Good day,
I am very new to woodworking but find enjoyment out of the time spent working with my hands. I do have a decent sized project coming up this summer I was wondering about tool purchases. My father-in-law has a full shop where he is showing me tips/tricks/etc. But I wondered if it is really worth it to purchase high quality layout tools this early in the hobby. I know there are pros/cons, but I was looking into buying the Bridge City UG-1 https://bridgecitytools.com/products/ug-1-universal-gage and was looking for input. Is it a waste at this stage in the game?
Thanks!
Replies
Looks to me like a waste at any stage of the game, the only things it seems to lack is a rechargeable battery and a laser.. Keep it simple, buy some quality basic layout tools.
agree with 27b, keep it simple - all the uber-expensive specialized tools seem crazy to me - my advice is to buy the very best (simple) tool you can afford. even simpler, just shop at a single source - lie nielsen - if they dont make it you probably dont need it. i have no affiliation with LN, but have a ton of their tools and never been disappointed.
I agree. 99% of the time I use a 10-12' tape, 4-6" double square or tri-square (PEC blemished units are and excellent choice), a 6-12" steel rule, less often a 36" steel rule. Some people like to use marking knives. If you decide you need one, either make it or use an Xacto knife.
I agree with the above - products from companies like Bridge City Tools are for tool collectors, not actual users. Buy good quality planes, chisels, etc. from Lie Nielsen or Veritas, not from way overpriced suppliers.
Disagree. I’m not a collector, I’m a woodworker, and I own a Bridge City try square and miter square, both great tools at a fair price. They’re very accurate, and if they ever go out of square or 45° they’re adjustable. And they are not expensive, they’re waaay less expensive than Woodpecker’s or Starrett tools, for example. BTW, Lee Valley carries Bridge City squares and Lie Nielsen carries the more-expensive-than-Bridge City Starrett squares.
Thank you all for the feedback!
While the universal gage is pretty, it is definitely not required or even useful.
I agree with Bilyo. However, I prefer a marking awl instead of a marking knife. Also, a saddle square is very useful. Each can be had for less than $15.
While deciding if this is a hobby you want or not, there are many affordable tools that will get the job done. From a hand tool perspective, Paul Seller's Common Woodworking website has suggestions on budget friendly items.
https://commonwoodworking.com/
I actually have his book "Essential Woodworking Hand Tools". I haven't had time to dig into it too much as I get pretty busy reading school text books, but it looks full of great information.
Leevalley.com also sells some great quality and fairly affordable layout and measuring tools.
I own Lie Nielsen and Veritas products and just purchased the bridge city mini plane, and the 8 inch try square got them today. They are very nice out of the box, I have not used the plane yet so cannot provide feedback on that, but the try square is square and looks and feels great. I measure a piece of lumber with it and compared it to my incra layout t square (which is also great) and it was spot on. I was hesitant to buy the products being made in China but wanted the mini plane to see if can help with sizing Kumiko strips on a panel I am working on. Hopefully it delivers. The try square for the money I paid (59 dollars) is a no brainier to me.
All the above advice is great, but as you pick out tools learn how to check that they are true and accurate. And then how to correct them if not. There are lots of articles on this in the FW archives. Nothing worse than buying an expensive square that isn't square.
Probably the logical way to look at this is to consider whether the money spent on a high end tool as opposed to the cheapest tool that will do the job is worth it. A stanley knife and a steel rule is your minimum marking kit. You don't have to use anything else.
Right now, the Veritas micro-adjust wheel gauge costs NZD 120. I can get a steel rule and stanley knife for $5 or less. So NZD 115 - half a day's work for a nurse. Is that worth it for the speed and convenience? Oh yes - not only that but I get a great deal of pleasure from using the better tool.
As for the specific item in question, it's a bit of a camel, famously described as a 'horse designed by committee'
Sure all the bits are handy and I would not be upset if Santa were to deliver one for me, but would I really use it? I doubt it would come out of its box that often. The protractor bit looks handy, and it is beautiful, but would I work a whole day to buy one, or would I spend the cash on something else? Probably the latter.
One thing none of these tools do is make you a better woodworker. They may however make you a more satisfied woodworker, and that is no bad thing.
Why pay for a nurse? Well that is pretty much universally an 'average' wage. Even if you earn way more, it is respectful and helpful to consider the time someone less well off will have to spend working to earn the cash to pay for the item - if you would not do your job for as long as they would to buy the tool then perhaps it is a vanity purchase rather than a necessity...
tl;dr: Buy a Starrett 12" combination square now.
I looked at that Bridge City tool, and honestly, it looks like a good value if that's the only square and bevel gauge/angle finder that you have. But I don't think you need it. I absolutely recommend a 12" combination square from Starrett or PEC (or one of the excellent Japanese brands). You will not find a more useful layout and reference tool in a workshop, and it's one that that almost every fine woodworker uses dozens of times a day in the shop. It's invaluable. Look up videos by the great Phil Lowe, and you'll see the combination square is used almost as often as the pencil behind his ear.
I’d echo the same.
The Starret 12” square and a 4” sliding square are used constantly.
I have a 6” and a 12”(??) Crown Tools rosewood handled try squares bought decades ago that get occasional use but if I had to have one it would be the Starret 12”.
Mike
Years ago I owned a Marples rosewood square. It served me in my shop for 20 years before an untimely accident. It never went out of square, but if it did there was no adjustment. So about 4 years ago I was looking for a new square, and because I loved the look and feel of the Marples, I looked at the less expensive, but available, Crown squares. I was picking up a new tablesaw and jointer, and assorted tools and accessories, at the former Brentwood Tools and Machines in New Hampshire, which was a Woodcraft store too, so I checked out their Crown try squares. The owner said he'd give me a free one because I had just spent so much money there that day. Every one of the 5 or 6 were out of square, so I went home without one (maybe an unfortunate bad batch). I love my Starrett combination square too!
I use a 4" double square, 6" and 12" combo squares from Harvey Epstein for most project stuff. These were 'blemished' items and marked down due to those (unseen by me) flaws. I use plastic 45's and 30-60-90 for blade and fence alignment.
IMO - The Bridge City Universal Gauge is not a tool I would purchase but we all have our preferences and differences. Currently on sale for $119 this is a reasonable price for a high quality tool if that is what you want.
Good quality tools can be costly but the most economical tools are the most expensive tools. Sooner or later the economical tool needs to be replaced with a higher quality tool.
Ooooh - well, yes and no.
Depends on the tool - I have really cheap engineers squares that are more accurate than needed for woodwork. I would not use them for high precision metalwork, but for woodwork, they exceed the requirements by a good margin.
Totally agree for power tools and edged weapons.
I went with decent quality hand tools. Marples chisels, simple beech head mallet, inherited some hand planes and very basic measuring tools. These have all proved to be fine for what I build. One place where I wpuld recommend going "higher end" is machines. I've replaced several machines that ended up being not enough for what I wanted to do.
Happy woodworking. Welcome to the expensive hobby thats still cheaper than therapy.
I don't think the piece is over-priced for what it does. I do suspect you'll have trouble remembering all the things it does, much less how to use it. And it has a limited size range. If it were me, I'd stick with a combo square and some other basics for awhile and then see what else I need. For example, I have a $30 digital angle gauge with a magnetic base that's perfect for dialing in table saw or jointer fence angles. But a square would do for 90 deg. The best advice I ever got is to focus on the work, not the tools.
When I said it wasn't over priced, I meant at the sale price of $119. At full retail, no way.
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