Anyone familiar with this Mühle/Glashütte Sa. micrometre?

[VWatchie]

I’m searching the eBay sites (.com/.de/.it/etc.) for a micrometre of the type used to measure the diameter of jewels. In this video a JKA Feintaster is used.

However, I found this “Feintaster Mühle/Glashütte Sa.” on German eBay and I wonder if anyone of you guys is familiar with it and if it is designed to measure jewels?

When I translate the German description to English (I don’t speak German) using Google translate it comes out like this:

“very well preserved and 100% intact
A fine pushbutton of the company mill from Glashütte in Sa. is sold in the original wooden box in very good condition. The device is ready for immediate use. The design corresponds to the fine buttons that were also made in the German watchmaker Glashütte. The quality and handling in practice are unsurpassed. Measuring accuracy 1/100 mm.”

I don’t know how much sense that makes to you but I’d appreciate your opinions.
 

[oldhippy]

Google translate is very poor. Look for others on the net.

[nickelsilver]

Those Glashutte micrometers are really nice, but don't have all the features the JKA has. The JKA has a little table that is adjustable in height (great for checking jewel diameters), and has fine jaws which will measure between two larger diameters.

My favorite though is the Bergeon 30112, which has a traditional micrometer head (instead of a dial indicator), and the little table and notched anvil and spindle for checking staffs and arbors.

 

[watchweasol]

Hi Watchie  the reference to buttons  read jewels  looks ok but the bergeon is better just a question of cost.

[Klassiker]

Google translate didn't do a bad job, to be fair.

very well preserved and 100% intact
A precision dial gauge from the company Mühle of Glashütte in Sa. (Saxony) is sold in the original wooden box in very good condition. The device is ready for immediate use. The design corresponds to the precision dial gauges that were also made in the German Watchmaker School in Glashütte. The quality and handling in practice are unsurpassed. Measuring accuracy 1/100 mm.

It unfortunately doesn't say anything about what it can be used for or how to use it.

[Klassiker]

Oh by the way, I just checked, and he is only shipping to Germany. If you are determined to have it you will need to contact him about that first. If he won't ship to Sweden, and I can act as an intermediary, let me know.

[VWatchie]

Thanks all!

I've been in touch with the seller and asked him if this tool was designed for measuring jewel diameters and if it was comparable to the JKA Feintaster. Here is the reply:

"Ja, der Mühle Feintaster ist noch vielseitiger einsetzbar"

With a bit of help from Google translate I think it means:

"Yes, the Mühle Feintaster micrometre is even more versatile"

If that is true, although I have some doubts as @nickelsilver doesn't agree, I guess it will go for quite a bit of money. Checked Cousines for the type of micrometre that @nickelsilver informed us about and the one they have (similar I guess?) would cost me £715/€780/$869 with taxes and shipping . Now, I'm a hobbyist so that is 100 % out of the question.

Anyway, I saw something similar (eBay listing here) that basically goes for a trifle but I simply don't know if it would suffice. So, again I would really appreciate your help and opinions!

@Klassiker, thanks for your offer to act as an intermediary! 

Edited July 30, 2019 by VWatchie

[VWatchie]

I've pretty much made up my mind to go with a used vintage Bergeon 30112 micrometre (the one shown by @nickelsilver), and they seem to be somewhat common on eBay. Prices for these seem to be around $250 (not including shipping and import charges). It's still quite a bit of money but considering it will last for a lifetime and probably more and a lot less expensive than a new, I think it is probably worth it.

[nickelsilver]

4 hours ago, VWatchie said:

I've pretty much made up my mind to go with a used vintage Bergeon 30112 micrometre (the one shown by @nickelsilver), and they seem to be somewhat common on eBay. Prices for these seem to be around $250 (not including shipping and import charges). It's still quite a bit of money but considering it will last for a lifetime and probably more and a lot less expensive than a new, I think it is probably worth it.

The WatchCraft mic you posted above is pretty crappy. We had one at school, bleh. The Bergeon is really great, you won't be disappointed, and if you are patient they do come up for under 250, I think I've seen them around 150 here and there.

[VWatchie]

So, the trigger has been pulled! Found a very professional, friendly, and helpful seller on eBay who had a vintage Bergeon micrometer in prime condition. Paid a lot more than I had initially decided to do, but I'd rather pay for something that works really great and that can serve me well for a long time than for something that makes me frustrated and eventually will have to be replaced anyway.  If interested you can see the eBay listing here.

This reminds me of how very frustrated I was with my Chinese crystal press and how very satisfying it was to replace it with a true tool, a Bergeon 5500 crystal press.

Thanks all for your support! I'll report back once I received and tested my "new" micrometer.

[VWatchie]

Come to think of it... How do you use one of these?  I do believe I get the basics, for example measuring the diameter of a jewel (my main purpose), but how would I go about "checking staffs and arbors" as @nickelsilvermentioned? Any user manual out there. I Googled it but nothing of use came up.

[nickelsilver]

Come to think of it... How do you use one of these? [emoji38] I do believe I get the basics, for example measuring the diameter of a jewel (my main purpose), but how would I go about "checking staffs and arbors" as [mention=4990]nickelsilver[/mention]mentioned? Any user manual out there. I Googled it but nothing of use came up.

The jaws (anvil and spindle officially) are notched, and fine (thin). The notches allow easy measuring between shoulders on an arbor. The table allows setting parts down like jewels and checking diameters. On a staff with a broken pivot you can get the staff between the jaws (and on thd table, using tweezers) and visualize the needed extra usually within 3-4 hundredths.

I have a bunch of mics, handheld, vertical, horizontal. I use the handheld the most, then horizontal, then vertical. I wouldn't be without any of them.

[VWatchie]

On 7/30/2019 at 4:06 PM, nickelsilver said:

Those Glashutte micrometers are really nice, but don't have all the features the JKA has. The JKA has a little table that is adjustable in height (great for checking jewel diameters), and has fine jaws which will measure between two larger diameters.

My favorite though is the Bergeon 30112, which has a traditional micrometer head (instead of a dial indicator), and the little table and notched anvil and spindle for checking staffs and arbors.

 

Just wanted to mention that I did get a Bergeon 30112 and (after some adjustments) it has served me extremely well. I couldn't be happier.

However, now, two and a half years later, a JKA-Feintaster in absolutely pristine condition surfaced on Tradera.com, and not being able to resist bidding on it I got it for just £99/€119/$134. Handling and using this JKA-Feintaster is a true joy and to me it adds even more prestige to "Made in Germany".

So, which one do I prefer? Well, the JKA is a bit more versatile (I guess) and the readability of the dial (super German design!) is just amazing, but unlike the Bergeon mic you can't really control how hard the spindles should press against the object (jewel) being measured as it is spring loaded. Not a problem, at all, as it's very gentle, but a very different feeling from the Bergeon. I'll be keeping and using both and and from my limited experience of the JKA so far I can recommend both.

Edited January 27, 2022 by VWatchie