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Thanks Will it's more of a want to have than a need to have. I never thought I would own a 6' level, but working on my car I needed everything level, and square front to back. I just hate wishing I had something, and get slowed down on a project.
 
Aukai said:
Thanks Will it's more of a want to have than a need to have.
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I hear ya & I can relate. I have lots of tools that I bought just cause I wanted them & have probably only use very little. But at least when you already have something rather than having to wait & buy when you do need it that feels good. Had the same problem when I worked in automotive also. Just one of the characteristics of a tool junkie. That's what I tell myself anyway, no it's not an issue, & we are not alone. :)
 
One thing to add, of those 2 that I have, the 6" has a lapped finish blade, the 4" is black oxide coated or something. I really like the black finish, makes it easier to see any light passing through. Not a big deal with the one that isn't black but it is a nice feature.
 
Something to look for, thanks
 
I have one of those 6" Russian straight edges, supposedly accurate to 8 microns. I use it to check if my oil stones are flat after flattening them on glass. I like them, personally, and I use it a few times per year. I use my Translucent Arkansas stone to hone my gravers and nothing I've found works as well as that stone for that purpose. Sometimes, an obscure thing like a straight edge is the only thing that will do, but do most guys need one? I kinda sorta don't think so.

Its sort of like machinist's solid squares; how often do you really, really need one of those? I use my Tesa square but not that often because come on, how often does something need to be within 4 microns of square? A hardened combination square is far more useful for most stuff we do.

Aukai, you can go broke in this hobby buying stuff that you want but may never use or may use only rarely. I shouldn't talk because I'm kinda' like Will; I have stuff because I want that stuff but I also realize that there are things you will need to have that you don't have yet. Once your lathe comes in, you will be spending a lot of money just getting it tooled up. You might keep that in mind because it's coming!
 
Aukai, I agree with Mike, if you are just starting out & tooling up, buy what you need, not what you want, unless you can afford to do both. It took me a while to tool up with the things I needed for what I wanted to do. Otherwise as time goes by you might end up selling stuff that you bought cause you thought you needed it. I admit a few things that I simply wanted slipped in but for the most part I stuck with what I needed. Now I'm able to buy what I want, luxury items so to speak that I don't need.

As Mike says this hobby is expensive! I've had & have other hobbies like cars, RC cars, flashlights, knives, watches, this hobby is by far the most expensive I've been into but not only that has lasted longer than others. For me I don't think it won't ever end cause I've always been a tool junkie. But at least I know I will have all my tools for as long as I live or able to use them.
 
Thank you, I actually went looking, and did not see one I wanted to spend money on.
 
I bought a 36in Veritas straightedge about 5 years ago. This was before I got into machining. I consider this a good utility straightedge which is how you phrased your initial post.

I wanted this to use to align my wood jointer tables, table saw table extensions, etc. It works well for such purposes. I love the 1/4in width so it can stand on the edge.

I have not attempted to check the rated 0.0015in tolerance for my 36in long straightedge since I do not have any reference surface of this length.

http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.aspx?p=56676&cat=1,240,45313,56676
 
I have three iGaging "precision" ground straightedges bought from a seller on this forum, supposedly new, and perhaps so. 12, 24, and 36". They are not well finished, have significant scratches, dings, and blemishes on them, and most of all are not straight. Close, but not close enough. Certainly not for what they are sold to be. They are the closest thing I have in the shop, but my recently calibrated and certified surface plate tells the tale. They are not straight, by a couple or more thou over the length of each of them. They are all also significantly warped and twisted so they do not lay down flat. I think my better framing square might match them. :eek: No more iGaging stuff for me... :( At some point I may lap them in properly on their main edge...
http://igaging.com/page77.html Mine do not meet any of those specs, which are not that great anyway, IMO. The online reviews are not so good, I learned AFTER buying them, my bad, and I know better.
 
This an expensive hobby, even when buying Chinese tooling. When I bought another rifle, my wife had a very insightful comment, "It's not the rifle, it's the other things that go with it." She was right, as they always are,;) Like scope , dies and reloading supplies. The same thing in this hobby by a factor of 10.
 
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