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Best Dial Caliper Reviews 2020

Ask any local wrench-wielding handyman, and they'll tell you — a well-made dial caliper can make your measuring task much easier than it has to be, and you'll also look smart while operating it, so that's a plus! If you'd like to obtain one of these magnificent measuring tools of the modern world, read through our top 5 list of calipers and learn more!
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Overview
PROS
CONS
SPECS
Type
Size
Measurement
Material
Accuracy
Our Top Choice
Starrett White Dial Caliper
Starrett White Dial Caliper
Counting a number of excellent measuring devices to their name, the Starrett folks deliver once again with their Starrett 3202-6 model!
Comes in a durable stainless steel frame. Thumb-operated fine adjustment roll. Made of hardened stainless steel. Range of 0-6 inches.
Cheap plastic case.
Outside, Inside and Depth
1 Pound
Inch
Stainless Steel
+- 0.001
Best Value
Anytime Tools 6” Dial Caliper
Anytime Tools 6” Dial Caliper
Coming from a company which has been supplying both individuals and companies for a long time now, this Anytime Tools Dial Caliper is a product made by an experienced gang of people.
Comes with a measuring system reading both metric and imperial values. Made of hardened stainless steel. Shockproof. Highly accurate yet affordable.
Some models are shipped damaged from the factory.
Inside, Outside, Step and Depth
1.1 x 9.8 x 3.5 Inches, 11.2 Ounces
Inch and Metric
Stainless Steel
+- 0.001
Brown & Sharpe 599 Series Dial Caliper
Brown & Sharpe 599 Series Dial Caliper
Having created a number of impressive contraptions ever since they first entered the market in 1833, the Brown & Sharpe folks are one of the most well-known manufacturers of measuring equipment on the market!
Tough stainless steel construction. Anti-backlash, shock-proof design.
Some products don't have thumb wheels installed.
Inside, Outside, Step and Depth
Info unavailable
Inch
Stainless Steel
+- 0.001
Fowler Steel Shockproof Dial Caliper
Fowler Steel Shockproof Dial Caliper
Coming from a renowned manufacturer of measuring and calibrating equipment, the Fowler Stainless Steel Shockproof Dial Caliper can be a great solution for you upcoming handyman's task.
Tough stainless steel construction. Shock-proof anti-backlash control. Covered rack to make everything work smoothly. 1-year warranty.
Some customers have been claiming that the case it comes with is faulty, lacking the protective foam.
Inside, Outside, Step and Depth
9.6 x 3.4 x 1 Inches, 1 Pound
Inch
Stainless Steel
+- 0.001
Oshlun 6-Inch Dial Caliper
Oshlun 6-Inch Dial Caliper
As a product of a renown company dealing in industrial and measuring contraptions, the Oshlun Fractional Dial Caliper is a tough device you can rely on!
Comes with a knurled thumb roller for easier handling and a plastic storage case. Features 4-way measuring head. 1-inch range per revolution. Two buying options include fractional and decimal dial.
The green dial of the fractional model may not suit all tastes.
Inside, Outside, Step and Depth
9.7 x 3.6 x 1.2 Inches, 9.6 Ounces
Inch
Stainless Steel
+- 0.001

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Watch Our Dial Caliper Review

What is the Best Dial Caliper?

In the world of measuring tools, dial calipers hold a rather special place as devices that boast some weird looks and also a wrist watch without the belt! Imagine a wrench with a wrist watch strapped to it — it'd be the next big thing that handymen and women across the country would stand in line to get! Until this cheeky phenomenon happens, however, the dial calipers are about as weird and useful as it gets, and we've got a list for them as well! Check it out, and see what we've found!
Our Top Choice
Starrett White Dial Caliper
Coming from a company boasting over 130 years manufacturing measuring devices, the Starrett 3202-6 Dial Caliper is a user-friendly contraption that can make your job much easier! For a couple of bucks more, you can also get yourself the Starrett 1202F-6 model instead; if you want a caliper for precision measurements, this is the one!

Starrett Hardened Stainless Steel Dial Caliper with 0.001'' Graduation in White — Available in 2 Styles


Features
'Man is a tool-using animal. Without tools he is nothing, with tools he is all.' - thus spake one Thomas Carlyle, an essayist, historian, teacher and a Scotsman, whose words were recognized by the plucky Starrett company folks as revealing the ultimate truth of the human condition! As a result, they started making dial calipers. It all started when an impressionable young gentlemen going by the name of Laroy S. Starrett decided that his immense love of tools and all things related to them should somehow be translated into something tangible and actually functioning in the real world. Most of all, young Starrett expected that whatever new contraption he was to come up with, it had to be useful and efficient so that other people would be interested to buy some!

Much like so many other great men, Starrett endured a series of disasters and unfortunate events in his life, but thanks to his innovative spirit, a burning desire to succeed (and some would say also his moustache), he managed to stay on top of it all, create a powerful tool and with it a great company which has now been in business for over 130 years! His efforts in his own words: 'I saw no other way but to try to create a business for myself by inventing something useful that people would want.'

For this review, we've decided to feature the Starrett 3203-6 Dial Caliper, a tough and rather good-looking contraption capable of measuring even the trickiest of objects without much hassle. The fine adjustment roll slides gracefully across the metal, and it’s operated by thumb for convenience sake.

The list of features for the Starrett 3203-6 Dial Caliper:
  • Quick Accurate Measurement
  • Clear Dial Graduations
  • Adjustable Bezel
  • Thumb-Operated Adjustment Roll
  • Sharp-Edge Contacts
  • Formed of Hardened Stainless Steel
  • Satin-Finished Bar
  • Anti-Backlash Control
Equipped with a satin-finished bar and an anti-backlash control in case your measuring procedure gets particularly rough, this Starrett 3203-6 is a true handyman's apparatus, as it’s capable to measure what no tool has measured before! It's almost century and a half of vigorous designing and measuring that made this very tool! Top quality, honestly.
Need a sturdy measuring tool? Get yourself a Starrett dial caliper and off ye go measurin'!
Best Value
Anytime Tools 6” Dial Caliper
Coming from a bunch of nice people hell-bent on creating the best measuring tool ever, the Anytime Tools Dial Caliper is a tough contraption that can be your future ally in a variety of construction jobs! If you're working with a smaller budget, perhaps this Anytime Tools Premium Dial Caliper may do the trick, and it comes in a nice, padded case.

Anytime Tools 6” Dial Caliper with Hardened Stainless Steel Construction & Raised Sliding Surface


Features
Anytime tools is a company producing, well what else — tools, and they've been around since the year 1999. The driving force behind this company would be their goal to make a bunch of tools that boast a high-quality build and are sold at a reasonable price. On top of this, the Anytime Tools folks seem to be quite a zealous bunch, as they claim that they won't ever settle for a product that only partly answers to your needs as a customer. Also included in the list of things they claim about themselves would be the statements describing their efforts to always strive for perfection, as well as the fact that they are actually quite nice people once you get to meet them (or at least, contact them via e-mail, which they've gracefully displayed on their webpage).

Speaking of their webpage, it's a rather well-elaborated place where you can learn about their business and what sort of products they are selling! Also, you can make your own account, by which you'd become a member of a vibrant community of caliper-wielding satisfied customers eager to see what next masterpiece of engineering the Anytime Tools are going to bless them with!

The Anytime Tools Dial Caliper we've decided to feature on this list represents a high-quality precision tool with dual reading faces. These serve to show both inch readings (in black), and metric readings (in red), so that you don't have to waste time converting the values you've just read from your device.

The Anytime Tools Dial Caliper- a list of properties:
  • Dual Face Reads Both in Metric and Imperial Measurements
  • Made of Hardened Stainless Steel
  • Raised Sliding Surface
  • Covered Rack
  • Inside, Outside, Step and Depth Measurement
  • Comes in a Special Case
All in all, a well-rounded measuring tool coming your way from the Anytime Tools company. Over the years, these folks have been responsible for a range of interesting solutions both for industrial and personal use. This dial caliper we're presenting is one of their best 'feet forward' to date!
Still not sure? No worries, there are plenty of other products at Anytime Tools to look out for! Check them out now!
Brown & Sharpe 599 Series Dial Caliper
Coming from a well-known manufacturer of measuring ware, the Brown & Sharpe 599 Series dial caliper can be your new measuring companion! For a couple bucks more, you can get yourself the Brown & Sharpe 75 Series Dial Caliper, which has the thumb wheel that’s missing on some of the other models.

Brown & Sharpe Stainless Steel 599 Series Dial Caliper for Depth, Inside, Outside & Step Measurements


Features
Another company on this list boasting a long tradition of producing high-quality measuring tools comes as the third entry on this list of ours, and similarly to the two businesses that preceded it, this one, too, has an interesting inception story to relate to anyone willing to listen. The company started out in 1833 in Providence, Rhode Island, when a father and son duo decided to make a factory that would produce a bunch of measuring tools and get them stinkin' rich! The father, going by the name of David Brown would be engaged into the factory matters long enough to see the first of their noble aspirations come true, while the money-getting part would, irritatingly, become true only a couple of years later.

As Brown the senior retired in 1841, the son continued working on his own up until 1853, when he joined forced with Lucian Sharpe, which was a rather name-changing event in this company's history! Soon enough, a variety of ideas for new measuring contraptions were shooting left and right, as the first automatic machine for graduating rules came out in 1850! In 1866, a man surnamed Darling also joined the company, but his share was soon bought out, so the Brown & Sharpe remained.

For this review, we've decided to go with the Brown & Sharpe 599 Series Dial Caliper, as it’s been one of the best-selling measuring tools produced by this company so far. It features a durable stainless steel construction ensuring its longevity and a shock-proof design so that all of your measuring undertakings may transgress in piece and without any 'shocks'!

The list of features for the Brown & Sharpe 599 Series Dial Caliper:
  • Stainless Steel Construction
  • Adjustable Zero Set
  • Rotating Dial with Lock
  • Anti-Backlash
  • Covered Rack
  • The Lock Screw Locks the Dial
  • Integrated Depth Rod
  • Corrosion-Resistant
As a product of a company with many years of experience in creating cutting-edge measuring devices, as well as some pretty lucrative deals to sell them, the Brown & Sharpe 599 Series Dial Caliper is a durable contraption coming at quite an affordable price. The linear accuracy meets the rigorous German DIN 862 standard! What's not to love?
If you’re still unsure, there's plenty of other products at Brown & Sharpe's!
Fowler Steel Shockproof Dial Caliper
Coming from an experienced company dealing in all kinds of measuring materials, the Fowler Shockproof Dial Caliper is a top-tier device for a true tradesman or woman! If you prefer a digital version, you can get yourself the Fowler Xtra-Value Cal Electronic Caliper instead!

Fowler Stainless Steel Shockproof Dial Caliper with 0.001” Graduation Interval


Features
In the world of high-precision tools and various calibration devices, the Fowler High Precision occupies a rather special place thanks to its constant efforts to bring innovative, efficient, durable and also budget-friendly tools to their faithful customers. Ever since its inception in 1946, the Fowler company would strive to give their best in order to be on a par with the rapidly-expanding industrial capacities of the American market. Namely, as a number of new contraptions and designs started pouring in the market for home and industrial appliances, there emerged a necessity to measure and calibrate all of those tools. The Fowler company made it their mission to always produce top-tier tools so that whenever somebody happens to be in need of a measuring instrument, they would come to them first.

With a slogan that reads: "Fowler Tools and Instruments-A Standard of Quality and Accuracy", these folks don't seem to lack self-confidence, as can be seen from some of their other statements released for their customers. You can read those and also inform yourself about their future plans on their official webpage, where everything is explained in great detail.

The Fowler Stainless Steel Shockproof Dial Caliper features a tough stainless steel construction which can prevent corrosion and ensure longevity. Also, to make sure that your measuring task isn't compromised by some unfortunate event, you also have the shockproof spring anti-backlash control offering increased accuracy over the standard gear configurations.

The list of features for the Fowler Stainless Steel Shockproof Dial Caliper:
  • Four-Way Jaw
  • Solid Stainless Steel Construction
  • Smooth Movement
  • 0.001'' Reading Dial Face
  • Shockproof Design
  • Comes with a Case
  • Full 1-Year Warranty
All things considered, the Fowler Stainless Steel Shockproof Dial Caliper is a model that showcases Fowler's vast 68-year experience in the best light. It comes with a bunch of useful features that can make any measuring task a walk in the park! Also comes at an affordable price! You've got to have one!
If you’re excited by this one, check out what else the Fowler folks have to offer!
Oshlun 6-Inch Dial Caliper
Dedicated to producing top tier measuring and industrial devices, this time around the Oshlun company presents its Stainless Steel 6-inch Dial Caliper! If you happen to favor the digital version instead, you can get yourself the MTEC-06 model, which has 4, 6, 8, and 12-inch sizes!

Oshlun 6-Inch Stainless Steel Dial Caliper with Plastic Storage Case — Available in 2 Styles


Features
With a motto of 'Professionally designed, with you in mind.', the Oshlun company promises to enable you to make your Bob the Builder kind of aspirations come true, whether you're planning to be an independent handyman who does their measuring business as a part of a hobby, or a professional artisan whose wrenches, saws and measuring tools more or less represent their bread and butter! Since their market-worthy output includes a number of items, ranging from power tools to measuring equipment, the Oshlun folks have so far been able to cover the needs of a sizeable chunk of the market, which made it possible for them to calibrate the prices according to the paying ability of their customer base.

As a result, the Oshlun products nowadays represent a combination of high-quality and budget-friendliness, as they claim themselves, and it's precisely this duality, so to speak, that enabled them to further develop their company! If you'd like to learn more about their undertakings and what sort of products they're selling there, we’d like to recommend you their webpage, as everything is explained in more detail there!

The Oshlun MTDCF-06 Dial Caliper represents one of their cheekier models, as it, other than its standard stainless steel construction, also features the greenish dial adding a certain sci-fi look to this tool (this is what the fractional model has anyway, the decimal caliper has a more ordinary-looking dial). It has the accuracy of +/- 0.001 inch, so it's perfectly able to pick up even the slightest variations in the size of the object in question.

The list of features for the Oshlun MTDCF-06 Fractional Dial Caliper:
  • Durable Stainless Steel Construction
  • 1-Inch Range per Revolution
  • 4-Way Measurement
  • Knurled Thumb Roller
  • Positive Lock
  • Available in Either Fractional or Decimal Measurements
  • Plastic Storage Case
Furnished with a tough stainless steel body and a high-visibility green dial for the fractional model, this Oshlun Dial Caliper is a great measuring tool capable of delivering a tough handyman's punch whenever necessary! Thanks to its four-way measurement head, you can measure whatever you so desire, no matter how awkward the angle might be!
Need a simple-to-use measuring tool? Get an Oshlun dial caliper and measure away!

How Do I Choose the Best Dial Caliper?

If you've ever tried to fix something, or God forbid had to make a brand new construction from scratch, chances are that that undertaking would cost you blood, sweat, tears, and most likely a lot of money! Now, we at TopProducts like pointin' fingers and deciding upon who's guilty for what, so upon closer examination of these handyman efforts of some of the guinea-pig artisans we were able to find, we found the culprit of the working man and woman's struggles! It's the chronic lack of dial calipers!

As your average baseball cap rockin' handyman Joe goes about its craftsmanship-related business, the most irritating thing he faces are the awkwardly-shaped minute objects strewn around the table, each of which in need of precise measuring, so that they would hopefully click together in perfect harmony. As our poor test subject didn't have a dial caliper, we witnessed him struggle with rules and tape measures, hoping to get at least some sort of odd number, lest he be forced to abandon his ambitious project of restoring an old IKEA cart! With the stakes being high, and him increasingly irritated and occasionally ogling the nearby sledgehammer, our fearless team decided it was time we awarded him a brand new dial caliper!

In this review, we hope to deliver to you the fruits of our research into the vaunted dial caliper, and show to you the factors you may want to consider before venturing to buy a dial caliper! The first parameter to look out for would be the material that the caliper is made of. Typically, the majority of the manufacturers producing these devices choose to go with stainless steel, as its impressive properties make it a great metal both when it comes to its ability to be delicately shaped and the fact that its rust-free and durable. For the necessities of producing a dial caliper, the stainless steel of choice is usually some kind of hardened version of it so as to ensure that it can survive all of your measuring tasks, even if they get a bit violent every now and then! However, while you may think that they’re as tough as your average crescent wrench, these are instruments that make very precise measurements, so any kind of fall may throw them out of order, which is why you also may want to ensure that your dial caliper is shockproof.

Another thing worth paying attention to before you buy a dial caliper is to check what sort of measuring system it's got printed on it. For the US market, you may rightfully expect for the majority of models to be made according to the Imperial measuring system; however, you can also find some brands offering calipers with both Imperial and metric systems printed out on their tools. This can be a useful asset if you often work with both US and foreign schematics and can't be bothered to convert the units all the time.

For those of you who like to stick with the US measurements in every step of your respective technical process at hand, you'll be alright since there’s a myriad of various models for you to choose from! Speaking of convenience, one of the arguably least pleasant things about owning a dial caliper would be to lose the delicate value of the measurement you just made because you accidentally pushed the slider forth or away from its after-measuring position! Luckily for all of us clumsy people out there trying our best to operate these complex contraptions, most of the modern-day dial calipers come with some sort of built-in lock, so that you can rest assured that the measurement you made with great effort will stay there long enough for you to read and make note of!

Until you get yourself a proper dial caliper, your tool box will remain incomplete!
Price
Price-wise, dial calipers would probably fall into the price range reserved for smaller to medium-sized tools, like wrench sets or professional sledgehammers. That being said, dial calipers do have quite a weird appearance, and if you take their design into consideration, you can see that they are mechanical contraptions par excellence! So when you look at them, you'd expect them to cost much more than they actually do.

An important factor playing a role in their price would be the material used for their build. Tougher and more durable materials such as stainless steel will mean a slightly higher price, but also a better performance and longevity. Also, the kind of case they come in can be telling of their price. Cheap plastic casings may lower the price slightly, but then again you won't get the protection for your tool that a tougher, foam-filled case can offer. All in all, we'd say it's better to spend a bit more now, so that you may enjoy a tough and reliable product for years to come!
Features
Even though they're rather small in size, dial calipers are comprised of many small parts, which makes them a complex and versatile contraption worth taking a closer look at. For purposes of helping you out in finding your perfect model, we've assembled this short list of the most prominent features that a dial caliper possesses! Read on and see what those are!

The list of features to look out for when buying a brand new Dial Caliper:
  • Material of Choice
  • Reading Dial Face
  • Thumb Roller
  • Secure Lock
  • Methods of Measurement
  • Anti-Backlash System
  • Depth Rod
  • Corrosion Resistance
  • Shockproof Design
  • Its Carrying Case
  • Warranty
A dial caliper with a four-way measuring system can always has an advantage over the ones which don't as it can approach the object of measuring from several different angles.
Construction and Design
Possessing the appearance of a weird sci-fi weapon that you'd expect will shoot some sort of greenish beams out of its back part any minute (check out the Oshlun fractional dial caliper to see what we’re talking about), dial calipers are one of the most recognizable 'faces' of the artisanship world! Its clockwork-like design is a triumph of precision and mechanics, and you can't really imagine a workshop without one laying around somewhere.

It may come as a surprise, then, that there’s not that much variation when it comes to the design of these utensils, as equipping some with a digital reading display instead of the analogue one seems to be as diverse as it gets. Still, if you hope to get yourself a model that will stick out among all the other ones, you might get yourself one with a colored dial! We have one in our top 5 list (the aforementioned Oshlun), so feel free to head out there to see what we're talking about!
Performance and Ease of Use
When it comes to their performance, the dial calipers are well-known for their cutting-edge precision which is often an absolute must when it comes to measuring stuff that you plan to stick together or otherwise make a construction of. Before you buy one for yourself, though, you might want to check if it has imperial or metric measurements printed on it.

Some models even feature both of these systems combined, so in that you have a third option for your purchase. Other than that, make sure to regularly clean your dial caliper, keep it away from humidity, and you should be alright. All in all, we hope that this buying guide helped you in getting the better idea of what sort of dial caliper to buy for yourself! We wish you luck with your purchase!

Go back to the start of the reviews

Get the Best Dial Caliper of 2020!

As you enter the world of repairs and technical things in general, the first thing you'll notice is that measuring any of the small items that happen to be included in the process of building or repairing something can be a proper pain in your bottom! If you have a dial caliper, however, there's a great chance that your symptoms will be presently alleviated, or if not, at least you'll have fun trying to make sense of the reading you're getting! Either way, our TopProducts team warmly recommends getting yourself one of these, as you’ve already seen in our reviews of the top 5 calipers in town. Have a look at the other models from the brands in this list if you still haven’t found the right one!

Our Top Choice
Starrett White Dial Caliper
Starrett White Dial Caliper
Best Value
Anytime Tools 6” Dial Caliper
Anytime Tools 6” Dial Caliper
Brown & Sharpe 599 Series Dial Caliper
Brown & Sharpe 599 Series Dial Caliper
Fowler Steel Shockproof Dial Caliper
Fowler Steel Shockproof Dial Caliper
Oshlun 6-Inch Dial Caliper
Oshlun 6-Inch Dial Caliper

Go back to the start of the reviews
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