Watt's end measuring machine

Made:
1776 in United Kingdom
maker:
James Watt
Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw

Creative Commons LicenseThis image is released under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence

Buy this image as a print 

Buy

License this image for commercial use at Science and Society Picture Library

License

Creative Commons LicenseThis image is released under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence

Buy this image as a print 

Buy

License this image for commercial use at Science and Society Picture Library

License

Creative Commons LicenseThis image is released under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence

Buy this image as a print 

Buy

License this image for commercial use at Science and Society Picture Library

License

Creative Commons LicenseThis image is released under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence

Buy this image as a print 

Buy

License this image for commercial use at Science and Society Picture Library

License

Creative Commons LicenseThis image is released under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence

Buy this image as a print 

Buy

License this image for commercial use at Science and Society Picture Library

License

Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

James Watt's end measuring instrument with micrometer screw,1776; probably the first screw micrometer made.

This instrument is intended to measure items very accurately by placing them between the two anvils and then advancing one using a fine micrometer screw until both are in contact with the object, the distance between them being precisely recorded on the two dials. The micrometer became an essential tool for precision enginering work. However, there are doubts as to whether this instrument was in fact made by James Watt. There is a distinct possibility that it was manufactured not c.1776 but rather closer to 1876, when it was placed in that year's Special Loan Exhibition of scientific instruments, which took place in South Kensington.

Details

Category:
Industrial Metrology
Object Number:
1876-1370
Materials:
brass (copper, zinc alloy) and steel (metal)
Measurements:
overall: 105 mm x 98 mm x 160 mm, 1.115kg
type:
micrometer
credit:
James Watt and Company