Wasted $300 on a fancy digital caliper that was totally unnecessary

I bought this $300 Mitutoyo digital caliper last month because I thought it would make my measurements more accurate. First day on the job it fell off my workbench and the screen cracked. My old $40 dial caliper still works fine after 5 years of abuse. Has anyone else been burned by buying expensive tools that just don't hold up in a real shop?

3 comments

3 Comments

lewis.brian14d ago

Man I did the same thing with a $250 Starrett micrometer. First week I dropped it and the thimble jammed up. My Grandpa's old Craftsman one from the 70s still turns smooth as butter. Guess I learned the hard way that expensive tools just make you feel worse when you break em.

bailey.jennifer13d ago

Hate that feeling. Been there with a nice set of Snap-On wrenches my dad got me when I started out. First job, dropped one in the dirt and it got run over by a forklift. That old stuff they built back then really was different. Sometimes i think we pay for the name more than the quality these days.

patricia3213d ago

Oh totally @bailey.jennifer, I feel that deep in my wallet. Dropped my dad's old tape measure off a ladder once and it shattered on the concrete (like I hadn't already embarrassed myself enough in front of the foreman that day). Funny how we get so attached to the tools that remind us of someone, even when they break in the dumbest ways.