The best tips are the simple ones

[Derek Cohen]

I spent today at a workshop on box making and veneering run by Andrew Crawford (who very modestly calls himself a "box decorator". His work is amazing).

At one point I noticed his steel rule. The reverse had sandpaper glued along its length. Here it is (on a blow up of a veneer he did) ..



I had to convert one of my steel rules as soon as I got home. Here it is with 240 grit on the rear.

Note to keep the edges free I bevelled the sandpaper with a sandpaper block (if that makes sense).



Verdict: Perfect nonslip. Marking will be so much easier in the future.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[harry strasil]

Thank You, Andrew and Derek, I use 3 small pieces of self stick sandpaper on my assortment of framing squares at the ends of the tongue and body and at the corner where they meet to keep them from sliding around when scribing a line. And also on the face of my table saw miter gauge and the front edge of the fence on my Miter Saw, don't know why I never thought of using it on my steel rules. DUH

I also have several dowels and other shapes of wood scraps with the self stick paper on them for sanding in small spaces and grooves. Now I will have a tool for those really narrow places, by using my steel rules. It will also work to touch up those real tiny dovetail mortices some people like to cut. (No disrespect implied), I just like larger dovetails. Maybe so its a Blacksmith thing, bigger is stronger! LOL

[Derek Cohen]

Hi Harry

Those were my thoughts as well. I use sandpaper for nonslip on all fences ... yet I had not thought of using it on my rules until today. I cursed as I had to check my marks in case the rule had moved fractionally. No more.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[harry strasil]

Now all you have to do is remember how many of them little marks it needs on which side of the BIG numbered one.

I used be an adjunct VO-TECH Instructor for some of the local Manufacturing business's
locally, and I was really surprised at the number of people that could not read a ruler. After the first 2 classes, the business's that had several employees attending and the their Company's paid the tuition, thanked me and told me that the cost of tuition was returned many, many times over do to the savings from miss measured material had been cut to smallg and had to be scraped. We are talking 5 by 12 ft and 4 by 8 ft sheets of iron in thicknesses from 20 gauge up to and including 1 inch thick.

[glenn bradley]

Brilliant. I'm doin' it.

[lowell holmes]

But, are you really cover up all of those conversion tables Lee Valley puts on the back of their rulers?

[george wilson]

In the early 60's when I taught shop,I spent the first week or 2 teaching the students to read the ruler to 1/32". Many of them could not read it below 1/2" at first.

There was a guy in a local shipyard who was in charge of cutting heavy steel plate. A friend of mine worked there. The cutter would not take any measurements except in WHOLE INCHES. He could not read the ruler!!

I don't know what that did for the quality of the ships. Guess the welders had to fill in the short measurements with weld,since they could not have the plates too large!!

[Leigh Betsch]

When I made my living as a Toolmaker, us apprentices had a little competition on who could read a steel rule (or scale as we called them) the most accurately, without a magnifier. I usually won. I could read a Starrett scale to .003 quite reliably. Mostly because I was very near sighted at the time and without glasses I had eyes like magnifiers about 4" in front of my nose. Now at 52 and after lasek surgery I'd be lucky to split .010.

Sandpaper on a ruler, you can use it to file your fingernails too!

[Sandy Stanford]

I spent today at a workshop on box making and veneering run by Andrew Crawford (who very modestly calls himself a "box decorator". His work is amazing).

At one point I noticed his steel rule. The reverse had sandpaper glued along its length. Here it is (on a blow up of a veneer he did) ..



I had to convert one of my steel rules as soon as I got home. Here it is with 240 grit on the rear.

Note to keep the edges free I bevelled the sandpaper with a sandpaper block (if that makes sense).



Verdict: Perfect nonslip. Marking will be so much easier in the future.

Regards from Perth

Derek

They sell 'em all day long with thin cork backings at art and drafting supply stores. Serves the same function but won't scratch stuff up.

[Derek Cohen]

Charlie

I never knew that until today, when a couple of others have mentioned the same. It seems such a small thing, but adding the nonslip makes such a big difference. I'll chase up cork-backed rules - not seen any in our local stores.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Tom Vanzant]

All of the cork-backed rulers that I have seen are silk-screened, not etched or photo-etched. That's why I am loathe to call them scales. If that's accurate enough for you, go for it.

[Sandy Stanford]

All of the cork-backed rulers that I have seen are silk-screened, not etched or photo-etched. That's why I am loathe to call them scales. If that's accurate enough for you, go for it.

The rules by Alvin are etched. No, they don't cost a fortune but I haven't found them to be terribly limiting.

http://www.fineartstore.com/Catalog/...ost%2cUnitCost

Microplane distributes a reasonably decent one as well:

http://us.microplane.com/18stainless...ckedruler.aspx

[Sandy Stanford]

Charlie

I never knew that until today, when a couple of others have mentioned the same. It seems such a small thing, but adding the nonslip makes such a big difference. I'll chase up cork-backed rules - not seen any in our local stores.

Regards from Perth

Derek

I've always had a few cork backed rules around. They will stay put on an angled drafting table, no problem. In this use lighter is better as a heavier rule would slide down the table (and the drawing), backing or not.