Online supplier of precision tools?

[Ian David]

I am looking to buy a good Vernier caliper (thinking of a Mitutoyo) and it will almost certainly be far cheaper to buy online from the US than within Australia. Can anyone point me in the direction of a reputable online supplier of precision tools in the US? I guess there must be some well-known websites which would be happy to ship overseas...
Many thanks for any info!
Cheers
Ian

 

[Richard Wasserman]

Mcmaster-Carr

 

[Richard Wasserman]

OOps—

mcmaster.com

 

[tkamiya]

Amazon carries that too. www.amazon.com

 

[lxdude]

MSC Industrial Supply
www.mscdirect.com

Lots and lots. Not just Mitutoyo;
Brown and Sharpe, Starrett, Fowler, etc.

 

[matt S]

other US tool suppliers

Some companies I have used and can recommend:

Stanley Supply Services: http://www.stanleysupplyservices.com/

MSC and McMaster mentioned above are both great companies.

SmallParts: http://www.smallparts.com/

Matt

 

[BrianShaw]

...it will almost certainly be far cheaper to buy online from the US than within Australia...

Really?

 

[Steve Smith]

Really?

That's what I was wondering too. There must be suppliers of vernier calipers in Australia.


Steve.

 

[nsurit]

I bought an inexpensive one from a major supplier of small tools and it was a piece of junk. I later parted with a bit more noney and bought a digital one from Home Depot. http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

This one is the one I should have bought first. Don't know if they will ship overseas, however you might google the manufacturers name and see what you can find. Bill Barber

 

[BrianShaw]

That's what I was wondering too. There must be suppliers of vernier calipers in Australia.


Steve.

I don't know how big of a town/city Brisbane is, but this was the first hit on a google:

Dead Link Removed

Bolts, Steel & Tools Australia
Shop 6, 50-52 Hume St
NORMAN PARK QLD 4170
BRISBANE
AUSTRALIA

There was at least one other supplier in some other Queensland town/city.

 

[Ian David]

Thanks very much for all the suggestions, guys. MSC looks particularly good. I will have a look at the prices in the US relative to the prices here, and then decide what to go for. I will also keep an eye out for good used items.
Cheers
Ian

 

[Ian David]

That's what I was wondering too. There must be suppliers of vernier calipers in Australia.
Steve.

Gosh, now why didn't I think of that?!
I am sure there are many suppliers of excellent mechanical calipers here in Australia. There are also many suppliers of film, cameras, running shoes, etc, etc, in Australia. And yet, almost everything is considerably cheaper to buy from the US. There is no Australian tax on imports under AU$1000, so often the only extra cost component when buying from overseas is shipping. Often the cost differential more than makes up for the postage costs once the price of the goods reaches a certain point.

So, by starting this thread, I have received directions to some US suppliers from some helpful APUGers. This enables me to make price comparisons. I can then work out whether it would actually be better to buy locally.

Ian

 

[Ian David]

I don't know how big of a town/city Brisbane is, but this was the first hit on a google:

Dead Link Removed

Bolts, Steel & Tools Australia
Shop 6, 50-52 Hume St
NORMAN PARK QLD 4170
BRISBANE
AUSTRALIA

There was at least one other supplier in some other Queensland town/city.

Thanks Brian. Pretty funny - that place you googled is very close to me here. I knew of their existence from a previous search for an unusual bolt!

For your info, Brisbane is Australia's third largest city. Population around 2 million, give or take a few. We are halfway up the east coast. Not much between Brisbane and LA apart from a lot of water and a few Pacific islands.

Ian

 

[bdial]

If you want a second hand one, send me a note, I know of a few for sale in various shops around here. However mostly they will be in inches not mm.
Happy to clue you in on what I can find though.

I have one of each (metric and U.S.) but mine aren't for sale

 

[Steve Smith]

I have one of each (metric and U.S.) but mine aren't for sale

I assume you mean metric and Imperial!


Steve.

 

[Wade D]

micro-tools.com has a bunch of really nice tools and parts for camera and watch repair.

 

[Tim Gray]

McMaster and Small Parts are good, but man are they expensive. I order from them at work periodically, but it's not my money