Woodpecker T-Square

[HAXIT]

There is a internet and it is filled with trunk load of posts about woodpecker tools when you search but This post has nothing to do with those and not about to repeat things that already there. While I agree that they make nice stuff but I am not interested in because of the material they use. I spoke with them and they are not willing to make it out of stainless steel for me when I would have no problem to pay the extra. The only thing that I would think or like to have is the T-square and most likely the 12" and the 32" one that is it.
Now I have two choices, just buy it or make one. To buy, I am really not impressed with anodized aluminum for this tool and to make one I am very busy and I am making other things that are more important for now.
One thing that I was surprised when I searched for this item was, there are a lot of them for sale in great conditions and most of the people said, that this was the tool for life! so what happened?
Anyway, for the folks that already using this tool, Did you find anything that is not so good or if you unscrew the ruler and put it back together, would you loose the squareness?
Anyone knows if there is such a tool made out of stainless steel then please let me know. I did a lot of search and no luck.
Thanks. 

 

[RKA]

Here is one (expensive) option.  Not stainless though.

https://www.bridgecitytools.com/default/tools/gift-ideas/as-24v3-adjustable-square.html

 

[HAXIT]

Here is one (expensive) option.  Not stainless though.

https://www.bridgecitytools.com/default/tools/gift-ideas/as-24v3-adjustable-square.html

Thanks,
Unfortunately it is not stainless and does not have the holes for marking. I do not need the holes on both sides at every one inch and does not have to be every 1/16 as well. Just every 1/8 would do it.

 

[Birdhunter]

I'm curious, what do you not like about the aluminum WP uses?

 

[HAXIT]

I'm curious, what do you not like about the aluminum WP uses?

It is not about woodpecker but aluminum itself. I do not like this stuff made out of aluminum and I am not the only one.

 

[nclemmons]

I have the 24" Woodpecker T-square and the Bridge City square. Both are nice.  The Bridge City is easier to re-square and the angle is fully adjustable while the Woodpecker is fixed.  I have not had my Woodpecker go out of square so never have loosened up the bolts to see how easy it is to reset. 

I wonder about Woodpecker drilling stainless with the spacing, hole size and precision you are thinking about.  Far easier to do so with Aluminum.  I believe the t-square is drilled to support #7 lead pencils, so thats a small hole in stainless, and there are a bunch of them!  A pulse laser would do it, but those are expensive!

You probably could find a local machine shop willing to custom make one for you, but it would be pricey.

Johnson Level makes a 16x24 stainless Carpenters Square.  It's under $20.  You are more likely to find a machine shop or self drill indexing holes in it as a way to get something useful for not much money.  Or there are plenty of cheap 24" stainless rules on eBay or from Aliexpress you could experiment with. 

To your other question on Woodpecker T-squares coming up for sale....  Here's a theory - WP has a way of hooking you on their 'one time tools' and after awhile you realize you thought you needed them 'one-time' when you ordered them but not any more!

Share what you end up with.

 

[Birdhunter]

I’ve watched Woodpecker reissue aluminum tools in stainless over the past year or so.

Stay tuned, maybe the T square will show up in stainless.

My experience in aerospace is that stainless is trickier than aircraft grade aluminum to machine.

 

[Alanbach]

I am curious why you (and others) do not like aluminum for applications like this. Although I have not really thought about it much until now, in my experience at least, aluminum is a relatively new material for this type of application. Traditionally the items like this that I have run across were made from wood, brass and maybe blued steel. I am no machinist and know almost nothing about the characteristics of different metals, how accurately they can be machined and how stable they will stay after machining in different climates over time. I would appreciate it if you would expound on some of the why’s behind your leaning away from aluminum and towards SS in this type of tool. TIA

 

[HAXIT]

I have the 24" Woodpecker T-square and the Bridge City square. Both are nice.  The Bridge City is easier to re-square and the angle is fully adjustable while the Woodpecker is fixed.  I have not had my Woodpecker go out of square so never have loosened up the bolts to see how easy it is to reset. 

I wonder about Woodpecker drilling stainless with the spacing, hole size and precision you are thinking about.  Far easier to do so with Aluminum.  I believe the t-square is drilled to support #7 lead pencils, so thats a small hole in stainless, and there are a bunch of them!  A pulse laser would do it, but those are expensive!

You probably could find a local machine shop willing to custom make one for you, but it would be pricey.

Johnson Level makes a 16x24 stainless Carpenters Square.  It's under $20.  You are more likely to find a machine shop or self drill indexing holes in it as a way to get something useful for not much money.  Or there are plenty of cheap 24" stainless rules on eBay or from Aliexpress you could experiment with. 

To your other question on Woodpecker T-squares coming up for sale....  Here's a theory - WP has a way of hooking you on their 'one time tools' and after awhile you realize you thought you needed them 'one-time' when you ordered them but not any more!

Share what you end up with.

Thanks for the info, I will share what I will end up with. Most likely I have to make one.