have a look for level vials, you need quite a slow bubble to get the sensitivity not a faster one that you may find on say a builders level. try here

You will probably have to break the old vial to get it out.

This will show you how they come to bits.

Edited By Richard Millington on 16/03/2022 20:14:53

A good few years ago now, I recall an article in either MEW or ME on someone who ground their own vial.
Might be worth a search through the various index.

Also I've used these folk in the past, but for button level vials.
It's not obvious that they sell different vials, but they were friendly and helpful when I dropped in one day.
They may have changed their business model of course, and no longer sell those sort of spares to the public.
https://www.laser-level.co.uk/company/information/about-us.html

Bill

I think they are the same as the moore wright ones. Zoro sell the vial for s lot less than you would expect (£24 or something like that!). I think vintage machinery has a recent rebuild video on youtube

Steve, this restore mentions a 15 x 96 vial, link is dead but its the top of this list, similar price to Zoro assuming vat included

Hi there, Steve,

I contributed to a thread on this subject on this forum a few years ago. I just searched for the thread but couldn't find it.

I bought a vial from Level Developments, not cheap but then such a vial is a precision component. I seem to remember Level Developments saying that they only make batches of such vials for engineers' levels occasionally, those vials aren't a stock item.

In my contribution to that thread, I did include some photos of 're-plastering' the vial into the metal tube. They're probably still in one of my albums. I regret not absorbing all Clive's advice at the time, I didn't take enough care with ensuring that the background to the vial is sufficiently white and uniform! (White paint and/or appropriately folded paper. )

I've so far not summoned the courage to reassemble my level. (I do have other engineers' levels. )  The end caps are a tight push-fit and need to be carefully aligned so that their flat extensions are in the same plane and will sit properly on their positions on the cast iron body of the level.

Best regards,

Swarf, Mostly!

Edited By Swarf, Mostly! on 17/03/2022 09:27:47

Hi I still have a few of these vials which I bought several years ago, but they are only 60mm long plus the pips. Each mark represents 0.2mm per 1M apparently and when I took this photo the bubble had moved to the right from the middle, due to me leaning very slightly to get it into view, but I was not touching the table it was on.

Regards Nick.

Edited By Nicholas Farr on 17/03/2022 12:14:39

You don't really need a horizontal surface, just turn the level 180deg and ensure the offset of the bubble is equal in either position.

Do it all the time with my Stabilas to check they have not got knocked out of true. Also avoids teh chicken and egg problem of needing a good level as well as the one being set.

Edited By JasonB on 17/03/2022 13:58:56

Hi Dave, as JasonB says, the surface doesn't need to be dead horizontal, just as reasonable flat as possible for the type of level you wish to adjust. From JasonB's first link and under the heading of useful information > useful articles, you can find How to calibrate engineers level

Regards Nick.

I've been misunderstood again! I'm describing how to meet the requirement for 'as reasonably flat as possible for the type of level you wish to adjust'. Nick's 'How to calibrate engineers' link is in line with what I'm trying to say : 'In order to calibrate an engineer’s level, an adjustable flat surface that is mechanically stable is required. It does not need to be perfectly level to start with, but must be within the range of the level you are calibrating.'

Fitting a new sensitive vial is rather different from tweaking the adjusters on a decent level where the reference flat is horizontal enough such that reversing keeps the bubble near centre. As a new vial could be a long way off when first inserted, not 'decent', I suggest it's much easier to initially align a sensitive bubble when the level's body is known to be horizontally accurate. Which can be achieved by finding the horizontal line on a plate that's not itself horizontal. However the plate is tilted, the horizontal line will be close to perfect.

Using a sensitive machinist's level is frustrating because the bubble takes an age to settle, the slightest movement shifts it, and a tiny tilt will move the bubble off the scale. Setting a vial up from scratch is worse than using the level, and trying to set a vial on an inadequately horizontal or bendy surface makes the job harder than it need be. It's to the fitter's advantage to put a tight tolerance on his 'as reasonably flat as possible' surface. And whatever he perceives 'reasonably flat' to be, his horizontal must be within the sensitivity of the vial.

Ordinary spirit-levels aren't sensitive enough to need a careful horizontal but the bubble on my Engineering Level moves 2.5mm on a slope of only 0.02mm per metre. My Wixey and builder levels all quickly agree the surfaces in my workshop are horizontal. My Engineer's Level shows they're all dreadful optimists, and also that my 'stiff' worktops bend surprisingly easily! Not much, but deflections of a fraction of a millimetre aren't difficult to detect with a sensitive level.

Not a fan of sensitive Engineering Levels unless absolutely essential because using them is so slow, finicky, and frustrating.

Dave