I see a lot of good looking mikes of USA brands on e bay for reasonable prices, I prefer Starrett or Brown & Sharpe, but Lufkin and Tumico are about equally as good.
One of the nice things about the Brown and Sharpe mics if you can find the type is having the markings at a slight angle. You can clearly see what marking you are on then. I like it on my B&S.
Also Mitutoyo is a great mic. I am super happy with my mit.
Lufkin fan here. Although my nice set, for when it really matters, is a BS 10ths.
No digital here...
Lufkins the price was usually right. And they are easily adjustable to my "feel" vs the prior owner.
Why pay more?
One of the nice things about the Brown and Sharpe mics if you can find the type is having the markings at a slight angle. You can clearly see what marking you are on then. I like it on my B&S.
Also Mitutoyo is a great mic. I am super happy with my mit.
I have been very happy with all of the mics (and other measuring tools) that I have bought from EBAY. Most have been ready to use, a few have needed some cleaning. One needed some deep cleaning. None were scrapped or passed on. Easy to get a good tool for an affordable price.
I had a cheap Chinese set 1-2-3 plus the standards , not worth it imo . The faces of the mics looked like they were lapped in with sand paper , the worst part for me was that they were hard to read . The graduation marks lined up wonky , they did have a smooth feel . Sold them and got Starrett , waited for a good deal on the bay . Got a 1" w/carbide face , smooth up to .7 and then drags a bit . Then I got a 1-2" w/carbide faces and smooth . Still looking for a 2-3" .
All mine are starret or B&S. All used off ebay except a 2-9” set I bought from a local surplus shop.
Nice thing is my two sets that cover larger ranges have standards bars in to confirm they are proper, but I can also use the standards on my fixed mics to confirm they are also set properly,
All work great. No digital or except a couple cheapo verniers.
Cheap caliper is fine, micrometer needs to be more accurate. Cause....
Micrometer.
Fowler is available from major suppliers at a decent price, but as others have said used is probably okay. People who buy and use precision measuring tools usually care enough to take care of them.
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