Measure Twice, Cut Once

Most woodworkers don’t give much thought to most basic tools in their shop, they are too busy picking out the best chisels, scrapers, clamps, special jigs, tool, woodworking machinery, hand planes and all manner of accessories to make their work go smoothly and more accurate. What they are missing is the measuring and marking tools.

Look at what you own in the way of measuring and marking tools. Many of the frequent troubles in woodworking are out of a four-sided figure frames, casework, joints that fit poorly, etc. can be traced back to the measuring and marking mistakes. The culprit is usually only a matter of using the incorrect measuring and marking too for the job. A tape measure was not calculated for the extremely accurate measurements that most woodworking projects require.

Making for some exacting work, in most woodworking projects, the first thing you do is marking and measuring linear dimensions. Miscalculations as small as 100th of an inch when marking and measuring in such complicated joinery or small, tight parts will later show up as gaps in joints or uneven parts or a host of other less-than-perfect results.

Depending on how correctly you are able to interpret a measurement into an objective mark on a piece of wood is the outcome of measuring from point 1 to point 2. Holding down a tape measure while trying to accurately mark off a measurement is a difficult task, mainly because tape measures are not meant to lay flat. An accurately calibrated and readable marking and measuring tool is needed for all woodworking projects.