MZ
Aluminum
- Joined
- Dec 31, 2005
- Location
- Providence, RI
Just a heads up, I bought a new "Mitutoyo Absolute Digimatic 6" caliper (p/n 500-196-20)" on the Bay and it turned out to be a fairly sophisticated (but still obvious) counterfeit. Selling price was about 25% off going "sale" prices from MSC, Travers etc.; so I was seduced.
I could see watches, iphones, and other consumer goods; but machine shop tools? Come on.
Packaging, graphics and molded parts were dead copies of a real Japan-made article. Owners manual/sheet looked graphically OK but appeared to have been folded and jammed in the box by a child.
On close inspection the works and metal details were also pretty rough; crooked rivets, visible burrs and tool digs, a peeling and wrinkled scale cover. Battery cover was missing one retention tab.
They took care to include a blister-packed battery (stapled to the fake "inspection certificate") but it turned out another battery was already installed. Both batteries are Chinese brand, stamped LR44 (alkaline), whereas the card on the "new" one claims it's an SR44 (silver oxide) and Made In Japan.
As a caliper, it sort of worked. However the "Origin" button does not work as described in the manual, and in inch mode, it is missing the tenths digit (only three places show to right of decimal). If you open it fast and return to zero, it can lose count and gives a nonsense dimension (so it's "absolute" all right, absolute crap). Of course, under extreme duress a real Mitu can also lose the count sometimes; but it will always show Err to warn you.
Getting my money back, also encouraging ebay to clean house. I contacted Mitutoyo USA with the guy's address.
Caveat emptor,
mike
I could see watches, iphones, and other consumer goods; but machine shop tools? Come on.
Packaging, graphics and molded parts were dead copies of a real Japan-made article. Owners manual/sheet looked graphically OK but appeared to have been folded and jammed in the box by a child.
On close inspection the works and metal details were also pretty rough; crooked rivets, visible burrs and tool digs, a peeling and wrinkled scale cover. Battery cover was missing one retention tab.
They took care to include a blister-packed battery (stapled to the fake "inspection certificate") but it turned out another battery was already installed. Both batteries are Chinese brand, stamped LR44 (alkaline), whereas the card on the "new" one claims it's an SR44 (silver oxide) and Made In Japan.
As a caliper, it sort of worked. However the "Origin" button does not work as described in the manual, and in inch mode, it is missing the tenths digit (only three places show to right of decimal). If you open it fast and return to zero, it can lose count and gives a nonsense dimension (so it's "absolute" all right, absolute crap). Of course, under extreme duress a real Mitu can also lose the count sometimes; but it will always show Err to warn you.
Getting my money back, also encouraging ebay to clean house. I contacted Mitutoyo USA with the guy's address.
Caveat emptor,
mike