Starrett Steel Automatic Center Punch with Adjustable Stroke - 5-1/4 Length, 11/16 Punch Diameter, Lightweight, Knurled Steel Handle - 18C

I use it at work

Everything Ive grown to expect from Starrett. Inheriting my grandfathers Starrett mics and running metrology & calibration labs during my career have me a $tarrett believer. Pricy but will be reliable and accurate forever.

No doubt this is the best auto center punch that I have owned. That is, until it stopped working. Lasted about 3 years, but I use it almost every day. This punch is for metal, not wood people. If you need a punch for wood get a Harbor Freight special. It held up to whatever I used it on - Stainless, Mild Steel, Aluminum, etc. and then one day it would not actuate. Tried everything and couldnt get it working again. Emailed Starrett, warranty on these is only a year from purchase, so I reluctantly sent it back for repair. The cost to repair was about $12 shy of buying a new one. Hate to do it, but like I said - this is the best Ive owned.

Finally broke down and bought this one after trying the spring tools punch and the general tools 79. The spring tools punch the spring eventually broke, snapped and hit my finger. The general tools 79 I still use for wood. Only issue I have had when I have it a heavy tension and I am odd angle cannot easily depress it but that is ok.

Love it, very handy,beats a hammer and center punch!

I figured out that to get the punch to reset after each punch, the rear cap had to be unscrewed almost all the way off. (Yes, Im working with steel.) I currently have the cap taped to the body of the tool so its position doesnt change. The video didnt help. My 20 year old tool started not resetting, which is why I bought a new one. If you fiddle around with the tip after each punch, it sometimes resets. I expected a better tool for the price.

As stated in the title, I run a metalfab shop. I use this nearly every day, and have punched what must be hundreds of centers in mild steel with this. Its still sharp and working like the day I pulled it from the box for the first time. Having it be adjustable is nice too, when using it on softer/thinner materials or for smaller holes, where more force or larger centers arent necessarily a good thing. Ive learned to love this center punch, highly recommend it, and will be a repeat customer.

I bought one and then used it this weekend. Be sure to disassemble and lubricate first. Then unless you release the spring tension a lot be ready to push real hard. But good dimple.

If youre reading this, theres a 95% chance you saw this punch on the Canadian fabricobblers YouTube channel. Like he said, this isnt a necessary tool, but is it ever nice to have. I find that it either takes two strikes with heavy tension to get a good starting mark, or one strike on light tension, followed up with an actual hammer and punch. So, its not a one-hit wonder, but it will definitely let you mark the spot precisely. Its saved me enough time and frustration in the three months Ive owned it that Id say its earned five stars.

I always used a punch and hammer togeather. Now I am able to mark holes more quickly one handed which is especially nice when I need to drill several holes. Realizing that took away overspending concerns especially since Starrett makes high quality tools. I read some comments about the tool not resetting. I am not sure if it was the same issue I noticed but the tool would fail to reset after multiple punches. After some thought a Duh moment arrived and with it realizing I was not lifting the tool up fully from the stock after it clicked. Perhaps it has something to do with getting broken in. Since then the issue went away. The only other smidgeon of an issue is the black paint job on a small tool which can make for tedious searching. Next hardware order will include some bright color spray paint.