Measuring supplies

Al killian

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Floydada, Tx
Being new to this sport (hobby), I am always looking for ways to improve. My question this time is, what would you consider the basics needed for measuring and marking? The reason for asking is that this is where errors can compound quickly. There are hundreds of gadgets out their, that claim to make it quicker and simpler. Therefore, before wasting my limited funds on useless items I would like to know which items you use. Thanks in advance for your help.

Al Killian

UPDATE:

My tatse in woodworking is towards larder items like tables, desk, display cases. So far Ihave only built a cabinet to hold our dvd collection and a display case for the wife. I have noticed that my measureing is not as accurate as it should be. Currently I use a speed square and a cheap 15' tape measure which the end has about 1/16 play in it. Hope this helps with your decisions.
Al
 
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Oooh! This one's going to be a doozy - talk about a hot button...

Well, here's my two cents worth...

1)A good 6 inch ruler. I like one that has four scales (1/8, 1/16, 1/32, and 1/64).

2)A good small (3 or 4 inches) square. Get a board with a dead straight edge, use the square to draw a line with the best sharpest pencil you have. Flip the square over and draw another line on top of the first. If the two lines diverge at all, take it back and repeat as necessary until you have a good one. If you drop the square, repeat the test again.

3)A twelve foot tape measure. Fast cap is my favorite.

4)A 0.5 mechanical pencil.

(items 1-4 should stay in your apron. be sure to always use the same rule and the same tape measure throughout your project)

5)If you are going to do mortises, a 6 inch incra rule, with 1/64 gradations. Use with #3 above.

6)A good marking gauge, some like the ones with a scratch point, others like the rollers. At woodcraft, they will probably let you try them out. Pick the one that feels right to you.

7)A set of calipers, for measuring thickness and depth of holes. Get one that can be reset to zero easily - you will drop it. One marked in common fractions is easier to read.

8)If your eyesight is like mine, a good magnifier to read items 1-6.

Just to stir the pot, I would never put a laser on any tool and digital stuff is just silly IMHO.

Eventually, you may need something to measure angles, radiuses, etc, but I've vented enough!

Thanks for asking!
Jess
 
al, it depends on what you`re building......for starters a very usefull lay out tool is a starrett combination square with a protractor and centering head. a good ol` stanley tape measure is good too....i find trammell points indespensible for many operations i do but they may not be as usefull for you? a dial caliper is good for checking machines...a framing square and speed square as well as a bevel guage are inexpensive.....a marking knife is fun to make so if you`re going to buy one get an exacto untill you build you own.....more information will get you better answers;) .....tod
 
I use my 12" Starrett Combination Square a lot. I'm not really happy with any of the tape measures I have but you need a good one of those. Those mechanical pencils, get a dozen & keep them all over the place. Alan Turner got me "hooked" onto a hook rule. I have a 6" one that I use a lot to measure board widths. A caliper is good for more precise measurements.
 
Good question, Al, and likely to generate a lot of different answers. :lurk:

For the stuff I tend to build, I probably use my 6" Incra t-square rule more than any other measuring device, with the Stanley tape a close second, but only for rough (+/- 1/16") measurement. My combo squares get quite a bit of work, too. I've got a my granddad's old Starrett with the protractor head (and the 45 degree center-finding head), but for regular 90° and 45° marking I'll use my no-name, but accurate, combo square. For checking 90° and 45° machinery set-ups, I use the plastic drafting triangles I used in high school. I also have a cheapie digital caliper that's been very handy for lots of things.

Most of the things I build don't need to be an exact final dimension, so more often than not, instead of a tape or ruler, I'll use other parts of the piece as references for a cut. Sort of a story stick that gets built into the finished piece.
 
Al, that "Play" in the end of your tape measure is SUPPOSED to be there. When you hook the tape on something you get the measurement from the inside of the hook. When you measure something by butting the end of the tape against an edge, the play in the tape allows for the thickness of the hook. All stiff metal tapes are made this way.

I own the Woodpecker 12" and 18" precision squares. They are kinda like big speed squares but they are guarenteed accurate and square. When I put my Swanson Speed square (the Original speed square) against my Woodpecker square it was perfectly accurate. When I put my other two speed squares against it they were off by a little bit. For carpentry they would be okay but for woodworking they wouldn't be acceptable (for me anyway).

My tape measures are Stanleys. I take VERY good care of my woodworking tapes and don't use my framing tapes for WWing.


hth
 
A pencil sharpener. This may seem very simple but a dull and unpredictable pencil really contributes to inaccuracy.You are also wise to develop a system of marking so you know routinely what the mark means and were to cut
 
When laying out a piece to cut, I don't use the hooked end of a tape measure but use the tic mark at 1 inch to start my measurement, then I just add an inch to the final demension.. Thus the the movable hook at the end of the tape out of the equasion.

I also use the plastic squares,45 frommy hs drafting for accurate agles.

there are several good cobination squares avaible, my goto is a starrett and I keep a 6" machinest rule handy. Lately I have found that usimg some fint point ball point pens handy gives me more consistant marks then a pencil and if I need a real accarate mark I use a knife to scribe a mark.
 
I would have to recommend the Stanley 25 foot tape measure as it is certified. I would also recommend you buy a few Machinist Squares. These guys are made of solid steel and milled out. A few sizes are nice for setting up machines and doing layout work.
 
Al, This is a very good question because measuring and marking accurately is the key to most successful projects.

The work that I do covers the full range from small toy making to building construction and the measuring tools that I use reflect that. Below is a list, but before the list a couple of points:
• I have metric equivalents of almost all these tools but will not include them in the list.
• The majority of my measuring tools come from Lee Valley and, for those, I have put the catalogue number in brackets after the item.​
-Carpenter's Square (LV 60N48.01)
-Rafter Layout Square –Stanley
-3 inch Steel Engineer’s Square (LV 24N07.03)
-4 inch Steel Engineer’s Square (LV 24N07.04)
-6 inch Folding Square -45, 90, 135 degrees -Nobex Quatro 200 (LV 01N02.01)
-12 inch Folding Square -45, 90, 135 degrees -Nobex Quatro 400 (LV 01N02.03)
-16 inch Steel Ruler –no name
-Ruler Stop for the 16 ruler –Veritas (LV 05N68.01)
-40 inch Steel Ruler -no name
-25 foot measuring tape –Stanley Fat Max
-100 foot measuring tape –no name
-10 inch Sliding bevel –Veritas (LV 05N44.01)
-Bevel Setter -Veritas (LV 05N66.01)
-Protractor –no name
-Compass –no name
-Blind Man Digital Calipers -Veritas (LV 88N62.57)
-Marking Gauge –brass, 3 in 1 (LV 05N65.01)
-Striking Knife - Veritas (LV 05U07.10)
-several sharp pencils
-Set-up Blocks – Veritas (LV 05N58.10)

There are other associated tools such as levels, winding sticks, straight edges, and shims that I have not included in the list.
 
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I like the steel rulers, I use centimeters, not them big bulky inches you guys do :rolleyes:

I have 3 steel rulers, a 15 cm, 30 cm, and 60 cm, I also have a half dozen tape measures, but I use the steel rules for accurate measures, and the tapes for stuff that does not have to be within that 1mm.

I do check my tapes...........

checking_tape_measure_pull.jpg

This is a push test, the tape is right on the money on the push test, but..............

inside_measure_tape.jpg

.......fails on the pull test.......

I also have some machinist squares, and a good combo square.

One thing about a steel square, say a framing square, if you drop it, well if you drop it a few times, you can straighten it, with a steel hammer and a good endgrain pounding block, something like this........

ch2-9.jpg

[FONT=Times New Roman,Georgia,Times] If the square is found to be out or inaccurate, it is not necessary to throw it away; it can be made true by a simple method by any handy mechanic. If you do not possess an anvil, make a substitute by sticking the ax into a chopping block, lay the square on the head of the ax so that the bearing will come from the throat or inside angle to the heel or outside of the square. To close up the angle, strike with a hammer a sharp blow at a point near the heel; to open the angle, strike near the throat at a point indicated in Figure 7. Don't strike too hard. Use a bell-face nail hammer and the dent will not be noticed.[/FONT]
.........or a hammer and center punch.

Good info about that Here <- link!

Cheers!
 
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First of all...I was first a carpenter/cabinet maker then became a machinist. That's the worst combination when you are woodworking... because when woodworking combines with an anal brain and measuring devices it's simply dangerous. I have all my machinists measuring tools...and all kinds of other "measuring" tools but I really resist using them. My first mentor an old french cabinet makers voice still rings rings in my ears...Stop trying to cut things to a certain measurement...cut them to fit. He taught me how to use story sticks...blocks...squares...a compass...marking gages and only on the rare occasion did he let me use something with detailed prelined markings...ie scales/rulers. Even today...I make fewer mistakes and complete projects faster if I don't suffer over "perfect" measurements.
 
A pencil sharpener. This may seem very simple but a dull and unpredictable pencil really contributes to inaccuracy.You are also wise to develop a system of marking so you know routinely what the mark means and were to cut

While I find a pencil indespensible in a shop, I don't use one for close marking/measuring. For that I use an awl or knife blade.
 
Glen does make an great point. When I first started getting interested in the hobby, a neighbor of mine that was a an accomplished woodworker told me to that measuring every cut is the fastest way to get something wrong. He showed me how he used stop blocks and sleds to get repetitve cuts that were all the same length. He also used story boards, much like Vaughn mentioned. It all made perferct sense to me. But unlike him, I found myself having to "sneak" up on cuts, heck I still do today once in a while.
But in terms of what I do use to measure, A Craftsman 25' foot tape, A drafting Triangle, a cheap speed square, a bevel gauge, marking gauge, and wooden folding ruler and a craftsman combo square.
 
I do a variation on Glenn's technique. I start measuring precisely, but about halfway through most projects, I start measuring to fit.:doh:

Seriously, though, Glenn is absolutely right. Its usually way less important that something is an exact size, than something is the same size as something else. I am always amazed at how small a difference you can notice by touching.

IMHO, or at least at my skill level, the best way to fit two pieces of wood together is to cut one a little proud, and sneak up on the fit with a sharp plane or sanding stick. If you are doing that, and you don't want to spend all day sneaking up, you'll need to cut to within 1/64th or so.
 
I agree that Glen has a good point. I use what some folks call a "story stick' to do a lot of measurements. A "story stick" is simply a straight edged piece of wood with appropriate marks made on it to measure proper fit.
 
Good combination square - I tend to use the 6" most often but often need the bigger ones too.

Small steel engineers squares.

Fractional Calipers for measuring hole or mortises depths.

A decent marking knife.

A good bevel gauge - stay away from the type that have a thumbscrew type tightener on the side, it's always in the way. My favorite is a Stanley UK version that Highland Hardware used to carry with a knurled tightener on the end of the handle, but I'm not sure they're made any more. There are some similar Japanese type out there where the tightener looks like the metal keys used to open canned hams. Haven't tried those, but at least it's out of the way on the end. LV also makes one where the tightener recesses into the side so it's not in the way.

I've been getting a fair amount of use from some machinists angled setup blocks I picked up about a year ago. They're great for setting up blade or table tilts or even using them to set the bevel gauge.

Incra 3" T-Rule. I've got their 6" & 12" T-Rules too, but by far the one that gets the most use is the 3". The only place I've ever seen selling the 3" is Hartville.
http://www.hartvilletool.com/product/10841

A good drafting compass or if you need bigger circular stuff, the Lee Valley Beam Compass.

The RH rules that LV carries are also nice (if you're right handed of course).
 
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