Measuring tight clearances

["Aaron Ness" <aaron@makuta.com>]

How do you measure tight clearances accurately?  I have an old Clymer manual
for my Bug (it covers '61-74, so I assume it's from '74 or '75) that talks
about using Plastigage to measure bearing clearances, etc., but I've never
seen the stuff.  I've never really looked very hard, but I kind of assumed
it was obsolete or something.

The reason I'm asking is totally not car-related, but I was hoping someone
would be able to suggest something based on what they have used on engines.
I work in an injection molding operation where we deal with tiny molds, and
I have a flash problem with one of the molds.  I have two stepped surfaces
that are supposed to seal, and one step is not sealing.  I'm measuring the
clearance with a piece of 0.01mm shim stock (which is pretty thin -
0.0004").  I don't have anything thinner than that, and even that can't get
into both of the places I'm trying to measure due to accessibility issues.

Is there something readily available that I can just sort of smash in there
and measure the thickness?

I apologize for the lack of automotive content, but incidentally, this mold
makes the knob that operates the driver's power window in a Toyota - the one
that says "AUTO", so I guess there is some automotive content.  I'm just
hoping for a suggestion that can carry over from their engine building
expertise.

TIA!
Aaron
'84 Scirocco - Woo-hoo!
'70 Bug - hibernating
'87 Nissan truck - Soon to be for sale
'87 Jeep Cherokee 4.0


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