Micrometers

Yes you did JJ
I took it from the page link you offered
right at the bottom my friend.

Maybe if you have a second hand tool shop
in your town, poke your nose in there.
Used micrometers are not a fast moving item.
You may get a cheapie without the $10 ship fee.

Random thought:

to test (if you need to) pop along to your motor mechanic
and use the micrometer on his "feeler guages"

That's the little guage he sets the spark plug gaps
you can tell, or have him check if the micrometer matches the guage

However, if you are just measuring paper, thick and thin
you wouldn't go to the trouble.

I also have a Mitutoyo micrometer that I got about 10 years ago. It is admittedly a luxury item (I think it was around $150 back then), and I don't use it very much, but that's mostly because I haven't gotten around yet to the project for which it was intended. (That doesn't happen to anyone else, right?)

In the Japanese definitives of the late-19th and early- to mid-20th century, there are a variety of paper types and thicknesses (not just thick and thin, but 4 or 5 different thicknesses). Because I wanted to do a specialized study of these definitive series, I got the micrometer.

I had discussed this device with other stamp people before getting one, because the risk is, as has been pointed out here, with some measuring devices you could potentially damage the stamp by torquing the device too tightly on the stamp. (Kind of like using rough-surfaced tongs.) This micrometer is so gentle that it's not a problem. I would think that any of the Mitutoyo micrometers that are electronic would have that same characteristic, but it would be smart to take a test drive with some stamps that don't matter much.

As for where to get one, I went to a big industrial plumbing supply store (that mostly caters to the trade, but is also open to the public), where they had quite a few to test out in the showroom. I also had the help of salesman there. And I brought several stamps with me.

The model I have is the Mitutoyo Quick-Mini PK-0505.

And just a little detail, in case you're interested: the brand is pronounced as if it were spelled "Mitsutoyo." So that "tu" syllable is pronouned "tsu". The company uses a form of Romanization that was more common in the past than it is these days. ("Nippon-shiki" instead of "Hepburn". More than you ever wanted to know here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hepburn_romanization ,
here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nihon-shiki ,
and here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunrei-shiki !)

Cheers!

-- Dave

If I were to try to explain philatelists to a stranger, I would point them to this thread. You won't find a higher percentage of obsessive-compulsive people in any discipline as you do philately. I love it!

Russ,

I can't wait to see the photos of your workbench.

Just an aside - As a journeyman millwright (in a foundry), I embody the antithesis of your trade. The stereotype of our millwrights using only a 12" adjustable (Crescent) wrench to fix everything is, well, accurate!

Brian

Thanks for the information, Philatarium. Your device sounds perfect for my needs. (Also, clearly, I need an electronic one.)

Let us know what you end up deciding.

And thanks for raising the subject -- it got me to find mine, and now I want to start working on that project I originally bought it for!

Brian/Rileysan -- I had to laugh when I read your comment. I think you're totally right. I'm not sure if I'm OCD or a recovering perfectionist, or both, or cycle back and forth between them, or ... !

(Probably just crazy.)

-- Dave

Rod wrote "You should be able to find a common reading at 1000th of an inch"

For those of you who don't know the conversion between inches and metric, 1/1000 inch = 0.025mm. Russ suggested needing to be able o discriminate roughly 10 times smalleer (0.002mm)

The difference in U.S. Banknote paper thickness average .0004 inch or .01mm. It really depends on what you need to measure, how closely you need to measure it, and how much uncertainty you can tolerate.

Interesting point, eye on the wall.

Query:
Australian Kangaroos and "Thin Paper"
Any au fait with Brusden White regime?

We presume must have gum, no used appear to be listed.

Commentary welcomed.