My uncle's 50-year-old framing square taught me something

He told me he never uses a speed square, said the old steel square is all he needs for rafters and stairs... I spent 2 hours last night trying to follow his method and it clicked why I've been overcomplicating layouts. Anybody else ditch the modern tools for something ancient?

3 comments

3 Comments

joel_butler1mo ago

Wait, hold on - those brass tabs? THAT'S what they're for? I always thought they were just for decoration or some old-timey holdover from when squares were made differently. @oscar743 you might be onto something about the rust not being magic but man, I've got an old Stanley from the 1940s and those brass strips are worn smooth as glass but they still keep the square planted on a 2x4 without any shifting. I never understood why new squares don't have them.

davis.ruby2mo ago

I read somewhere that old framing squares have those little brass tabs for a reason, helps lock the square right onto the wood without slipping. My dad picked up a beat up one at a garage sale and swears the patina makes it grip better than any new version. Might just be nostalgia talking but there's something solid about using a tool that's already been proven for decades.

oscar7432mo ago

Huh, I gotta respectfully disagree on the patina thing. Rust is just rust, not some magic grip compound. Those brass tabs are there to keep the square from sliding when you're marking a cut, sure, but an old, beat up square with a bunch of gunk and corrosion on it is more likely to give you a crooked line than a clean one. I've used my grandfather's old square, the thing was so worn the markings were practically gone, and it definitely didn't make my cuts any straighter. A new square with a clean, flat edge and sharp markings is just better for getting the job done right, no nostalgia needed.