Mechanical Stress/Strain Gauge

Can you weigh fish with the dial gauge?

GA

If I find the one that measures 1g to 500g, I'll let ya know. You can use that one for your fish

Ah! "Force gauge". Of course. I thought of that, but it sounded too generic. That's what I get for thinking.

Okay, well that certainly helps. Now I just have to find one that's midway between your two examples; something that measures about 1g - 1000g, and costs under $100 or so. But now that I know what I'm looking for...

Ya came through for me again Doorman.

I think I see a trip to ebay coming up. Or maybe China.

I don't know what kind of precision you need, but my first impression when I saw Doorman's first choice was that its price was about an order of magnitude higher than I expected. (I've got a few years behind me, so nearly everything seems that way).

If you don't need precision, try these: http://sargentwelch.com/ohaus-linear-spring-scales/p/IG0036772/

At this price, you could buy a set, and use the one that works best

Activator.com offers such a device for measuring the pressure / pain threshold. It's called an Algometer, and went for around $75 as I recall.

FWIW

If you are not getting the answers you are looking for, perhaps it's because you are not asking the right question. You say you want to measure "deflection at the point of failure". Deflection is strain, and to measure it you need to measure distance, like with a ruler. Force is the stuff that causes strain and is measured with a force gauge. If you want to measure both, you need a testing machine which could be as simple as a force gauge mounted on a linear table driven by a calibrated lead screw, or more complicated like an Instron universal testing machine. A testing machine has the advantage of being able to control the strain rate (velocity) which is important in many applications. In either case, A testing machine permits one to generate a stress (force)/strain (displacement)chart.