Plus, it only reads to .0005. I'd stick to test indicators...

They do work great for dialing in tailstocks, though. No mirrors!

Justin
 
RJM said:
Al,
Anything is possible, but they're not made for that & they read in .001. You could put one in the headstock & indicate the tailstock into alignment, but that's about it. They are of more use in the mill, but your mileage may vary.

Why in the world are you worrying about this at 1:40 AM?

Regards,
Ron
Click to expand...

It warn't 1:40 here was it?

mighta' been, LOL

al
 
Well, everybody told me it wa'th thilly...... I don't normally lissen, but this time I did.

So far

lol

al
 
Indicators like the one you show on Amazon are designed to allow the operator to hold the dial part while the external assembly is rotated. i.e. The upper round thingy (what the machine spindle holds) and the stinger thingy rotate together but independently from the dial assembly.
 
I use my cheapo import version all the time to dial in holes in existing parts on the mill, either for some re-work or to measure the hole spacing with the DRO. I have tested the indicator against other methods (pin gauges and edge finders, edge finder in the hole, etc), and it agreed with them to within +- 0.0002" every time. It is really fast to use, and makes reverse engineering a part (measuring the hole positions) a snap. I have found it more than worth the money spent.

Cheers,

Chris
http://www.the-long-family.com
 
I tried using mine for this purpose, but the effect of gravity seemed to make it read a bit off center in the vertical plane. My tailstock was dead nuts on when indicated in with my Interapid 312-15 long tail indicator, but the coaxial indicator showed it a bit off. It is hard to say quantitatively how much it indicated off, but if I had to guess, it appeared to be about a thousandth. It was right on in the horizontal plane, hence my guess that it was gravitational stress that caused the apparent vertical error.

Cheers,

Chris
http://www.the-long-family.com
 
That's what I like about this board. It makes me spend money.

OK, you've all talked me into it! :)

al
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top