Shopmade Marking Gauges?

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges? *LINK*

GolfSteve in Calgary

>I've posted this on Woodcentral before, but here's some info on a panel gauge I made. It could easily be scaled down to a marking or cutting gauge size:


Panel Gauge Info

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

john jesseph

>here's a pic of Kaare Loftheims's mortise gage. i think it is based on the seaton chest tools. took the pic at williamsburg a couple years ago. i am making one this week, will post pics when i am done.

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

Dave (Arlington, VA)

>Thanks, that looks great. It would be fun to do a panel gauge, as well, but I think making a couple of marking gauges might be a higher priority. They do seem quite similar. I do have a question, what is the purpose of the groove at the bottom of the head...and is the groove the reason you need a pad at the cutting end of the rod?

Thanks. I appreciated your post and the pics.

Dave

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

Dave (Arlington, VA)

>Hi John -

This looks great, and it what I was hoping for. I will be very interested in seeing the one you make and any pics that might accompany it.

Thanks for posting!

Dave

A cutting/marking gauge ...

Derek Cohen (in Perth, Australia)

>Dave

Here is one I posted before ...

A marking/cutting gauge that is based on the Woodjoy. This is reversible for straight and curved edges.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Re: A cutting/marking gauge ...

Dave (Arlington, VA)

>Hi Derek -

That looks very sweet! I'm afraid, however, that it likely exceed my skill level (both wood and metal). Nonetheless, I really enjoy getting a glimpse of craftsmanship like this. Thank you very much for sharing it...again (I must have missed it in earlier posting).

Regards -

Dave

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

john jesseph

>here's another pic i found on my drive. i will look up the couple of tidbits of info in the seaton chest book and sketch out a plan. i am guessing all 3/4 stock- i didn't bother to measure because it didn't seem too critical. iirc the length according to the rees book was around 9 inches...

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

GolfSteve in Calgary

>The board rides in the groove and as far as I can tell the reason for the groove and the little pad is so that the gauge is kept parallel to the board. I think you could do away with both the groove and the pad with little loss of functionality, but it does work nice the way it is.

Re: Different handle

paul womack

>I saw thi at an auction (the stem is reversed, as revealed by the rebate in the fence...)

It looks easier to push along than the Cosman shape.

BugBear

Re: UKWorkshop

paul womack

>...for some reason people over there like making gauges (unlikee woodnet, where they make saws... !?)

by "chisel"

Pete Maddex

ditto

woodbloke

BugBear

Plans for Seaton Style gauge

Wendell @ Murphy, TX

>Dean Jansa has an article in the Dec '06 issue of Popular Woodworking. There are plans for the Seaton Chest style marking gauge in the article.

Wendell

Frank Klausz's gauge

Ellis Walentine

>Frank uses a shopmade marking gauge that has a cam-shaped shaft and a matching opening in the fence. We did an article about it called "Twist-Lckk Marking Gauge" in the December '94 issue of American Woodworker (#42). I can't publish the pictures or text here because of copyright issues, but someone with that issue might want to e-mail you a copy.

Ellis Walentine

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

ThomD

>The gage that gets the most use in my shop, by a long country mile, and I have a variety from home made to a mortise cutitng gage from Bridge city, is the one blade japanese style with the screw adjust. This is an easy model to make. I made one for my dad using a wedge, and as comited as I am to such stuff as wooden planes with wedged blades, I have to say the screw has jumped into my hand more often. I thik the reason for that is that with gages one may want to move in either direction with great accuracy and/or speed. This would be a rare circumstance with a plane blade.

FWW did an article on making a wedged version a few years back. There were a few tweaks to the look, that dated like a GMC Gremlin. The one I use most faithfully seems to have a wedge shaped blade made out of a tweaked piece of cold rolled metal. It still works really well after more than 20 years, though the adjuster is a little galled. High quality baldes are offered at modest prices from Japan woodworker.

The main appeals of this design are the size and shape of the fence. NOt to big or too small, much better reference surface; Any blade seems more generally useful than a pin; the adjuster is crude but it has just the right characteristics. The beam locks up without a wobble, it can be accurately moved the slightest amount (I often use a digital indicator to pick stuff off plans so I need one that can slide in and pick up a thou.

Within this class of tool there are beam versions, cutting versions, mortice version. A well developed range. Though I use the single blade one out of all proportion to the rest.

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

Robin Corell in Atascadero, CA

>I have half a dozen marking guages and this is the one I use for everything except curved work. When I was an apprintice my boss handed me his panel guage and said it was the best one ever made and I might want to cast one up. When the guy that signs your check says you might want to do something you do it if you want him to keep signing your checks. The funny thing is that he was right. This is a design made by Phelps MFG Oakland CA it is still available from Freeman Supply, but like many patternmakers tools they are often copied. Freeman Supply lists the head as 7". Mine measures 6 11/16" which means it is a fourth generation copy.

The bar is 5/16" stainless hex rod and has little to no flex depending on how far out it is set. The cutter is a wheel made from the end of a hack saw blade ground with a single bevel. Drilling and tapping the end of the hex rod is not an easy thing and if you have access to a metal lathe it makes it a bit easier. The spring that holds tension on the bar also is what the screw presses on to tighten it so it dosent move the bar. the spring is made from steel pallet banding. the casitng is probably the part that many here will have dificulty with but I thought I would share the design anyways.

In use it is much more comfortable than any wood making guage I have ever held or used. I prefer not to have the shoe like many panel guages have, not sure if this is the right teminology but it is what I call that rabbit like on the wood panel guage shown in this thread. The reason I don't care for a shoe is that I often like to roll the panel guage just slightly to make a small mark. this design is also nice because it is truely a one handed guage, I can easily hold the guage in one hand and a rule in the other and set the guage acurately. It is so easy to set that I have never worried about reseting a mark if I forgot to mark a board.

Phleps also makes a small marking guage that is reversable for curved work and it too is available from Freeman Supply.

Robin

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

Robin Corell in Atascadero, CA

>Here is a pic of the Phelps panel guage in use.

Robin

Re: UKWorkshop

Dave (Arlington, VA)

>Hi Bugbear -

Thanks for posting these. I think I might give one of these a try, or the one from the Seaton chest. I'm not sure which yet. Sorry for the delay posting, I was traveling on business much of this week.

Again, thanks.

Dave

Re: Frank Klausz's gauge

Dave (Arlington, VA)

>Thanks, Ellis. I would be interested in seeing it if anyone had it. '94, eh. I'm afraid that pre-dates my interest in woodworking. I appreciate your posting this, and apologize for the delay in responding. I've been traveling some this week.

Regards -

Dave

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

Dave (Arlington, VA)

>Hi Thom -

Thanks for your comments. I had been leaning toward wedges, but will give some thought to your comments on screws. I had seemed to me that with a wedged gauge you might be able to set it with one hand - which would seem to be an advantage. Still I appreciate your posting. Thanks!

Dave

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

Dave (Arlington, VA)

>Hi Robin -

Thanks for the post. Looks very cool, but unfortunately there's no way I could do one from metal. Still, it's fun to see what's out there and all the creativity.

Regards -

Dave

Re: Plans for Seaton Style gauge

Dave (Arlington, VA)

>Thanks, Wendell. Boy, I don't know how I missed that one.

Dave

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges? *LINK*

Alan S

>Fine Woodworking #150 had an article on making a Japanese kebiki. I'm not sure if the link requires a subscription or not.


FWW kebiki article

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

Dave (Arlington, VA)

>Thanks, Alan, but yes apparently it does. Still I appreciate your posting.

Regards -

Dave

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

Bob Strawn

>I am rather fond of the cam lock marking gage.

Bob

Re: Shopmade Marking Gauges?

Jeff S.

>That is a nice box and set of hand made tools, Bob. I have never seen a cam locking marking gauge. Do you have any close up pictures that might illustrate how it functions?