Working with wood is undoubtedly one of the most sensitive jobs for a couple of reasons:
- The wood that is already cut will not stick back easily.
- After shaping the wood, there is no going back.
- In case of limited resources, you have only one chance of cutting.
These reasons combine and bring up an idea, what would be the most crucial marking & measuring tools in the woodworking industry?
Based on the observation that we just did, it’s safe to say that the vital element of every wood project is proper marking and measuring tools.
You will read:
- Why marking and measuring tools are essential?
- The variety of marking and measuring tools & application of each.
- In the end
Let’s start, shall we?
Why marking and measuring tools are essential?
We want to lead with an example so you understand the subject entirely.
Imagine that you have a woodshop; you love it. You make home furniture and other structures.
Someday, you get an order that asks you to craft a table by tomorrow; you tell yourself that you can do it and start and get on the work.
You have precisely one board and four legs that have to be the same size.
You start cutting them in a hurry, and you don’t use any measuring tools; after assembling the table, you see that one of the legs is shorter than the others; you try cutting the rest to even it, don’t you? Sure, you cut the legs to make them even.
Although you don’t measure again, the same thing happens, and now you cannot cut the legs anymore because it makes the table too low.
You don’t have a table, and your client will get mad.
All of this happened because you didn’t take the time to mark and measure your legs before cutting them.
So the lesson that this example gives us is that no matter the expertise and time limits, you have to continuously measure and mark the wood you are using to get the best results without any risks.
Now that you know how vital marking and measuring tools are, it’s time to list the items that will help us do so, and in the end, we will have a comparison. Don’t miss it.
The variety of marking and measuring tools & application of each
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Square
Square is one of the essential tools you can have in your woodworking package; keep in mind that not all squares are created equally. If the tool you are using to check for a square is not the same shape as the square, your project will be wonky and quickly get frustrating.
So, this is how to test to see if your square is the right shape. If the tool you are using is a square, it should perfectly overlap the line you put down.
If your lines do not overlap, your square is not the shape it should be.
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DFM square
DFM square is a miniature, meaning it can easily fit in your pockets. You can easily make the center of it by moving the tool alongside the pencil in a straight line.
It is handy to use a saddle square to transfer lines from one side to another. The other use of this tool is its ability to find the center.
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Carpenter square
Carpenter square is a remarkable and essential tool.
Using lips on the bottom, you can use it to set up tools or mark for crosscuts. While you can draw straight lines with it, these tools have some holes that can help you immensely.
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Sliding bevel gauge
A sliding bevel gauge is indispensable once you start adding a lot of angles to your work.
It fully adjusts to any angle you need and locks into place, and you don’t need to know the angle you are working with. See if you have to change any details, then you are free to lock the contraption into the place.
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Bevel setting gauge
You can get a bevel setting gauge if you want a specific angle. The only thing you have to do is identify the angle you want and adjust the dial for that note. Then lock it into place.
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T– square
T- square is similar to the DMF that we discussed, and the only difference is that this one has several holes.
You can find them in very different shapes and sizes. It would help if you used a good mechanical pencil.
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Marking knife
marking knife is more suited to the woodwork that is done by hand. In other words, some machine jobs cannot rely on this tool.
If you search correctly, you probably will find this device in different sizes, performances, and shapes. When you want to do an inlay, first put a piece of wood into another part of the wood.
The only thing essential to the marking knife is for it to be at the right spot to do the cutting, and we might add the right angle.
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Wheel marking gauge
As the name suggests, wheel marking gauge is made to mark the wood.
If you are looking for accuracy, this might not be the best, but you better get this tool if you are looking for simplicity.
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Scratch awl
Scratch is also a marker.
The scratch awl does precisely what it says; it can draw a straight line on your wood piece for you to continue on that line with a chisel or a saw.
Using this tool in making joints and other wood structures will make your job way more manageable.
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Measure tape
There is a lot of measuring tools for scaling. Measure tape is undoubtedly the most currently used tool by carpenters, but some individuals underestimate the value of this tool.
Therefore, we can say that this tool is the king of marking and measuring tools.
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Digital calipers
As you know, everything gets way more accessible when it combines technology and the digital world.
Imagine that you have a digital calipers, and it works with batteries and can show you the length of an item as accurately as possible.
If you are a wood artist, you need a digital caliper.
By the explanations above, you are familiar with the variety of marking and measuring tools and applications.
Which is better: Measuring tape vs. Digital Calipers
To continue, let’s go the comparison of the two types of marking and measuring tools:
| Measure tape | Digital calipers |
| Can measure up to 100 meters | Battery change is required from time to time |
| It doesn’t need a battery | Usually gets used is small scales |
| Is always accurate | Can cause an error or incorrect measurement |
| More practical | – |
You can see from the chart; that a measuring tape would be much better than a digital one in most conditions.
However, their uses are much different in some cases; if you wanted to use both to measure the same thing, it wouldn’t work.
This would be the end of the article. Let’s wrap the article up and read about the bottom line.
In the end
One of the most common and crucial tools that a carpenter uses is marking and measuring tools like tape or digital and laser beam measurement tools.
As a carpenter, you have to keep in mind that your work is essential, and taking the time to marking and measuring precisely before doing anything and also be familiar with varieties and applications of the tools will guarantee a fine piece of art in the end, no matter if you are crafting a spoon or a sculpture.
We appreciate you reading until the end of this article. If you have any opinions on wood marking and measuring tools or if you have additional inquiries, please let us know in the comment section below.
