Endoscope / camera to fit spark plug hole

[R-mm]

Hey all - anyone use an inexpensive scope for investigating piston bores? Im pretty sure my motor is coming apart but if I can get some advance knowledge for cheap im all for it.

 

[DFB]

Loook for no more than a 9mm camera

 

[RacerX]

I bought one on Amazon from Cal-Van tools. It's wireless and connects to my phone with an app, it works very well. Was $40-$50 iirc.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[txvwnut]

I bought a Depstech off of Amazon for less than fifty bucks, it connects to a smart phone or tablet through and app and you can record video or take a snap shot. The camera is right at 8mm and surprisingly clear. I think mine has a six foot cable which is good for me cause Saturday I needed it and the internal battery was dead. The long cable allowed me to plug into a USB charger and get to scoping cylinders.

 

[Mechanical Noise]

I got a cheap ebay USB borescope that worked well with my laptop. Under $10. I checked out the cylinders on my Neon. I even made a "movie". It was rather David Lynch like.

Unfortunately, the USB connector went bad and I'll either have to splice in another connector of take a crapshoot on another one.

 

[Ralf11]

get a used endoscope from your neighborhood proctologist

- much better image quality than the cheap USB things

 

[todd_fuller]

I picked up an endoscope from Amazon that I really like. Typical no-name Chinese brand and my hopes weren't too high for it. It's turned out quite good. Has two camera, one front facing and another side facing. No need to add on some kind of mirror to get a look at cylinder wall.

It's an NTS500 and there are several brands selling the same thing. Just get the cheapest.

 

[engineer2]

I also have the Depstech. Don't use it often, but it's invaluable.
I found Android to PC simulator software, so I can view the camera on my garage PC.

 

[Kevin54]

get a used endoscope from your neighborhood proctologist

- much better image quality than the cheap USB things

Well that's a pretty ****** deal.

 

[Ohmthis]

I also bought a cheap one off of Amazon. It connects to my laptop and has a lighted/clear camera. I opted for a long one (20’ or so long) to use in pipes also. I e had good luck with mine. I will say that you have to be pretty close (10 mm or so) to get a crystal clear look.

 

[bwringer]

Also a fan of the cheapie here -- mine stopped working with a phone for some reason (the app is gawdawful) but my ChromeBook recognized it as another camera right away, and the bigger screen is nice.

Anyway, one downside is that it can be difficult or impossible to look sideways far enough to get a look at the cylinder wall. The tip segment is rigid for a certain length. And is there some sort of mirror arrangement that would let you look backwards at the valves? Dunno, but that would be handy.

Yeah, it's not the highest quality image, but these things are cheap and shockingly handy for all sorts of peering and peeping tasks inside assorted engines and mechanisms.

 

[R-mm]

I picked up an endoscope from Amazon that I really like. Typical no-name Chinese brand and my hopes weren't too high for it. It's turned out quite good. Has two camera, one front facing and another side facing. No need to add on some kind of mirror to get a look at cylinder wall.

It's an NTS500 and there are several brands selling the same thing. Just get the cheapest.

Thanks for this suggestion. When I search Amazon for NTS500 I see almost exclusively $150-250 scopes with screens, not to connect to a phone/tablet. Is that what you meant?

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=NTS500&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

 

[Paul_The_Builder]

I bought the Milwaukee M12 scope camera and was surprised at how cheap it was. Home Depot is selling the M12 scope, 2 batteries and charger for $129 right now. I like mine, it is well built and has a good adjustable LED light on the end.

 

[enrare]

Thanks for this suggestion. When I search Amazon for NTS500 I see almost exclusively $150-250 scopes with screens, not to connect to a phone/tablet. Is that what you meant?

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=NTS500&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

I picked up the AnyKit endoscope which is essentially the same as mentioned. The camera is 5.5mm or 0.21" in diameter. It's small size allowed me the ability to inspect the cylinders of my 1995 Dodge Cummins when I pulled the injectors. The side camera is invaluable and allowed me to visualize and inspect the bottom of the valves and valve seats while inspecting the cylinder walls and top of the pistons. This endoscope has been helpful for other engine related work. This is the first endoscope I've used so I have nothing to compare it to, but it has met all of my needs so far and I would recommend it. Despite its higher price to other endoscope options offered on Amazon I feel it has paid for itself (cylinder inspection saved me from pulling the head). AnyKit sent me an incentive for $50 cash reward if I posted a review on Amazon. I couldn't get my poop together and missed the deadline. The 2 times I emailed AnyKit with a question I got a response within 1 or 2 business days.