I have a digital and an analog, and because I rarely have my reading glasses when I need them, I tend to use the digital the most solely due to being able to read the numbers better. 
I bought a set of Cabela's Digital Calipers way way back in 2005, and until I brought them to work and someone lost the battery cover, they worked great. (still on my workbench, but not used because of the battery cover and can't keep contact well enough with tape.) I changed the batteries every couple of years, and would still use them. I bought a set from Amazon for about $25, and my kid about had a fit because I was using them on my reloading bench when he saw them a year and a half later. Amazon.com
At home, I now use a set of Mitutoyo because my son bought them for me Christmas because that is what he uses at work (CNC Machinist) and he thought I should have better tools after he learned that sometimes you get what you pay for thanks to the differences in his tools and mine when we were working on his truck.
At work, we have a set of Westward, and they are pretty good. I have never tried to calibrate against true known measurements, but they work. Think they were between the $20 and $40 range.
At home, I now use a set of Mitutoyo because my son bought them for me Christmas because that is what he uses at work (CNC Machinist) and he thought I should have better tools after he learned that sometimes you get what you pay for thanks to the differences in his tools and mine when we were working on his truck.
At work, we have a set of Westward, and they are pretty good. I have never tried to calibrate against true known measurements, but they work. Think they were between the $20 and $40 range.
I also have a nice set of Westward analogue dial calipers to .001. They are pretty nice for the $80ish
https://www.grainger.com/product/4KU74
My RCBS dial caliper has served me well.
As have my Starrett digital.
Browne and Sharp is top notch.
Mititoyo are at the top.
Dial or digital is a matter of personal preference. The older my eyes get, the more I reach for the digital.
Estate sales, garage sales and PAWN SHOPS are great sources for savings.
A quality caliper will last a lifetime, get the best you can.
As have my Starrett digital.
Browne and Sharp is top notch.
Mititoyo are at the top.
Dial or digital is a matter of personal preference. The older my eyes get, the more I reach for the digital.
Estate sales, garage sales and PAWN SHOPS are great sources for savings.
A quality caliper will last a lifetime, get the best you can.
I have both styles. I use digital most of the time. Just the cheap $20 work fine. I use them in my reloading room and with my lathe and mill.
Calipers - There are a lot of choices and price ranges.
So what are you buying
A digital caliper is little more than a magnetic film stretched flat and glued to a steel bar and a pulse counter in the head. If the film has a flaw or is stretched too tight, the precision drops. That means quality checks and lots of rejects. The easy way to avoid scrap on the low margin end of the market is to sell a variety of grades of calipers with different precisions and avoid scrap by putting different labels on the same physical product.
ITs no uncommon for the precision displayed to be less than the accuracy they are capable of, especally for larger ones on the budget end of the market.
Dial calipers were popular in the last century, replacing Verners, and are being replaced by digital devices. They are easy to read and have no batteries to die. The internals are complex and can be affected by dirt and grime. The inexpensive ones from Wholesale Tool, Harbor Freight, Travelers, etc. will hold up to home use and seem to work in the sense that if you measure the same part half a dozen times you get the same measurement. So they have acceptable precision out of the box, but accuracy of the number displayed depends on the care and craftsmanship of the maker. Also, with years of use the budget end of the spectrum may not stand up as well as professional grade ones.
Verners - the simplest form and not so hard to use once you get used to them. Not great for old eyes and not the easiest to use, but they don't have much that can go wrong either. Accuracy and precision are all about the craftsmanship. The lowest end of the market should be left in the store to rust. The top end are good tools.
Used
Caliper jaws ware. Close the jaws and hold them up to a bright light - any light comes through, and the jaws are not parallel and you won't get the same measurement at the tips as in the middle.
Repair is usually not cost effective.
Ball and roller bearing races are made to tight tolerances. If you want a reference to carry when checking a garage sale caliper, they do in a pinch, provided you have looked up and know what the dimension is. Its also useful to see if the caliper repeats.
The rule of thumb is use an instrument with 10 times the resolution you need if you want accurate measurements.
Also read the manufacturers literature - especially with digital ones. It will tell you what the guaranteed precision and accuracy is.
For most of my needs the inexpensive dials do just fine.
I used them for most of my checks in the reloading room and basic gunsmithing.
If I need to work tighter than I am comfortable the caliper will do, I reach for a micrometer.
Understand the limits of your tool and what effect precision has on the system your working with.
If you want everything the same, almost any can do that. If you want the actual dimension to match the reference material, you need an accurate instrument capable of resolving the tolerance.
So what are you buying
A digital caliper is little more than a magnetic film stretched flat and glued to a steel bar and a pulse counter in the head. If the film has a flaw or is stretched too tight, the precision drops. That means quality checks and lots of rejects. The easy way to avoid scrap on the low margin end of the market is to sell a variety of grades of calipers with different precisions and avoid scrap by putting different labels on the same physical product.
ITs no uncommon for the precision displayed to be less than the accuracy they are capable of, especally for larger ones on the budget end of the market.
Dial calipers were popular in the last century, replacing Verners, and are being replaced by digital devices. They are easy to read and have no batteries to die. The internals are complex and can be affected by dirt and grime. The inexpensive ones from Wholesale Tool, Harbor Freight, Travelers, etc. will hold up to home use and seem to work in the sense that if you measure the same part half a dozen times you get the same measurement. So they have acceptable precision out of the box, but accuracy of the number displayed depends on the care and craftsmanship of the maker. Also, with years of use the budget end of the spectrum may not stand up as well as professional grade ones.
Verners - the simplest form and not so hard to use once you get used to them. Not great for old eyes and not the easiest to use, but they don't have much that can go wrong either. Accuracy and precision are all about the craftsmanship. The lowest end of the market should be left in the store to rust. The top end are good tools.
Used
Caliper jaws ware. Close the jaws and hold them up to a bright light - any light comes through, and the jaws are not parallel and you won't get the same measurement at the tips as in the middle.
Repair is usually not cost effective.
Ball and roller bearing races are made to tight tolerances. If you want a reference to carry when checking a garage sale caliper, they do in a pinch, provided you have looked up and know what the dimension is. Its also useful to see if the caliper repeats.
The rule of thumb is use an instrument with 10 times the resolution you need if you want accurate measurements.
Also read the manufacturers literature - especially with digital ones. It will tell you what the guaranteed precision and accuracy is.
For most of my needs the inexpensive dials do just fine.
I used them for most of my checks in the reloading room and basic gunsmithing.
If I need to work tighter than I am comfortable the caliper will do, I reach for a micrometer.
Understand the limits of your tool and what effect precision has on the system your working with.
If you want everything the same, almost any can do that. If you want the actual dimension to match the reference material, you need an accurate instrument capable of resolving the tolerance.
Excellent information. Thank you.
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