Just Got My WP 3" Triangle Square

sancho57

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Jan 13, 2011
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I got a set with the 3" and 6" triangles. Ladies and Gentleman put your hands on your monitors and give me a Hallelujah and a Amen.

I recently using a small engineering and a WP little 2" L shaped square andsquared up my tools.  Since I got these cool little triangles I thought lemme check it out, went to my Jointer Wow the fence is out, so I re set it square. I thnk the triangle is more accurate as it sets squarely on the table (if that makes sense) and allows me to adjust te fence giving me a more accurate reading.

So I went to my kapex  to check and see if the blade was 90 to the table. Even though the indicator was at 0 and same thing the blade wasnt square to the table. easily adjusted bam its square now.

hmmm thats 2 fer 2 so I went to my TS 75 thats not mounted in my CMS that I dont have and  took the square to see if the blade was at a true 90 to the table and rat spit... it was off just a hair so it eas easily adjusted to.

So now i got to re joint the wood I jointed yesterday and trim off the ends of the wood I used my Kapex to trim yesterday.

Very seldom I get this emotional over something like a little square

but sniff sniff ...

no wonder things havent been coming out as nice as I expected them to. With everything out of square.

I would say this little triangle is a must for the shop
 
A set of machinist Vee blocks are very handy also.  I have the three Woodpeckers squares (among others) that Woodpeckers offers and use then all almost daily.  I also have a knife edge machinist square with is nice for setting saws up as the knife edge gets into very tight spaces between blade teeth, even on my 100 tooth 10" blades.
 
I got a 1-2-3 block in the set of Veritas Setup Blocks I got from Lee Valley.  I bought the set for the small fractional blocks.  I wasn't really sure what to do with the 1-2-3 block though.
 
I just ordered Infinity Tools -  8-Pc. Precision Tool & Project Setup Blocks.  I have machinist 123 blocks (actually made them in one of two adult Vo-Tech machinist courses, along with the Vee blocks).  I did this so long ago the Cnc machines were still using punch cards.  Oh, and I had to walk through 6' of snow uphill both ways in the dark.  [tongue]  All kidding aside, we neurotically capable guys can never have too many setup tools.
 
Reading the opening post reminded me of a couple of years ago when I purchased a Starrett 12" combination square to use along with my hand tools. I used it to check my shooting board and found that it was off a little. I had made that using my Woodpecker's squares, so I proceeded to check them. I found that my Woodpecker's 18" carpenter's square, 12" triangle and the 1281 were all off a little. But my new Starrett combination square was spot on. Now, what to do with all those Woodpecker's squares???

I've used 1-2-3 blocks during setups for a long time. I use them as a feeler gauge when setting up my MFT, placing the blocks between my square and the back edge of the guide rail. I also set my Incra Incremental Tracks away from the back of the guide rail an inch using a 1-2-3 block so the process is accurate and repeatable.
 
Aren't those "guaranteed square for life"? I'm a big fan of my 12" (or really 30cm in my case) combo square but I honestly would never expect it to be more perfectly square than a rigid piece of machined aliminium. I suppose Woodpeckers owes you a repair or refund?
 
I think you misunderstood my post. The machinist square (which is supposed to be square) was off. The WP triangle was dead nuts on.

Ya know I was cutting walnut after I adjusted the blade on my saw and it was a nice rip
 
jobsworth said:
I think you misunderstood my post. The machinist square (which is supposed to be square) was off. The WP triangle was dead nuts on.

Ya know I was cutting walnut after I adjusted the blade on my saw and it was a nice rip

Not doubting you but curious how do you determine that the square is dead on and the machinists square is not? What method are you using to check for square that has the accuracy to determine one is 'more square' over the other.

I want to know so I can use the same procedure to check my squares and triangles.
 
The most common way of checking a square for square is to line it up against / on a workpiece and then scribe a line.  Then flip left to right or right to left and line it up again.  if the edge lines up with your scribed line you have a good square.

Peter
 
jobsworth said:
I think you misunderstood my post. The machinist square (which is supposed to be square) was off. The WP triangle was dead nuts on.

Ya know I was cutting walnut after I adjusted the blade on my saw and it was a nice rip
Sorry for not specifying; my reply was to [member=182]Corwin[/member] who posted directly before me and seems to be saying his Starrett combo square was "more square" than his three "guaranteed square for life" machined aluminium Woodpeckers squares.
 
Sanderxpander said:
Sorry for not specifying; my reply was to [member=182]Corwin[/member] who posted directly before me and seems to be saying his Starrett combo square was "more square" than his three "guaranteed square for life" machined aluminium Woodpeckers squares.

Yes, my Starrett combination square is more square than all of my Woodpecker's squares. And I tested for square as Peter described above. Each of my Woodpecker's squares was off by a similar amount -- don't know by how much, but noticeable when compared to the Starrett.
 
Corwin said:
Yes, my Starrett combination square is more square than all of my Woodpecker's squares. And I tested for square as Peter described above. Each of my Woodpecker's squares was off by a similar amount -- don't know by how much, but noticeable when compared to the Starrett.

I agree, mine also. I know it doesn’t seem right that something that moves freely can absolutely lock up perfectly square, but such is the case. Both of my Starrett’s (one with a 12” blade and one with a 24” blade) have been checked with a granite cylinder so I know they are both dead on.
I’ve returned 2 different Woodpeckers squares for new ones when I checked them against the Starrett and consequently, Woodpeckers sent me new items.  [big grin]
 
I find that pretty shocking. I don't own any WP squares but have been eyeing the small one for squaring up tools. I would expect a premium brand that touts lifetime guarantees to be able to deliver on something as simple as the squareness of a fixed part. On the upside, they did honor their guarantee so that speaks for them. Guess I'll just use my Starrett, or maybe get another one, I think they also have very small ones.
 
If you are thinking of getting 1-2-3 blocks, you should also get 2-3-4 blocks. I find the 2-3-4 blocks , due to their form factor more useful in general. just a thought.
 
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