UKC

I'm wanting to buy one for making small internal gear lever parts for old school Campag bar end levers (from the mid 90's to the 'noughties'), and measuring the outer width of metal tubing and inner width of brake cable ferrules too. 

Any suggestions for decent budget ones - should that contradiction exist?

Thanks.

Tim

Unless you're going to splash the cash on genuine (beware there are fakes out there) Mytutoyo, I think there is very little to choose between rest - they're all made in China.

I've been happy with these https://www.machine-dro.co.uk/150mm-6-digitronic-digital-caliper-moore-wrig...

They cost a bit more than average,  but I think that paying for a brand name means it is much less of a lottery in terms of quality control. In particular the battery life of some of the no-brands can make them uneconomic! I'm seeing up to 18 months battery life with the M & W brand.

I keep a cheap set in my van, they are plastic / nylon / fiberglass construction and cost about £10 from Amazon. I have quality Mytutyo (however you spell that) and whenever I have checked them against the cheap ones using known thickness shim steel they read the same. I have had multiple sets with no problems (cheap enough to lose or break out on site) I bought some steel ones for about £15 but they are crap, zeroing them multiple times gives different readings. 

That sounds like a brave project! Would love to see the progress / outcome. I would just buy the cheapest available on amazon, then at least you have some kind of buyer protection. Just remember to store them nicely, in a box, dry or with a light coat of oil and keep the faces apart slightly to prevent rusting. Mitutoyo are nice, I have an old analog set, but not really worth it unless you are full time machinist. Have a look at a youtube channel AvE for a (imo hilarious, canadian) comparison of cheap vs expensive calipers. 

Another thought; If you are thinking about making ferrules I would rather measure the outer brake cable and the hole which the ferrule needs to fit in. At least 90% of the ferrules I have come across are either too loose on the cable or too loose in the seat, or vice versa or most likely both! And if you’re thinking of making a ridiculously expensive ferrule, you may as well do it right!

I bought one in Lidl quite a few years ago; £8, iirc. Works fine, and is as accurate as the mitutoyo at work.

There are loads available from China. Looks to be about £4-5 for plastic jaws.

https://m.banggood.com/search/vernier%20caliper%20digital.html

I'm not making the ferrules, I'm just wanting to measure some accurately enough.

A vernier might not be the best tool for measuring such a feature.
The ideal, would be to use pin gauges on a Go/No Go basis, but that would probably blow your budget   A cheap alternative would be to use the shank of a series drill bits in the same fashion and then measure the Go/No Go ones with your recently purchased vernier.

Pedant alert: they are either Vernier(scale) callipers or digital callipers, they can't be both.

No! they are either vernier calipers or digital calipers

I will admit I hadn't noticed that I had put double l instead of a single. However, it seems that the double l is the British spelling, which I wasn't aware of. 

Call it a draw?

I bought the Amazon recommended pair for £15 down from apparently £40ish. They're okay so far.

LOUISWARE Electronic Digital Vernier Caliper, with Extra-Large LCD Screen and 150mm 0-6" Inch/Metric/Fraction Conversion, Stainless Steel, IP54 Water Resistant https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01MAY5ECH/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_taa_tY9oBbV4S7Q9T

Thanks to all.

The cheap ones I've had work just fine, mine usually measure within a couple of 100ths the same as my decent mechanical micrometer which is fine for anything at the scale you're thinking of working at. The main difference between cheap and nice beside price seems to be quality of the finishing which can be sorted with a stone and ten minutes work.

jk