# Digital Level



## travis13 (Oct 12, 2012)

Who uses one? If so, what kind and how do you like it?


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## FrunkSlammer (Aug 31, 2013)

Works pretty damn good.


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## B4T (Feb 10, 2009)

If you use a digital level... that tells me you have way too much time on your hands.. :no::no:

What are you going to do if it is off 2 degrees.. try and level it or say 'good enough"....

You would never see the 2 degrees on a bubble level and you would think the job is perfect.... 

Time is money and that 2 degrees is worth absolutely nothing unless you are building a space shuttle.. :thumbsup:


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## don_resqcapt19 (Jul 18, 2010)

B4T said:


> If you use a digital level... that tells me you have way too much time on your hands.. :no::no:
> 
> What are you going to do if it is off 2 degrees.. try and level it or say 'good enough"....
> 
> ...


Really??
2° is a bit over 3/8"/foot.
A good spirit level is accurate to about 0.1° or better.


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## aftershockews (Dec 22, 2012)

If it looks level.:thumbsup:

There are times when you build a service and main on the side of a house with lap siding or even brick.

You level your chit and it looks like crap because the lap siding or brick mortar lines are not level. So now is the time I compromise.

Level is one thing, aesthetics is another.


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## Ionspot (Aug 9, 2013)

don_resqcapt19 said:


> Really??
> 2° is a bit over 3/8"/foot.
> A good spirit level is accurate to about 0.1° or better.



Actually 2° is a bit under 1/4"/foot

Slope Percent = (Amount of Rise / Amount of Run) x 100

2% = (*.24 */ 12 ) x 100

3/8ths woul be
(.375 / 12 ) x 100 = 3.125%




.


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## ACDCElecLogistics (Dec 5, 2013)

http://www.sears.com/craftsman-digital-torpedo-level/p-00948295000P

Its craftsman.....I'll give it 4 out of 5 stars. Warranty on it is great! :thumbsup:


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## BBQ (Nov 16, 2010)

Can anyone provide a good explanation why we should take a simple, inexpensive, accurate, durable non electric tool and turn it into a delicate, battery consuming, cold hating, expensive one?


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## Wirenuting (Sep 12, 2010)

BBQ said:


> Can anyone provide a good explanation why we should take a simple, inexpensive, accurate, durable non electric tool and turn it into a delicate, battery consuming, cold hating, expensive one?


It's so they can post it in the new tool thread.

btw, here is my digital level on my phone. 










It alarms if I get close to rolling.


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## don_resqcapt19 (Jul 18, 2010)

Ionspot said:


> Actually 2° is a bit under 1/4"/foot
> 
> Slope Percent = (Amount of Rise / Amount of Run) x 100
> 
> ...


A 2% slope is a bit under 1/4" per foot, but that is not the same as a 2° slope. A 2° is a 3.49% slope. A 2% slope is ~1.15° slope.


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## SteveBayshore (Apr 7, 2013)

Use the 9 or 10" Craftsman. :thumbsup:Just built three pump stations in shipping containers that were sitting in the back lot at my shop. Containers were nowhere near level. Set the level on the floor of the container and reset zero. Now level will read level when equipment is level in relation to floor. Also use it with my old 555 bender. A lot more accurate for bending degrees than looking at a bubble. Also trying to match a piece of conduit to a plant structure that is say 63 degrees from plumb. Never had that much accuracy with my old protractor or angle finder and degree marks on the bender.


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## Ionspot (Aug 9, 2013)

don_resqcapt19 said:


> A 2% slope is a bit under 1/4" per foot, but that is not the same as a 2° slope. A 2° is a 3.49% slope. A 2% slope is ~1.15° slope.


You are absolutely correct.



.


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## HawkShock (Nov 27, 2012)

BBQ said:


> Can anyone provide a good explanation why we should take a simple, inexpensive, accurate, durable non electric tool and turn it into a delicate, battery consuming, cold hating, expensive one?


Big rigid pipe. 4" and 5" pipe needs some serious accuracy to thread together. If you can't get a good measurement you can't expect big pipe like that to fall together. Matching a duct bank that has big rigid in it requires accuracy because you don't have much room for error, there is usually cage in the way. Matching other pipe runs it also comes in handy, as well as following architectural details of a building. 
Basically rigid pipe runs are easier with one.
Ever wonder why the big greenlee benders come with the crappy swinging version? Ever try to concentric bend big pipe? It is handy to have a consistent number to follow for every bend.


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## BBQ (Nov 16, 2010)

OK so so far it comes down to matching unlevel conditions.

My old man had a two foot level with an adjustment for doing just that.

No battery needed, as accurate or more.

As far as measuring angles I use a another tool for that and again no battery needed. I have a 'No Dog' tool that.


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## Jlarson (Jun 28, 2009)

BBQ said:


> Can anyone provide a good explanation why we should take a simple, inexpensive, accurate, durable non electric tool and turn it into a delicate, battery consuming, cold hating, expensive one?


When I was doing process fitting all the time they bought us a bunch of digitals. We killed them all, we were tough on lasers too. :laughing:


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## catsparky1 (Sep 24, 2013)

Water level is the most accurate you can get . digital stuff is only a fancy toy .


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## sparky402 (Oct 15, 2013)

HawkShock said:


> Big rigid pipe. 4" and 5" pipe needs some serious accuracy to thread together. If you can't get a good measurement you can't expect big pipe like that to fall together. Matching a duct bank that has big rigid in it requires accuracy because you don't have much room for error, there is usually cage in the way. Matching other pipe runs it also comes in handy, as well as following architectural details of a building. Basically rigid pipe runs are easier with one. Ever wonder why the big greenlee benders come with the crappy swinging version? Ever try to concentric bend big pipe? It is handy to have a consistent number to follow for every bend.


A couple of cross threaded threads should hold it just fine.


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## HawkShock (Nov 27, 2012)

sparky402 said:


> A couple of cross threaded threads should hold it just fine.


Crossed threads is better than no threads


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## Voltron (Sep 14, 2012)

BBQ said:


> Can anyone provide a good explanation why we should take a simple, inexpensive, accurate, durable non electric tool and turn it into a delicate, battery consuming, cold hating, expensive one?


Because......"its the future"


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## HawkShock (Nov 27, 2012)

BBQ said:


> OK so so far it comes down to matching unlevel conditions.


Not really, it comes down to what type of work you do. I do such a wide variety of non electriciany type stuff and weird civic and industrial type rigid jobs that they are very handy.
It comes in handy for matching levels, but it gives you an actual number you can use to bend rigid. I'm not sure how much rigid you do, but the stuff is expensive and you can't just "tweak" bends to get them where you want them like EMT. 5" and 6" rigid, safe to say, is RIGID.



> My old man had a two foot level with an adjustment for doing just that.
> 
> No battery needed, as accurate or more.


Did it spit out a number? And I guarantee it isn't as accurate as the digital levels that are out now. Even the cheapy ones are pretty good, and the yellow german ones are insane. Ever run underground pipe or duct banks that need a fall for drainage into vaults? It is tough to figure out where 2 degrees is on an adjustable level. Need some fall on a xfmr or genset base for drainage? Digi level and a piece of strut. 



> As far as measuring angles I use a another tool for that and again no battery needed. I have a 'No Dog' tool that.


I don't know what your other tool is, but you can't really measure each little bend of concentric bends with a no dog. If you are talking about the swining angle finder, those things are damn worthless. You know what else doesn't have a battery? 








Keeping one of those in your tool bag old timer?

It really depends on what you do. If you are wiring houses and commercial store fronts, no real need. If you are wiring and remodeling concrete plants, installing 500kw gensets, 5 and 6" duct banks, doing pump stations with coated rigid, setting and building bases for and installing bigass pole lights, they are quite useful.


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## Jlarson (Jun 28, 2009)

They definitely are nice in some situations. The checkpoints are my favorite, kinda spendy though, toughest I've used too.


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## Shock-Therapy (Oct 4, 2013)

I have a digital level I dont use. It wastes my time just turning it on. I slide my handy little torpedo out of my pouch and have my reference faster.


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## Shock-Therapy (Oct 4, 2013)

I use a level constantly. Today I installed a bunch of arlington wp in-use cut in boxes. The hardy board I was cutting into had the typical 6" faces making the boxes appear obviously crooked when I leveled them. So I aligned them to siding. Looks good, but I know none of its level. Damn siders Ha!


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