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1 review
The “Gold Standard” of Brass Gauges!
One of the oldest cliches in the book is that German machinists turn out pieces ground to a higher standard of precision than most others, and this gauge is evidence of one of those “kernels of truth” that often underlie such myths.
I’ve actually carried one of these in a front pocket for most of my adult life (or at least, for the 29 years that I earned my living as a lapidary to the trade). Sure, there are numerous larger and more finely calibrated dial gauges,, and even more finely detailed digital ones, but they’re a bit unwieldy for every day carry in a front pocket, where as these are perfectly suited to the task...
The only catch is that these are so ridiculously well machined that they need their corners and edges filed and fine sanded round, in order not to have them rip through your pants pockets (and take your change, pens, etc., with it), but that’s a small price to pay in order to have a great little tool at the ready, whenever you need one! The one other tip
I can offer is to wash, then dry it off as soon as you get it home, and then very lightly smear a thin “skim coat” of Testor’s Flat Black model paint onto every line and groove, then let that dry for an hour or so, before very gently sanding it off with 800 grit sandpaper. If you do, what you’ll be left with is a gleaming brass slide rule/caliper with crisp, jet black demarcations to read from! Truly a joy to use, and one I can’t recommend highly enough!
P. S.: Please note that the rounded-off edges and corners, and the beak-like measurement points of the caliper are not at all as they appeared, when it first arrived! As the great Master Goldsmith Alan Revere taught my fellow students and I when we studied with him in 2001, “No hand tool, regardless of how ‘perfect’ it may seem to its designer and manufacturer, ever truly achieves perfection for a craftsman until its form has been modified to comfortably fit his or her hand”.
Another tip for you: as you can see in image #5, I also remove the movable tongue from the groove and bend the tongue slightly. This serves two purposes: first, it prevents the tongue from either sliding out and falling free from the groove (which could be disastrous to both pocket linings and fingertips, as the inner edges of that groove is razor sharp), but also makes it easier to open and close it more slowly and precisely (which can come in handy sometimes, such as when selecting melee for a ring, or when using it as a makeshift tweezers, to show a stone to a prospective customer).
All in all, one of my favorite tools of all time!Read full review...
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: jetsinc