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Nail Sets
Few things are as useful around the house
as the common retractable tape
measure. Home
centers and hardware stores frequently
put
them on sale to draw customers
and offer
a wide selection of styles, sizes,
and construction.
What should you look for in picking
a model
that is best for your needs?
Consider these
features:
- Tape length. Manufacturers have settled on several standard
lengths that retailers commonly stock (10,
12, 16 and 25 feet). Naturally, the larger
ones are bulkier and less convenient. The
25 foot size is useful for outdoor projects
(such as laying out gardens and sidewalks)
but for interior projects (such as measure
room or rug sizes) the smaller versions usually
suffice and are much more convenient to use.
Think of what you measure most frequently,
and you will probably conclude that almost
everything falls in the range of one to six
feet. Tape measures also come in three foot
lengths, such as key chain versions, which
can be handy to slip into a pocket or purse
for your trips to the store.
- Tape width. The longer the tape, the wider the steel
blade in order to provide rigidity when extended.
The standard widths for mid-range tape measures
are half inch and three quarters inch. Where
the same lengths are available in both widths,
the trade off usually comes down to the readability
of the markings printed on the blades or
whether you are frustrated by blades that
“kink” when extended without support. The
smallest tape measures use quarter inch blades,
which have virtually no rigidity and are
very limited in what can be printed on them.
- Blade printing. Tape measures come in a wide variety of
what is printed on the blade (and the packaging
often allows you to pull out the blade to
see what it is before you buy). Choose a
model that is most helpful for your own uses
(do you really need inches on one edge and
metric units on the other?). For precision,
you need to use the very edge of the blade,
so it is handy to have just one scale with
the same marking lines on both edges. Be
sure to check the clarity of the printing;
sometimes, manufacturers include so many
small increments that they make the measure
hard to read. Since house construction is
usually based on 16 inch increments (for
example, the distance between wall studs),
tapes usually note those distances with special
markings. Also, check the first several feet
of the back side to see if the blade includes
any reference information, such as common
nail sizes, decimal conversions, and the
like.
- Construction. Don’t think that a loose hook at the end
of the blade is a manufacturing flaw. The
hook needs to shift slightly to be more accurate
according to whether you are pulling the
tape (as in checking the length of a board)
or pushing the tape (as in checking the inside
dimensions of a drawer). The amount of the
shift should equal the thickness of the hook
itself. In other respects, however, tape
measures do come in a variety of quality
that affects their durability as well as
usefulness. For example, make sure the tape
measure has a decent way to lock the blade
when extended, and if you will frequently
use it for inside measurements, make sure
that the case offers an easy to read “add
on” dimension to allow for the distance between
the back of the case and what is visible
on the blade face. Consider also whether
you want a case that will withstand being
dropped frequently, and don’t overlook the
advantages of easy to spot colors (such as
optic orange).
Most household have several tape measures
on hand because (like any other tool) it
makes sense to have a variety of sizes and
features to cover the widest range of applications. |
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