$30 bucks is about right for a dial indicator. It isn't too "cheap".
It's typical unless you look at Starrett.

Dave

Hitch wrote:

Got a bit of birthday money and one thing I'd like is a dial indicator.
Lee Valley has one for $32 for indicator AND magnetic base. They say it's
accurate to 0.0005". Is this really a good deal, or is $32 bucks US just
too cheap for reasonable quality? Maybe I should just buy more clamps from
LV and look elsewhere for a better dial indicator.