Fowler as a whole seems to have some nice tools that do a good job.
I have a set there 0-6 Micrometers that have had for 30 years now that have held up very well.
The micrometers are what you will use to set up the dial bore gage with,,,It is a little tricky
and requires some patience to get the gauge to read the mic size exactly so be prepared
to spend some time learning the "touch" that is needed for this.
I have a mitutoya dial bore gage that is mechanical but similar in size to the one you are looking at.
One fault that all of these type indicators have is that the Reading anvil that touches the cylinder wall,
main bearing bore etc.....is too sharp of a point and they have too much spring pressure on them.....
now on the cylinder wall its not an issue because the Iron block material is strong enough it will take it
but on the bearing shells themselves this anvil type setup will leave slight scratches and marks in the soft
bearing material and actually measure the bearing clearance bigger than what they are due to the gouge effect
they leave.....with some modifications and setting the tool up with the minmal spring tension needed this can be
reduced but you will not be happy the first time you sweep the bearings after the difficult set up process
and your bearings now have some very noticable gouges in them.
The real answer to this is using the sunnen brand gauges with the different style floating fingers setup
that are much more forgiving on the bearings.....Seems like the engine shops prefer the sunnen type
for a reason. Though they cost some big$$....I look on ebay for this occasionnaly and have yet to find one
at a good price.
The other issue with the type of indicator you are looking at is the shank length is a bit short to read all
of the main bores while the block is on an engine stand.....the indicator head gets into the block material
as you go past the 3rd main bore and may require the block to be put on a work bench so that you
can come in from the backside to get those bores without having the head crash into stuff.
Now for deck heights you can measure those quite well with just a set of 12" dial calipers
measuring all 4 corners from the main bore edge to the deck.....look for a set that has deep enough jaws
to allow this.....I have 3 sets they all work for this but if the jaw depth were a 1/4" shorter I would not be able to
do all 4 corners.
By all means get the tools and learn how to use them as it is incredible how much stuff ends up
being off size on dimensions......and it is in your best interest to catch it before final assembly.
And I am including some major name machine shops in this statement,,,,,
one of the hardest things for a machine shop to get correct is main bores machined and honed properly
followed by connecting rod big ends......I have gotten some real surprises from the most highly regarded
shops out there in the turbo Buick world.
I would also get a set of snap gauges and learn how to use them......you can get some good accuracy with them
once you get the touch.......Hope this helps. FBR
