Skinfold calipers are used in the measurement of skinfold thickness and the estimation of total body fat. There are a range of skinfold calipers available, including these two from Lafayette Instruments.
Lafayette Calipers
The original Lafayette Skinfold Caliper ( #1127A) has been used widely. This caliper was known for accuracy and durable, and can still be found in many science laboratories. This caliper has an adjustable zero-point which allows you to reset the pointer back to zero. It was designed with the assistance of Dr. Andrew Jackson, co-author of the widely used Jackson-Pollock skinfold formulas. It appears to be not available anymore, with Lafayette now producing a new modern lightweight design.
Lafayette Skinfold Caliper II
The new Lafayette Skinfold Caliper II as you can see is a uniquely designed caliper, with features differentiating it from other calipers.
Features
- An easy to read scale up to 100mm (compared to many others only going up to 50-60mm), allowing you to accurately measure the skinfold thickness of a larger portion of the population than other calipers.
- Floating (pivoted) tips that can adjust to enable parallel measurement of skinfolds.
- The tension spring provides constant pressure over the entire operating range, meeting the pressure requirements of 10g/mm2, and does not need calibration
- The caliper is lightweight (0.4 lbs / 180 grams) and durable (made from Reinforced ABS). Size: 5" x 6" x 0.6" (127 x 152 x 15 mm)
- Is available at an affordable price. You can find it online for US$80-100.
This product is available to purchase: Lafayette Instrument Skinfold Caliper II. Other skinfold calipers are also available in the Fitness Testing Store.
Related Pages
- Skinfold Caliper Store
- Guide to Skinfold Calipers
- Take the poll about what caliper do you use, and see which one is more popular?
- Description of standard skinfold sitesand Skinfold measurement procedure
- About body composition tests, and other Anthropometry Measurements
- Videos of Anthropometric Tests including Skinfold Testing.