I finally get why the old timer at my shop calls dial indicators "honest liars"
I was setting up a bore on the Haas last Tuesday and couldn't figure out why my readings kept drifting about .003, so I asked Ray, who has been running mills since 1988, to take a look. He watched me for a second and said, "You're not lying to the indicator, but you're letting the indicator lie to you," then showed me my magnetic base was flexing because I had it hanging off a painted surface. I switched to a clean spot and the numbers locked in right away, which honestly made me feel pretty dumb. Now I check my setup twice before I even turn the spindle on. What little setup habits did you all have to learn the hard way?