Engineers square - made in England

[Rocketman]

Well that's a surprise I can't find any engineers square made in England anymore to the best of my knowledge. A supplier said the moore and wright are made in China. Fisher are Japan I think.

So is it as well just to get faithfull and save your money if it's grade B tolerance the same a fisher and moore and wright.

 

[EAZEE]

Make your own it's easy enough bud

 

[Rocketman]

Only trouble is it won't be square

I could call it a engineers squarish

 

[EAZEE]

Only trouble is it won't be square

Mine is

 

[EAZEE]

 

[Screwdriver]

They are self calibrating instruments. So long as you have a flat surface to work from, you can measure/manufacture their accuracy to the limit of your abilities.

 

[EAZEE]

 

[ronan]

Cylinder squares would be an easy item to make i would think. You'd soon find out if your lathe is cutting square or not. As for UK made squares, Starrett have a plant in Scotland, i am sure they make squares.

 

[Brad93]

Oxford make decent squares. They're available from Cromwell tools.

Mitutoyo squares are ridiculous money.

Starrett stuff is decent.

 

[ronan]

Oxford make decent squares. They're available from Cromwell tools.

Mitutoyo squares are ridiculous money.

Starrett stuff is decent.

Is Oxford made in the uk ?

 

[Rocketman]

Is Oxford made in the uk ?

I think it's Cromwell's and likelihood of made in UK very low

Like I said though if they are class B does it matter who makes them really.

I'm all for supporting UK manufacturing but when there are no options what do you do. I don't mind paying for Europe or Japan but obvious downside is not a lot of help for the UK.

It's fine paying moore and wright prices if the stuff is made in the UK but when it's imported from China or where ever how come the price is just soooo high? Just creaming off the name. Yes there is moore and wright stuff made in the UK but from what I gather the squares are not.

Can't see the point of making one especially when I doubt I will get up to near grade B accuracy

 

[Screwdriver]

I imagine you would make a square if you needed a particular feature like a relief or additional bracketing etc. I suspect any of us would struggle to make a copy of a standard engineers square that was anything like as good as an off the shelf item.

 

[Rocketman]

Cylinder squares would be an easy item to make i would think. You'd soon find out if your lathe is cutting square or not. As for UK made squares, Starrett have a plant in Scotland, i am sure they make squares.

No idea they don't actually say, I assume you would mention it if they were made in the UK?

Anyway the tolerance looks tighter than grade B on the Starrett at 0.005 per 150mm and I don't need that extreme and I don't need the price for paying for that extreme at £120+ for 5" version.

 

[zzr1200]

Does it really matter where its made as long as its square?

The Kennedy 150mm square is within .0012 thou tolerance out of square over the blade length.

Their 300mm square is within .0016 thou over the blade length, so both are less than 1.5 thou out of square how much more accurate do you want ?

 

[Screwdriver]

I think you'd surprise yourself...

The only calibration tool you need to get to grade b for the angle is something with a straight edge and at least one working eye.

To make a working square yes but I am pretty sure even my elderly collection of old Moore and Wright engineers squares are also flat, parallel everywhere including the base/body and of course, made from spring steel and toolsteel. Tough job to match that. Darned sight more tricky to better it.

 

[Screwdriver]

Does it really matter where its made as long as its square?

The Kennedy 150mm square is within .0012 thou tolerance out of square over the blade length.

Their 300mm square is within .0016 thou over the blade length, so both are less than 1.5 thou out of square how much more accurate do you want ?

Do you mean 12 thou? i.e. 0.012 inch.

 

[Rocketman]

Does it really matter where its made as long as its square?

I personally, within reason, don't mind paying a bit more in supporting our manufacturing base. But I don't like paying the extra for a name which in all truth is just an import from China = should be China prices.

 

[zzr1200]

Do you mean 12 thou? i.e. 0.012 inch.

No. 0.0012 thou which is less than one and a half thousand of an inch.. Both squares are less than 1.5 thou runout over 150mm total blade length

 

[zzr1200]

I personally, within reason, don't mind paying a bit more in supporting our manufacturing base. But I don't like paying the extra for a name which in all truth is just an import from China = should be China prices.

I can understand your reasoning, but if we want next day availability in the UK and not have to wait for 2 or 3 weeks delivery from the far east (+ import taxes and vat), we have to pay for storage and the stocks to be kept on the shelf in the UK.

But remember one thing, the Far Eastern Manufactures are just as capable of producing high quality tooling as the remaining limited tooling manufacturer's is the UK.

I'll agree years ago far eastern tools were generally rubbish but there's now a lot of high end tool suppliers in the far east.

Just look at the top end electronic manufacturers now.....

 

[CornishPete]

I've never quite understood the something made in this country is better than something made in that country thing. If a machine that makes something was unplugged from a uk factory, shipped to china and plugged in there, surely it would be the same? Its like my dad's sheep, some go to the butchers and some go to Sainsbury's yet some people insist that lamb from Sainsbury's is inferior presumably because it's come from a supermarket! I do think though that it's hard to know which things are good quality and which are rubbish, you'd like to think these once British based companies still maintain their quality even though they manufacture in china or wherever, but I'm not so sure!