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Hate these but Im sick of searching (tape measures)

12/29/20       
Mark B Member

Idiotic but have been using plain jane chrome stanley's for 30 years +. We (I guess Ive programmed my guys or theyve learned through experience) dont like rubber cased tapes because they dont slip in and out of your pouch/apron easily and tend to hang. Chrome Stanley's seem to have taken a hard quality hit as of late (what else is new) and when I apprenticed in the trade Lufkin was a coveted name in measuring tools. Ordered a batch of Lufkin 16' and 25' chrome tapes and while the blades are thin/cheap the real problem is one drop from your belt/pouch to the floor and the thumb blade lock completely snaps off rendering the tape pretty much junk.

I know my old mindset of buying 25' chrome stanley's in bulk at $8+ in case quantities are a thing of the past but we've thrown 7 tapes in the dumpster now (lufkin) and the 8th just broke today (because I dropped it).

I dont know what the world is coming to (well I do know with the drive from box suppliers) that you cant find a good simple tape, but wonder what everyone else is running. We break tapes over to measure into corners constantly, some guys clip on and off belt or pouch belt, even the belt clips seem super soft to where they open up and dont hold at all.

Appreciate any input on good tapes. Will abandon the chrome option for a good blade, a good lock. Standout in a cabinet shop is not an issue.

Nasty email to Lufkin (apex) out the door this morning. Sad state of affairs.

12/29/20       #2: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Scott

I personally like the orange plastic lufkin ones myself, I prefer the smaller ones that are 16 ft long and also have metric on them.
I am not sure about today’s standards but I bought some really nice chrome bigger tape measures from Lee Valley tools 6-8 years ago, still using them today. They have a few specialty tape measures as well, some have really big numbers if your eyes aren’t as good as they once were, they have some you can write on , they have one that finds the center for you and they even have a Festool tape measure.
Maybe their quality has dropped as well?

12/29/20       #3: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
daniel

Ill take the Stanley Fatmax all day any day over all the rest of them... there are no limits with the 16' and the 25'. If you have issues with the clip they also have a holster of sorts that you clip on then the tape attaches onto that...

Other option that I use a lot also is the 16' craftsman. and they came out with a really nice lock setup on there new one. Try it out. Good luck

12/29/20       #4: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Cliff Claven

I use a 6’ plastic/fiber reinforced stick rule for 99% of my work. When I need a tape, I use the 16’ Fat Max with the auto lock. I’ve tried them all and I keep going back to the Fat Max.

12/29/20       #5: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Mark B

Can't do the Fatmax (tried them). Too expensive and the blades are made to for standout so if you break them into corners or God forbid you break them over backwards (do it multiple times a day) the blades quickly snap. At the price of those tapes that's not acceptable. They are great for framers and field work (my past life) but I didn't care for them then much less in the shop.

I too prefer the 16' tapes in the shop as we never need 25's but as mentioned the bigger blade and numbering is handy for old eyes.

I enjoy caring a folding rule when it works but it doesn't work most of the time for the work we do. No hook, taking long diagonals, etc.

12/30/20       #6: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Oggie Member

Milwaukee 16', the one that's usually around $10 at HD, don't remember the exact name of the model.

12/30/20       #7: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Jack Mazzuchelli  Member

FASTCAP cant beat price,quality

12/30/20       #8: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Peter M.

I'm with Mark on this one. I have had many different tapes over the years, most recently the fat max's and while they certainly are sturdy they are not much for cabinet making. The bending into a corner is not good as is the fact that if you take the tape and lay it alongside another say a chrome stanley the lines are like twice as thick on the fatmax tapes. Personally while the lines on the chrome are a bit harder to see as I get older I much prefer the finer lines for measuring. I think the 16 foot chrome stanleys are the way to go, anything else is a compromise.....compromise elsewhere. I will say that the fastcap tapes are reasonably good and I like the little spot you can write on in the middle. The tapes are also reasonably sturdy. If not the chrome I would get one of those again. YMMV

Pete

12/30/20       #9: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Oggie Member

I once (not so long ago) bought flat tape Fastcap and the measurements were progressively worst further down the tape, i.e. the whole tape was out of scale: the longer the distance the larger the error.

Never regained my confidence in it.

12/30/20       #10: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Bill

I have been very pleased with these. They survive a drip and the clip mechanism is very good. The ones with the plastic tip are the best.

They are pricey but you get what you pay for.

Great Tape.

12/30/20       #11: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
pat s gilbert

I like the Stanley 25'

The Fastcap tape measures don't hold up, I want to contest that some of their products are not quality products.

BTW when measuring inside measurements, in the case of the 25' Stanley you add 3" to what the tape measure shows where it enters the body of the case, it is accurate, a better method than trying to bend the tape measure.

12/30/20       #12: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Kevin B

The Lufkin quickread for me its a blue abs plastic case 25'. About 2012 I think they stopped making them, as soon as i got a sniff if that I bought about 60 and use them sparingly. They still make a version of it but they always gotta jazz up the case, so i looks dumb im too embarrassed to buy the news ones.

1/1/21       #13: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Hen Bob Member

I use the Fat max, They would come up for sale at HD for $20 for a 2pack. I just buy 10 at a time when they go on sale. But I will say since Dewalt bought them the quality has defiantly dropped.

1/1/21       #14: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
David R Sochar Member

First, review why it is you drop these so frequently. Something wrong with the hands? Arthritis? Consider lining the pouch with Stickum or similar product.
Secondly, install a plywood floor on sleepers so the tapes will bounce better.
Third, outsource all your wood parts so you do not have measure so much.
Fourth, convert the entire shop to digital readouts so you do not need to carry a tape.
Fifth, retire. It ain't getting any better my friend.

1/1/21       #15: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Peter Rawlings

I went through similar search a few years ago. Here's where I landed. Sometimes hard to find, I'll order a few at a time and scatter around shop.
Bending into corners isn't as easy as some more limp tapes, but Bosch GLM 50 has taken over that duty handily.

Stanley

1/1/21       #16: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Mark B Member

Thanks for your reply David,

Sadly my inherent cynicism finds your reply both truthfully insightful and yet sad.

Dropping a tape occasionally is just what it is. Stretched out on a long laminate top to layout bridging and it flops over and falls on the floor. Hooked on your belt or pocket when you are just out for a quick measure and dont have your pouch on and you crouch down to pick up a sheet and your ever increasing muffin top overwhelms the lack of spring in the now no-springy belt clips and pops the tape off your belt un-bending the ever less springy belt clip permanently, then of course the new people in the shop who, no matter how much I want to delude myself that I am some phenom and learned all the nuances that help me through my day the nanosecond I exited the birth canal, have to learn things just as I did even with my never ending butter slathered tutelage.

Applying "sticky stuff" to the tape or the pouch is why we/I dont like rubber cased tapes. They dont drop into the pouch and often times hang right up at the top of the pouch/apron making them want to fall out or have to be fidgeted with. I supposed I could go the old marine route and if you drop your gun you get it glued to your hands but that has some issues of its own.

Installing plywood on sleepers seems a costly endeavor deal with the ever cheapening of products. In 30 years in the general contracting world I couldnt begin to count the times I watch a tape (often my own) bounce its way down a multi story roof to depart the edge and fall all the way to the ground only to be picked up by the ground man and lobbed back up to me to immediately go back into service. In the never ending drive to the bottom of the sludge layer at the bottom of the pickle barrel they have now wrung every thousandth of a cent of plastic, metal, paint, and decal thickness, out of these items to feed profit. Id like to investigate other options for tape measures before I resort to purging the entire shop of all tools, shutting down for a week or two, installing sleepers and a ply deck, and dealing with its shortcomings to boot.

Outsourcing would be a viable option if it were a viable option and I would surely consider it.

DRO's everywhere (due in part to a lot of your very wise and direct comments here) are inplace everywhere but a couple that are still in the process. "Digital calipers everywhere" are in place. DRO's on all but the couple machines are in place. Still doesnt mean checking a long diagonal or pulling out a tape a bunch of times a day will be eliminated but agreed. Reducing tapes and pulling pencils out of aprons to as close to zero as possible equals speed, accuracy, and profit. Daily mantra for me.

Last, Retirement is something not in my near future unless the Powerball ticket I never buy finally hits big so I have to continually hope I can find a tape measure something like the chrome stanley's I bought for the last 30 years. As stated... Dewalt pretty much destroys everything it comes in contact with.. so the search continues.

I literally just ordered a bunch of Hultafors pencils and on recommendation in this post am looking into their tape's. Even if they live in the apron 99.9% of their life I'd rather buy a decent one.

1/1/21       #17: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Bill

Interesting the tape on this site is made by the company I suggested based on its design.

Hultafors / Fisco Tape

1/1/21       #18: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
pat s gilbert

Peter

Is the Bosch GLM 50 accurate enough, I tried one of the Bosch laser tapes out about 5 years ago and had to take it back because the accuracy just wasn't there.

Have they improved?

1/1/21       #19: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Peter Rawlings Member

Dunno if they've improved, mines about 3-4 years old and it's surprisingly accurate to 32nds. My go-to for crown in rooms, trim, cab interiors, etc. Any place I need an inside measurement and there's a opposing face to reflect off of. I've found it handy for all sorts of other things. Recently shot top & btm of closet jambs to check parallelism and bifold fit. Easier than a tape with good holdout. I guess I'm a fan. Maybe I got a good one...

1/4/21       #20: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Adam

I bought one of these when they first came out in the early 2000’s. Each of my guys and friends received them as gifts.

I’ve had two in the last almost 20 years. Must have saved atleast a 100hrs not looking for my tape or pencil.

I used to be a Stanley chrome 16 then switched to Lufkin chrome 16. Currently, I use the Stanley Tylon 16 or 5m or combo depending on my mood or project.

Sidekick

1/9/21       #21: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
Guinea Member

This will likely catch more flames than a Maori fire eater, but it's true. After 40+ years of trying probably every brand of rule and tape out there, I settled several years back on the 25' Pittsburgh (Harbor Freight's house brand). The 1" blade is easy to read, they're accurate enough for virtually any woodworking application (the CNC does most of the heavy lifting anyway), and at $3.99 on sale, they're disposable. That last point is important to me because in my Charlie Brown world, any dropped tape will land perfectly on its hook, rendering it useless!

It all comes down to what works for you and best fits your comfort level, etc. As a young man I got caught up in what I can only call "tape brand snobbery," but finally got that monkey off my back. Also I agree with Oggie and Pat about the Fastcap versions. They neither hold up well nor "measure up" to the marketing hype and price tag. 60 years ago, my grandpa taught me a man can't expect to do carpentry without a folding rule -- he would probably say the same thing today.

1/9/21       #22: Hate these but Im sick of searching ...
pat s gilbert

The German agree with your grandfather

I usually just bend the hook back to 90°


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