Strain Gauging

[elbarto_87]

Hi,

I am looking for some advice regarding strain gauging. I have not done any strain gauging in the past, so would like to purchase some basic introductory equipment so I can experiment with them and hopefully use them for jobs where we need to estimate the fatigue life of a certain location in a structure.

As I understand it, I would need:
1) Strain Gauges
2) Data logger

I am interested to hear if anyone has some suggestions on how what equipment to look at for a relatively cheap and simple setup. I am only looking at < $500 (US) as I will be buying it out of my own pocket and it is more just for learning purposes to start with so extreme accuracy isn't required, as long as it is reasonable.

I have been looking at the product below:

Code:

***************************************
Content of this section is hidden, You must be registered and activate your account to see this content. See this link to read how you can remove this limitation:

http://forum.civilea.com/thread-27464.html
***************************************

Ideally I would prefer something that reads out measurements on a display in real time however I don't know if there is anything in my price range that would do this.

If I could get a few suggestions from others on what arrangements they have used that would be greatly appreciated.

Regards Elbarto