Measuring and Squaring Devices

P

pdlandgang

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Feb 16, 2010
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As a hobbiest my skill sets are starting to advance and I am starting to do more complex work which is requiring more precise measuring and marking.  I am looking for some good instruments that will last will remain true.  I am teaching myself to use the metric system so I would like them to be in metric.  Any suggestions which types to own and good brands and places to purchase them.  Thanks for the help.
 
Not sure of the products in the US but for me, bench work is always done with steel rules, marking knifes & engineers squares.

Woodguy
 
You might want to look at the Fastcap True 32 tape measure for metric measurements also.

Peter
 
As I've tried to adopt more metric usage (following the Festool cabinet class!) I settled on the following:
- Fastcap True32 tape measure
- Incra T-rule 150mm  (~6")    Perfect for marking insets, offsets, and quickly laying out Domino positions.  *Requires a very sharp, or .5mm pencil. 

I have a bunch of Woodpecker measuring and layout tools, and they are excellent.
I was contemplating getting their 900mm metric story stick, but the Festool parallel guides accomplish pretty much the same task in terms of cutting.

So, along those lines... think hard about the parallel guides.
 
I was also looking for metric measuring devices recently. Being a cabinet maker I do everything in metric but it is difficult to find metric stuff here in Canada as well. I have been using the fastcap 32mm tape for about 8 months now and love it. I recently purchased the cabinet makers rulers from lee valley. Only draw back is the are only metric on half the ruler and standard on the the other. They are fairly cheap though I bought all 5 sizes from 6" to 36" for about $45 cnd.  Untill I find something better they will have to do. I want to also mention that the fastcap tape is in MM not cm which is amazing. I can not express how much I love this tape for that reason. It is just so much easier to use, I wish I could find a set of stainless rulers with only MM markings on them.

Ethan
 
Another +1 for Incra T-rule. Great device.

madera said:
I was also looking for metric measuring devices recently. Being a cabinet maker I do everything in metric but it is difficult to find metric stuff here in Canada as well. I have been using the fastcap 32mm tape for about 8 months now and love it. I recently purchased the cabinet makers rulers from lee valley. Only draw back is the are only metric on half the ruler and standard on the the other. They are fairly cheap though I bought all 5 sizes from 6" to 36" for about $45 cnd.  Untill I find something better they will have to do. I want to also mention that the fastcap tape is in MM not cm which is amazing. I can not express how much I love this tape for that reason. It is just so much easier to use, I wish I could find a set of stainless rulers with only MM markings on them.

Ethan
Click to expand...

I did a google search and came with many of the stainless steel rules. Try searching for 150mm (or 300mm) steel rules. Here is an all metric on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/General-Tools-300mm-Precision-Stainless/dp/B00004T7SY

The reviews were't great. Even though they complained of the pocket clip/T-square I suspect the overall quality was poor which led to the complaints.

There are other choices with the google search.  [smile]

 
Thanks all !  That is exactly what I am looking for.  I have the parallel guides but need something to help get the detail precise measurements.
 
madera said:
I was also looking for metric measuring devices recently. Being a cabinet maker I do everything in metric but it is difficult to find metric stuff here in Canada as well.
Click to expand...

Hmmm...I thought Canada was much further along in the metric system than the US??  Canac Cabinets, which was/is a Canadian company supplied all the cabinets for a project I built in Las Vegas in 1996, and everything they had was layed out in metric.  Their salesman used to come out for field verification, and he'd leave me a discrepancy sheet with comments like "sink drain needs to move 75 mm to the left".  I told him that if he didn't give me the comments in Imperial measurements, I couldn't get the corrections made, because no one had a metric tape!
 
pdlandgang said:
As a hobbiest my skill sets are starting to advance and I am starting to do more complex work which is requiring more precise measuring and marking.  I am looking for some good instruments that will last will remain true.  I am teaching myself to use the metric system so I would like them to be in metric.  Any suggestions which types to own and good brands and places to purchase them.  Thanks for the help.
Click to expand...

Try Starrett (great products) http://www.starrett.com/pages/3_precision_tools_and_gages.cfm or Dieter Schmid in Germany for metric rules.
Lie-Nielson also sells some Starrett products  but not all. Starrett's engineers square is a beautiful piece but very pricey. I usually order my Starrett stuff from specialty tool stores. The big box guys can get it but I doubt they will have it in their system which screws them right up.
Pinnacle makes some great stuff as well. Their 1281 set square is a beauty for setting up the MFT/3 but you can get by with a cheaper square for that. For some things Incra are good as well I just find the rules a bit flimsy.
D-S will ship to Canada and with the Euro falling against the Cdn. $ you will get an ok price. They will ship via post, it takes a while but they will deal with you in English. Nice folks.
http://www.fine-tools.com/mass.htm
I hope this helps
Tim
 
+1 on Starrett tools. Check out their combination squares. I bought two from fine-tools.com. One with a 300 mm blade (33MH-300) and one that's 150 mm (10MH-150). I use the small one a lot - very handy.

- Kristian
 
The talk about the True 32 5m Metric tape has got me curious... I have tried to find them in South Africa with no luck... I have also tried asking a few suppliers if they would ship and they seem reluctant to do so because of red tape... and this and that and blah blah blah...
So...
1.) are they really that good?
2.) do any of you know of a supplier that will ship internationally?
3.) if I cannot find a retailer that will ship, is there anyone willing to help me out with a purchase and shipping of this amazing tape measure  [unsure]
Thanks in advance
 
You can buy the Pro Carpenter True 32 5m from Amazon USA.
Or at Fastcap USA itself.
312ST0JG93L._SL500_AA300_.jpg

 
Amazon say they will not ship to my address...
and a quote from Fast cap is $100 shipping charges  [eek] No tape measure could be worth that much!!!

[attachthumb=#]
 
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