I Tested Cheap Callipers So You Don't Have To

I spent my own money buying 20 different callipers off AliExpress ranging from 76p up to £34 and I tested them to find out which are worth spending your money on. So today I’m going to share the results of my experiments, give out some fun awards, and share my favourites. My goal in this article is to help you, a 3D printing hobbyist, find the right callipers for doing jobs like printer calibration and reverse engineering.
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0:00 Testing Measuring Callipers from AliExpress
1:38 Calliper Competitors
6:00 Testing Measuring Callipers
7:25 Test Results
10:57 Calliper Awards
12:51 Tips for Buying Callipers

[@MMuraseofSandvich]

You can take my genuine Mitutoyo calipers when you pry them from my cold dead hands. 😆😁

[@NWGR]

Came to post literally the same thing lol

[@SianaGearz]

OK count your days.

[@calinnilie]

I need a left handed one... I swear it's the only tool where I'm genuinely struggling with my left handedness. They could easily make one where the screen rotates based on a gyro reading.

[@Vector3DP]

Holy crap, I didn't even think about this! Totally right of course, they're all right handed. The search is on!

[@alex59292]

My people

[@skilledcamman4752]

Perfect chance to diy one.

[@802Garage]

There are a few companies selling them, most aren't cheap. Some on AliExpress as well. Probably the most reasonably priced one I saw is by TTC, though by out of stock most places. Penn Tool Co. seems to have some.

[@quentinroa2573]

Just looked, I cannot find any under 40 USD.

[@SyntheToonz]

I got a carbon fiber from Home Depot that looks exactly like the one you tested. I entertain myself endlessly with its ability to generate different numbers for the same object measured. It taught me how to average several numbers together on the fly.

[@witold447]

I got a Vorel plastic one from a local tool shop because I didn't want to scratch metal while measuring when I do some jewellery as a hobby. I didn't check them correctly at the shop, and I put them somewhere for the time when I needed them, and when I finally needed them I found out that 0 lines are not even lining up when they are closed... So now I have a nice yellow prop of a calliper in the workshop

[@KarlOnSea]

You had me at "which ones do I give away to people that I don't really like"! 🤣

[@chiparooo]

I have found some of the cheaper ones will drain your battery while they are off. Something to keep in mind. Thanks for sharing!

[@s0rc3]

Did you test the battery life? Some of the cheap ones are terrible.

[@jimbrookhyser]

Came here to post the same thing.

[@widget5963]

Would probably be hard to test since they usually last for at least a year.

[@jimbrookhyser]

@@widget5963 except for the ones that don't. It would be nice to know which ones those are. Maybe hook up some sensitive equipment to see how much current it draws when switched off.

[@victornpb]

yeah defo take batteries out if not gonna use for long, or like keep that platic tab and insert it back under the battery.

[@bridevalley]

I bought some calipers that look exactly like your My Eyes Are Fine from amazon about 4 years ago. I chose them because they weren't very expensive (around £20 - £25 I think), they had a good rating score and they were all metal. I bought them to help me measure things for hobbyist 3D printed stuff and they continue to serve me very well. We have now bought a cheap house in France and I find myself using the calipers for lots of measuring - checking timber sizes, measuring pipe diameters, bolt diameters, length of screws and hole depths etc etc. The sticky-out bit at the "other" end is incredibly good at measuring steps, lips and hole depths by the way. One thing that has impressed me with them is that I've only had to replace the battery once. They do switch of after a few minutes which obviously helps but seeing that I use them almost every day I'm happy with this. Even though I'm not looking to buy calipers at the moment I knew your video would be enjoyable - thanks for publishing it!

[@SianaGearz]

The LCD being turned off is a mind trick to make you feel like it's saving power, it doesn't actually meaningfully contribute to power saving. An LCD watch doesn't turn off its display and it would last for 50 years on an energy content of an LR44 like that. Most of the power is spent at constantly checking whether the slide has started moving, which it has to do regardless of whether LCD is sleeping.

[@medienmond]

You would love Terma callipers from China. 4 digits and very good cradtsmanship.

[@expressoaddict]

Man, calipers has the most creative brand names I’ve ever heard. My eyes are fine is a classic lol 😂

[@lv_woodturner3899]

I have a dial caliper for daily use where I do not need really precise measurements and a digital caliper for precise measurements or switching between Imperial and Metric. A big unknown with digital calipers is how long the battery lasts. My caliper has a decent battery life. I gave away some inexpensive digital calipers since the battery life was awful. Thanks for the testing review. Very interesting and information.

[@derdackel]

Play at 1.5x for the optimal Project Farm UK experience! Very impressive!

[@dphillips9641]

The Grandpa looks identical to my Aldi central aisle pair. They came complete with a plastic case. I've also had them for years so perhaps they should have an award for durability.🙂

[@rallegade]

Always great content from you! Thanks for spending your time to give us these great videos 🤘

[@darenberk7515]

Love the humor you put into your video! Wish I had a comparison with something double in price like a igagging or perhaps what you have is already accurate enough...

[@MikeKasprzak]

Excellent! I feel like buying a caliper under $100 is exactly this, trying several

[@peterleblanc661]

When I was working at a machine shop we had a set of Mitutoyo 500 6" calipers in each tool box next to every machine. They had to be sent out to be accuracy tested once a year by a testing lab. Even brand new about half were rated at +- 0.001" and half were +- 0.002". The starrett micrometers were rated +- 0.0002-0.0003" depending. Beyond a certain accuracy measurements had to be done in a temperature controlled room. For my 3d printing work keeping in mind accuracy of the printing I just go by local tool store(home depot) and buy their house brand with lifetime warranty(husky). I ever have an issue I just walk in and they let me grab a new set off the shelf no questions asked.

[@Splarkszter]

for 3dprints yeah you don't need more than 0.01mm of precision. Pastic loves to warp anyways.

[@phizc]

The Notatoyo and DailyDivers were just +/-0.0003" (0.007mm) according to the chart at 9:47. Not sure if they'll keep that accuracy for long though. Actually, most were less than +/-0.025 mm which is the same as +/-0.001". Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have a Mitutoyo, if nothing else than for the stellar battery life from what I've heard, but accuracy-wise, most of these seem good.

[@IanSendsIt]

iGaging OriginCal callipers are a worthy alternative to genuine Mitutoyos. Good reviews around relating to build quality and measurement consistency. I’ve used mine for 4 years now (original CR2032 still going strong) across office, lab and workshop environments. For a 150mm/6” model, it’s around $110AUD/$70USD, or can be had for much cheaper if on sale.

[@fookingsog]

Which calipers used the CR2032 battery form factor??? 🤔

[@zapl80]

The ones with a large enough body, e.g. the ones with the big display and the Shahe's behind that large round cover next to the display. It's usually in the article descripion

[@kmartyCZ]

I have "Insize" caliper and all of Insize calipers uses CR2032, I believe. My first caliper where battery lasts over year (probably more). Any caliper with SR44 requirement is a big no no for me. Mainly because although LR44 fits, it hardly lasts a fortnight.

[@SianaGearz]

@@kmartyCZ This is incorrect. LR44 lasts for more than 3 years in calipers. You probably have a stray current leak through the bad solder stop lacquer on the PCB.

[@fookingsog]

@@SianaGearz NOPE! LR44 maybe lasts 6 months for me and my caliper has auto shutoff. CR3032 on the other hand is a larger battery and what is used to maintain the memory BIOS settings in a desktop computer. There is a difference in longevity!!!

[@SianaGearz]

@@fookingsog No you're wrong. Also there is no auto shutoff, the screen turns off but the calipers always keep working. All of them. Because they retain zero after power back on. Protect the back side of the circuit board with packing tape or Kapton tape, this may solve your power drain issue.

[@hacksolot2]

regarding sliding smoothness, this can be adjusted with a small flathead screwdriver on the 2 grub screws on the top edge (on most of these)

[@elleryfg7853]

The short answer would be just buy Mitutoyo

[@Splarkszter]

Do you mean Mitunono? Or do you mean Mimono? Or do you mean Mituyoyo? Or do you mean Micollo? Or do you mean Mitumomo? Or do you mean Micusoyo? Or do you mean Minucono?

[@warmesuppe]

Or Mahr. I have the Mahrcal 16 and its perfect

[@SergeiSugaroverdoseShuykov]

It's not short, it's pricy, SHAHE is more than enough for absolute majority of ppl

[@xeraoh]

overhyped, thousands of other companies out there and making decent measuring tools, sticking to one brand is more than sully

[@zapl80]

A digital caliper that is capable of measuring with inaccuracies relevant for 3d printing is just a cheap tool based on a simple strip of pcb with dirt cheap electronics. Bendy plastics are bad but somewhat decent steel is all that it takes. The PCB pattern is basically the only thing that needs to be accurate and that's no problem in china or we would not make all the PCBs the world needs there.

[@GingerZero]

In January 2020, I went to the local hardware store and bought a couple of things for making furniture at home. In my shopping cart was also a digital caliper with its nice carrying case. I bought it for 20,-€ and used it a couple of times during the builds which ended somewhere in the summer. In December 2020 I picked them up again to try and do something else, battery is dead... I replaced the battery and used them. In summer 2021, same thing again, out of the box, battery dead. I replaced the battery try to use them and during use, they turn off randomly. After my lunch break, I come back the screen of the calipers was on... I disassemble the digital part of the calipers to find that the button for on/off has a faulty contact and keeps pressing itself when shocked. I now have calipers that are unusable without battery and drains the battery on its own when in the carrying case... So for my 30th b-day I asked my dad for some genuine Mitutoyo with a dial to have extra precise fully mechanical calipers. I am still annoyed at my purchase.

[@SHIFTIBOI]

I inherited a set of Mitutoyo stainless steel vernier calipers from my dad. I love them. They're really sturdy and smooth to use.

[@kttkttkt]

I can stand behind the Shahe! Their calipers are not the most precise (jaws are not ground straight or something) But their blue line micrometers are absolute bargain! Repeatable to one micron (unbelievable), great electronics, lightweight and dirt cheap (40e for 0-25mm). Pulling them out after a month in the drawer, cleaning jaws with a paper and getting 0.000, like wtf, you cant get this with 200e set.

[@_droid]

Well the electronics still drain the battery like crazy but other than that I agree they're pretty good. Though you do get a bigger lithium cell with the SHAHE to help offset the drain.

[@maxmustermann2596]

@@_droid I was going to ask about the battery lifetime. A shame that they don't include a switch to disconnect the battery. There are many devices from Shahe I only use every few months. It is still a hassle to remove the battery and even more to replace it because it is empty.

[@alandowney6961]

Neat video. I recently got a cheap plastic caliper that's great for quickly measuring without needing a case or batteries. It sits in a cup on my desk with pens & pencils. Even if its accuracy is only 0.3mm, it's still very useful for everyday measurements.

[@sagigamil460]

I bought the 200mm SHAHE one and it's fantastic.

[@nykaja]

Real Mitutoyos come out cheap after you figure out that with knockoffs you need to go buy more batteries first every time you want to measure something. I've also had knockoffs that somehow got unreliable results as the battery started to get weak somehow?

[@terpcj]

Wish you could have tested more dial calipers. I love mine as it's metric/bananas, easy to read, and is always ready. Every digital I have inevitably has dead batteries when I need it. My good verniers are tougher to read, but are battery-free useful in a pinch -- and the $1 ones are great as disposables as they are I-don't-care-if-they-get-schmutzed-up go-tos for the toolbox (and close enough for gov't work).

[@SianaGearz]

Cover the PCB with kapton tape (or in a pinch packing tape) on the back where it slides against metal, the LR44 battery will last for 3-4 years. They have faulty solder stop lacquer on the vias.

[@phizc]

Great test! Battery life would be a great addition though. Just leave them in a drawer and check in on them a few times a week or something. 😅

[@grasstreefarmer]

In my limited experience the fake mitutoyo are not worth it. Its just a dice roll if they are decent or junk. The same seller might have a good batch and then next be terrible. Shahe make lots of different tools and they list specs to meet so if they don't you can return them but they are usually ok. Iguaging are good for a bit more money but its always handy to have some cheap calipers, micrometers etc that you don't have to worry about lending or traveling with. Yes everyone, real Mitutoyo and Starrett are great but they are only guaranteed to the same 0.02mm as the cheap ones.

[@xeraoh]

£30/ €40 is perfect range for 3D printing the 0.01mm precision is more than enough 👍

[@thenextlayer]

Just the video I needed! I have one Mitutoyo, and one expensive AliExpress one that's breaking. The Mitutoyo is overrated for me. I hate that it doesn't turn on by itself...

[@ZackSeagraves]

I have a pair of Mahr calipers that were gifted to me and they sell online for over $100. I mean they work great but it’s crazy to see how expensive they are compared to the ones in this video.

[@GlenGlenervo]

iGauging fastener cal gets my vote, accurate enough for 3DP. Plus it includes a 'nut' function that reduces imperial fractions, which is very useful for quickly identifying and sorting odd nuts and bolts.

[@leo-et2lc]

This was fun to watch! Can you do the same for micrometers? Might need some guage blocks for testing!

[@commentsonthetube14]

I really like the "carbon fiber" one (or a similar model) for my woodshop apron. Its good enough for wood and I dont midn if i drop it. I take better care of my steel ones for when i do anything really precise.

[@Segphalt]

You missed a metric on the digital ones that vonstantly buges me about cheap digital calipers. Most if them seem to drain the battery when just sitting doing nothing. So when I do want to use them they are dead and the battery search begins. As such I have switched almost entirely verneer and actually gotten quite quick reading at reading them. (Still not as fast as digital but certainly faster than the search for batteries or running to the store for them. Now I only use digital for when I know I'm going to take several mesurements that the convenice of automatic math via zeroing will be nice.

[@phizc]

Same. I have 1 digital caliper and 3 vernier. I think I got one use out of the digital and a couple of weeks later when I wanted to use it, it was drained. I haven't bothered to replace the battery since I only need a caliper a couple of times a month.

[@felipenavas]

Good to know that Shahe is good. I wanted to buy one that had fractional inches but I was unsure about the quality.

[@kmartyCZ]

I'd put any caliper requiring SR44 only (and no, LR44 is not an option for them since LR44 lasts about one or two week in them because of the LR44 voltage drop in short time when discharging) as huuuge disadvantage. SR44 is almost unobtanium here, while LR44 is everywhere. Although SR44 and LR44 have both the same dimensions and voltage, they're not replaceable. SR44, required by many of calipers, hold quite high voltage almost for the whole discharge while LR44 drops voltage in short time (and then holds lower voltage for the rest of discharge. But at that time, the caliper doesn't work anymore due to low voltage). EDIT: Next time I should comment _after_ the whole video :-).

[@king_james_official]

7:37 bruh did you turn the screw on top?

[@chuckthetekkie]

I'm surprised you didn't include a "Locking" category for ones where you can lock it at a specific value. For my use that's a must. The calipers I use are the same ones the Nero 3D uses, Neiko. I got them for a little less than $30. I bought them because I watched a video from hum where he used the lock to keep the calipers at a specified value. They were also reasonably priced. I've had them for about 2 1/2 years now and they are my daily driver.

[@karellen00]

I'd love a quick follow up in, I don't know, one year of distance, to know if there are some who eat up batteries even when not used

[@SianaGearz]

I say plastic calipers are actually good to have! They don't cost much at all. They don't promise much, but deliver exactly what you expect. They work, but are too floppy to take precise readings. Internal resolution on plastic digital ones is actually 0.01mm or better from digital readout port, the display merely lacks a digit because it would be useless for lack of mechanical accuracy. You can measure batteries and bare electronics and not worry about shorting things out. They never skip and the LR44 battery lasts for about 4 years. Since all the digital plastic ones are actually identical plus or minus sample variance, don't get the silver ones, get the black ones, so you don't accidentally confuse them with your real calipers. Apropos skipping. I have have steel ones which if you move them quickly back and forth a bunch of times, the measurement would jump by 5mm. The underlying capactive scale evidently has a 5mm pitch, the toolhead can't distinguish the readings taken 5mm apart and has to rely on some intermediate steps to make up the real value, and it's an interference type scale, similar to an actual Vernier scale. The fault is really grating, since once in about 20 real measurements, the same fault happens. I have taken them apart and covered the PCB on the back with Kapton tape, and this fixed it. The battery lasts for about 3 years. Many people complain that their calipers eat their LR44 within a couple months, i suspect the root cause is the same as the skipping issue - bad soder stop lacquer which allows the vias to contact the metal parts just slightly and leak some current through the metal. So you haven't tested the main fault experienced by buyers of cheap metal digital calipers, that they eat batteries rapidly, which is a pity. But measuring microscopic currents can be difficult. Other frequent complaint is that the battery door goes wonky and flies away, also would be good to take into acount.

[@zapl80]

I think calipers that remember their 0 point also require a battery to do so to keep their IC alive and it depends on the IC how much current draw they have while "off"

[@SianaGearz]

@@zapl80 There aren't a lot of different ICs, maybe one maybe two. Difficult to say without decapping since they're all COBs in cheap calipers. It's also been a solved problem for 35 years, i mean, you don't ever have to consider how much energy your LCD wrist watch IC takes up, right, and that's got a lot less than the LR44 worth of power to go around.

[@zapl80]

@@SianaGearz indeed 2+, there are at least 2 different serial protocols to read out the data :) And there is actually at least one die shot from someone that looked at the PCBs and the IC in details here on KZbin. Leakage is a good explanation, the other thing I've suspected is the auto-on feature because I think I had one of mine go empty after it looked like it didn't turn off

[@802Garage]

I have a sent by Vinca from Amazon for $20 and they are quite excellent overall.

[@BennyTygohome]

How they come up with some of the names? 😂 "Greasy Boys"

[@tructruc00]

I have some vernier calipers but I think I may buy some dial calipers because I wan't a bit more accuracy and faster reading without having to deal with crapy electronics that decide to stop working randomly or consumes way too much battery

[@AlexServirog]

Smoothness can be adjusted with 2 screws on the top of the housing... One more criterion: which ones have metal housing. It might play a role in how long they will survive. I have one from aliexpress that you didn't have here: metal scale and metal housing, digital, all silvery appearence, lr44, wheel, shows 6.99 on 7mm gauge block, picked it up years ago for 12 bucks. The only marking is "stainless hardened" on the scale

[@Catrik]

Smoothness is determined by manufacturing quality of the sliding surfaces. The screws you're referring to only adjust the pre-tension or force needed to adjust the calipers.

[@DiomedesDominguez]

next topic for a video: VOC

[@Duraltia]

My first Calipers were some random Burg-Wächter I got off Amazon which _despite_ having an AutoOFF feature were constantly empty - Usually at the most inappropriate times when I had no spare Batteries at hand and couldn't buy new ones. When they were _actually_ empty they'd simply not turn on and at least you weren't wasting your time but if they were just _barely_ empty they'd constantly fuck you over with faulty measurements resulting in borked projects relying on precision 😑 I then got myself some genuine Mitutoyo Digimatic AOS 500-161-30 _without_ that AutoOFF feature and as such will remain on until you've retired - That being said... Despite _constantly_ forgetting to turn them off since I bought them like 2+ years ago I've yet to replace that friggin' Battery that shipped with them 🤔 Where they expensive? Oh yea... Am I regretting the purchase? Hell no 😏

[@sublimationman]

First of your screen shows a Mitutoyo for 34 pounds (sorry don't know how to type the pounds symbol) but if those are real (like mine) I paid $130 for mine. I have had various cheap calipers and while they will often get you by, the first time you screw up a very important measurement because of the cheap calipers you will do I like and throw them all in the bin and buy a good pair that just works right 100% of the time. To be fair the cheap ones worked 98% but that 2% they were off (for no known reason) can really piss you off and make you scratch your head until you figure it out.

[@Inventorsquare]

Trust me, it’s not on the list, but trust me. Get the Anytime tools *shock resistant* dial calipers, for about $45-60, and a certified gauge block. Now that’s heaven. Remember to get the shock resistant.

[@Alex_vGrafenstein]

I have the Shahe with Bluetooth and while they have great finish and feel, what really annoys me is, that they don't remember zero position. Zero is at whichever position you turn them on. You have to pay attention to always turn them on fully closed or you measure completely off by accident. Did you observe the same with the other Shahe or any other calipers? Then this would be worth mentioning. By the way, the Bluetooth implementation is quite disappointing. It only works with their app, which is not even available in the app store but they send you on request. I had hoped to hook it up to my notebook and measure directly into a selected excel cell. Apart from those quirks, I too like the brand and their force meter us excellent.

[@gearloose703]

Regular non bluetooths are always on and work great.

[@sleepib]

I like the $25 ones I got from clockwise tools.

[@jackrr1832]

Interestingly your "Grandpa" calipers look identical to a pair I've owned for years that are still working great

[@jimbrookhyser]

Can you make a follow on video about how quickly all yhe batteries die?

[@warmesuppe]

I've bought the Mahrcal 16 von Mahr. Expensive but perfect

[@seljd]

Lidl is selling callipers very often, just buy that one and you're good for very long time

[@ZaxMan3D]

at 11:36 its still saying "Buyers Remorse" but you moved on to the text award :P

[@8bits955]

mitutoyo vernier calipers all the way, expensive yes but worth it in the long run espcially if u also measure stuff for cnc

[@maxmustermann2596]

Battery lifetime would have been interesting. Some cheap calipers just eat through batteries.

[@lolzlarkin3059]

Them moore and wright calipers are the boy. The problem with all chinese ones with lr44 batteries is they drain the batteries when they are turned off.

[@rodolfoo3015]

I am looking for plastic one actually. Making models that use magnets so yhea kinda useful for that.

[@Vector3DP]

Oh ye, great thought

[@hazrpg]

Did you test them for battery life? Because one thing I've noticed with all the ones I've ever bought is that the battery will drain when not in use... to the point where I pull out the battery every time and tape it to the device because of how frustrating it is. I would absolutely pay extra for a rechargeable one but I can't see to find any!

[@hazrpg]

Ooo I found that there is something called LIR2032 which is the same shape as a CR2032... however the voltage is just slightly different. CR2032 is 3v, and LIR2032 is 3.6-3.7v (because CR is lithium and non-rechargeable and LIR is Lithium-Ion and is rechargeable)... I'm curious if the callipers are designed for voltage variations like this or not. Especially the Shahe ones because I'm considering buying those.

[@Versette]

I have the "carbon fiber" ones, and and they don't drain like that even though they scored pretty low Didn't know this was a problem

[@hazrpg]

@@Versette my main issue is I can probably go 6 months before needing them again because I've started up a new project... and if I forgot to take out the battery it usually means I need to make a trip to the DIY shop. Although I am tempted to give the shahe and the carbon fiber ones a try next time.

[@samuelmayorga5569]

How you dare to cal cnc kitchen a small chanel when you are smaller

[@jacobdillon3635]

Me with my $350 mitutoyo calipers 😅

[@AndrewAHayes]

I bought the Mitutoyu Vernier Caliper about 30 years ago but only because I had their micrometer that I inherited, I knew nothing about the quality of Vernier Calipers, The micrometer is highly accurate and I would say the Vernier Caliper is also very accurate, They have stood the test of time and are still in perfect condition.

[@3D_Printing]

The measurements depend on how hard you Squeeze the jaws

[@MailzITMO]

Забавно, в России 19-ый номер продаётся с кейсом

[@drankenkorps]

They are sll verier

[@giovannivillacis4110]

Wen calipers

[@pekay9683]

Please clarify that the "mitutoyo" you are testing is fake. For the real one you would have to pay 10x

[@Vector3DP]

Oh yes, 100% all mitutoyo ones were from aliexpress so i fully expect to be fake.

[@TioDave]

I use a 300mm set of the knock off Mitutoyo. They look different from yours. The body is the common squared style plastic electronics housing. The body looks exactly like your grandpa set.

[@hellopsp180]

:O

[@hellopsp180]

:P

[@kybarg]

waste of time, whats the purpose of slilly brands names?

[@klab3929]

Mitutoyo Calipers for 40$? Clearly a fake Mitutoyo and by the looks

[@Vector3DP]

Oh yes, 100% definitely fake.