Dial Gauge For Measuring Tip Opening of Woodwind Mouthpieces

Dial Gauge to Measure the Tip Openings of Sax & Clarinet Mouthpieces

This gauge, or gage as it's commonly misspelled, was made from inexpensive parts but is highly accurate and very easy to make! It might look a little bit like a Rube Goldberg contraption but it works well and is easy to use. When I first made one a few years back, the parts only cost around $20 but unfortunately, like everything else, the cost has increased significantly. I'd be happy to make one for you or you can get the parts at Harbor Freight and all you need is the dial gauge, a combination square and a nut/bolt combo with two lock washers. For tools, you'll need a drill press, a glass plate and the necessary wrenches or sockets to tighten everything up.

Since this first version was made, I have experimented with a 6 inch aluminum rafter square as well as a combination square/ruler. The rafter square was quite big but the combination square worked out perfect and I have posted some pics of it here also. The dial does read backwards or counter-clockwise though. I recently discovered that Harbor Freight has a digital dial that has a 1/2 inch travel (plenty for measuring mouthpiece tips) and it reads in both SAE and metric. It also has a zero button for instant calibration instead of nudging the dial. If you'd like me to make one for you, the cost of the analog dial-type is $60 plus shipping and the digital version is $90 plus shipping.

Theo Wanne makes a really nice digital one and I think he sells it for $150 and hopefully soon I'll be offering a professionally made one as well for the same price as my current digital model ($90 +shipping).

Click on any picture to see a full-sized version.