Tried a 3D touch probe on my old Bridgeport, surprised me how much I relied on feel

Swapped my edge finder for a used Renishaw probe on a 1995 knee mill and it nailed a 0.0004 inch location on a part I usually do by ear, so now I'm wondering if I should just trust the numbers over my careful squinting, anyone else make that jump and go back to the old way?

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1 Comment

joseph_lewis9212d agoMost Upvoted

Stick with the probe but keep your old habits as a backup check. I ran a used probe on a manual mill for years and the only time it lied to me was when the part was dirty or I had a worn tool. You'll know within a few parts if the numbers feel right, your ear for the machine doesn't go away overnight. The real trick is using the probe for the tricky setups and still squinting on the simple ones, that way you catch any weirdness early. Once you trust it, it saves a ton of time, but I kept my edge finder within arm's reach for a solid month before I put it in the drawer.