A gallery of gauges

[IanW]

I had a whole bunch of part-finished marking gauges that I'd started about the middle of last year: 376258

I was getting tired of shuffling them around while I did other things, so when I injured my foot a week or so back, it was a good excuse to spend some time on a stool and finish the darn things. Today I put the finishing touches on the last few, and when I heaped them up for the obligatory record photo, was quite surprised at the pile! 376259

There are the 'usual suspects' like a Hairy Oak pair: 376260

Plus a wood that is relatively new to me (Budgeroo): 376261

Couldn't let some scraps of Tiger Myrtle left over from a saw handle go to waste: 376262

This lot also included 3 mortise gauges, which involve bit more effort, & a few more brass bits. The easier version has an 'external' slider for the moveable point, operated by a screw through a barrel nut in the body (the one on the right): 376263 This style has been made by several manufacturers for at least 100 years, and is reasonably common on the used-tool market. Both of these gauges are in Ringed Gidgee, which you won't find in any old-tool market! Not the easiest wood to work with, but worth the trouble it takes.

The other gauge is based on the Stanley 77 (https://www.google.com.au/#q=pictures+stanley+77+marking+gauge&tbm=isch&imgil=jzQtQvBb8AGjLM%253A%253BXjBlDtvm664KdM%253Bhttps%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.etsy.com%25252Fca%25252Flisting%25252F159304168%25252Fantique-primitive-stanley-mortise&fir=jzQtQvBb8AGjLM%253A%252CXjBlDtvm664KdM%252C_&usg=__x8cfzu0Jjoqr3WN5XKtZXFafnZs%3D&imgrc=jzQtQvBb8AGjLM%3A), & has an 'internal' slider. The thumbscrew remains at the end of the beam, which means (in theory!) it is less likely to be damaged if dropped: 376264

Glad that lot is done!
Cheers,

[Luke Maddux]

Quite the pile, Ian. They sure look swell all polished up like that.

Was that the first time you had done an internal sliding mechanism like that on the mortise gauge? Looks to me like a beaut. How does she work?

Cheers,
Luke

[cava]

Very nice. :2tsup:

[IanW]

......Was that the first time you had done an internal sliding mechanism like that on the mortise gauge? Looks to me like a beaut. How does she work? ....

Nope, Luke, that's the second (and likely the last!). I made one (http://www.woodworkforums.com/f152/mortise-gauge-160428?highlight=mortise+gauge) from She-oak a few years ago, and because I had to make up a crude jig to cut the slider & end-pieces from a piece of brass bar, I made enough for two gauges, intending to use some Ebony I had kicking around for a 'magnum opus' gauge. However, the bit of Ebony I had put aside to make the beam turned out to be full of cracks & unusable, so I substituted with the RG.

I thought I'd learned all the pitfalls on the first build, but still managed to have a few anxious moments with this one. My biggest problem was the unpredictable fragility of the Gidgee (something you can attest to! :;). I had to make a new piece when one of the sides of the beam split whilst I was rivetting it. It was only a small split, ( I debated (briefly) whether I would just epoxy it & try to ignore it, but it would've bugged me no end if I'd done that. Luckily, I had just enough left from the same bit of wood, so I gritted my teeth & started over.

How does it work? Quite nicely, thankyou. For #1, I drilled the screw-hole in the slider on the drill-press, & despite extreme care in setting up, I got it ever so slightly off-centre, which causes the thumbscrew to be a bit stiff to turn at the maximum opening (which is very rarely needed, fortunately). This time, I had my little metal lathe and a 4-jaw chuck, so I was able to drill the slider far more easily, and it screws smoothly over the full range. Unlike the old 77, the outside pin on this gauge is locked in by a grubscrew, which means it is easily removed or replaced, but more importantly, easy to adjust to be the same height as the pin on the slider. Getting both pins marking evenly on a mortise gauge can sometimes be a frustrating & fiddly business, I've found.....

Cheers,

[Kidbee]

Ian, did you machine the screws as well or bought them in? The gauges look wonderful.

[IanW]

Ian, did you machine the screws as well or bought them in? ...

I made them on my little 'toy' metal lathe, Kidbee. Actually, it's a bit better than a toy, it's an older model of this one (http://www.machineryhouse.com.au/L687). I haven't tackled ferrous metals a lot with it, but it handles brass very comfortably. The knurling is done with a knurling tool that cost the princely sum of $18 at the time, but does a pretty good job (once I learned how to use it properly), though it's starting to show signs of wear, and won't last a whole lot longer, I think.

Cheers,

[Simplicity]

Very nice little production run you have going there Ian.
You should bring some down to Melbourne to sell off in a few weeks.
I can organise a captive market group if you like[emoji6].
Or do you think you need that many your self [emoji3]
Fantastic work tho
Matt

[rob streeper]

Nice work Ian. How did you do the finish on them?

[IanW]

......You should bring some down to Melbourne to sell off in a few weeks....
......Or do you think you need that many your self.....

Hi Matt, some of these gauges are spoken-for already, but I could bring a few along if you think anyone might be interested. The 'spares' are destined for the "Market Place", eventually, but they may as well find home sooner rather than later.

No, I don't need quite that many for myself, but I probably do have a couple more gauges in my tool kit than the average bloke... :;

Cheers,

[IanW]

Nice work Ian. How did you do the finish on them?

Hi Rob, thanks. The finish is "Shellawax", which is a friction polish for finishing lathe work (made by the sponsor of this Forum). It needs to be warmed to make it flow & 'set', so I rub in a coat or two with a bit of cloth, then buff it with a cloth wheel - I reasoned it made little difference whether you spin the object or the polishing pad. Works quite well on hard woods, particularly. For such an easy, quick finish, it's remarkably durable, I have gauges that were made 20 years ago that still look pretty good....

Cheers,

[Simplicity]

If you have the room Ian, I can't see it hurting .
We're only a small group tho.
But if you go home a few gauges lighter
That would be fantastic .
And all puns included you get to gauge your market.
(Sorry that was to good to pass up)

Matt

[doug3030]

... but I could bring a few along if you think anyone might be interested. The 'spares' are destined for the "Market Place", eventually, but they may as well find home sooner rather than later.


Not sure how I feel about being included in "a captive market group" but if you have some at the sharpening weekend an any of them appeal to me, I might be tempted...

Cheers

Doug

[Doggie]

Don't we have a different gauge to Queensland in Victoria?? Will they work here??

[Simplicity]

There's a conversion app !!

[RayG]

Maybe a gauge making class is in order during the big upcoming weekend. :) I'm still not sure I can make it, but we will see how it goes.

Ray

[IanW]

Maybe a gauge making class is in order during the big upcoming weekend. :) I'm still not sure I can make it, but we will see how it goes.

Ray

I'm happy to chat about gauge-making if there's time & interest, but we might be biting off more than we can chew, Ray! I'll bring a few props along, & if we get tired of filing saws, we can have a little diversion... :U

Cheers,

[Tritonitis]

Beautiful work there. I love the tiger myrtle one.

[kevjed]

I love your work Ian. If only I could justify a few of these. Ahhhhh well.

[Bushmiller]

Justification :?. Is that a real word?

Regards
Paul

[kevjed]

I know Paul...I couldn't justify most of the thingsI have even if I tried really hard

[rob streeper]

Justification? Anthropologists everywhere agree that tool use is a sign of intelligence and since more is better...

[Bushmiller]

Rob

I would very much like to agree with that philosophy, but I also have to consider that tool use is also just a sign of a tool. :(

:D

Regards
Paul

[rob streeper]

The size of the nail matters less than that of the hammer you drive it with.

[rob streeper]

Look what arrived today.

377683

377684


Mere photo's, especially my poor efforts, can't do them justice. Beautiful, thanks Ian.
Cheers,
Rob