Thread: New entry in my toolbox

Looks so much more refined than my 'Empire' version, but seeing is it works and is square I reckon I'll put up with it

Enjoy it, I reckon it must be the MOST used tool in my workshop.

Setting-out would have to be the single most-critical step in making just about anything, so it's a pretty fundamental proposition that your setting-out tools be accurate & reliable. Just how accurate a square needs to be for woodwork has been debated a number of times (and I don't want to start another!), but the Starret would certainly exceed minimum standards, I reckon! Apart from the accuracy, having a tool that works smoothly and is 100% consistent at any setting of the blade is worth a lot, and must add considerably to the pleasure.

I'm a bit conflicted when it comes to squares. I do own a combination square, which gets occasional use when its special talents are called-for, but for everyday use, I just like working with plain trysquares, many of which are user-made: Squares etc.jpg Not quite as accurate as your Starret, but well-within the tolerances required for woodwork, and they simply feel nicer in my hand than the all-steel variety.

However, if a Starret combination ever got within grabbing distance, at a price I thought was too good to pass-up, you can bet it would very soon be gracing my toolbox, too!