Best Combination Square Under $100?

[Matt Hagens]

I am looking to buy a new 12" 4R combination square and would like to keep the cost under $100. I've consider the PEC and Benchmark. Any opinions on these brands or other brands?

[Mike Monroe]

Don't know if you have access to flea markets in your location but I've picked up lightly used Starrett and Mitutoyo combination squares for way less than $100 at a local flea market. I have both with 18" rules. Flea markets are a great place to pick up tools if you know what you're looking for.

[Matt Hagens]

Good idea Mike. Also estate sales. I'll look into that.

[Jason Evans]

I would spend the extra money on the Starrett. A good square is one of the foundations of woodworking. Knowing it is square is crucial. This is a tool you buy once and keep it for a long time, so why be frugal here. Woodworking is a really expensive thing saving a bit on something this important seems strange to me.

I tried a PEC square and it wasn’t square. Returned it tried another, not square either. I’ve tried quite a few, really not worth it to me.

[Matt Hagens]

Appreciate the advice Jason. I'm still fairly new, so just trying to understand where to spend money and where to save a little. Obviously knowing your square is square and the measurements are accurate is key to any project.

[Keegan Shields]

I bought a PEC blem from Taylor Toolworks and it works great! Also a 6" double square. Both nice quality.

[ChrisA Edwards]

A good quality square is a tool that will get a lot of use and accuracy counts with this tool.

Don't scrimp on the quality here. Go Starrett.

[Jason Evans]

Aside from checking wood, as you gather more tools, which will happen if you like woodworking, you will need to be checking alignments for fences, sleds, jigs etc. without a good square you’re lost. I’d venture to say a square you can count on is THE MOST valuable tool in your shop. In 5 years will you miss the extra $40, probably not, but the Starrett will still be square.

[andrew whicker]

I always took combo squares as 'slightly out of square,' and used them as such. Then again, I don't think that having my square tell me 12" at 90 degrees when it's really 12.015" at 90.1 degrees is really a big deal. I'm going to mark it with a mechanical pencil held at some angle then I'm going to take the pencil mark and use a fence and cutting tool (or similar) to get as close to that mark as possible.

In other words, I personally choose high quality tools over super high quality measuring devices. Assuming the OP has to make a trade off, which may not be the case. I also find that using things like "story sticks" and templates and doing all my repetitive cuts at once is really the difference between high quality vs low quality and I'm not sure that a super accurate vs pretty darn accurate initial measurement would have changed the end result for me.

my .02 for what's worth: yes, spend less than $100 and yes, flea markets are the best.

edit: and that's a fair point someone made about checking the accuracy of your tools. That's definitely important. I do try to have some quality measuring devices for that (machinist square, straight edge, level, etc.). I don't put a combo square in that category myself. To each their own.

[Matt Hagens]

I was looking at those - they are out of stock of the blem ones.

[Mark e Kessler]

I am looking to buy a new 12" 4R combination square and would like to keep the cost under $100. I've consider the PEC and Benchmark. Any opinions on these brands or other brands?

Forget PEC, I know you said under $10 but buy a Starrett, currently $114 on Amazon and have seen it under $100.

[Tom M King]

I have a number of Starrett combination squares of different sizes in shops, but the one that stays in my toolbelt when I have it on is a 20 year old Craftsman with a stainless steel blade. I remember trying every one hanging on the peg in the Sears store the day I selected that one. It was the only one that locked easily, and securely. It's still good. The stainless blade is a good thing.

[Matt Hagens]

Thanks Andrew - appreciate the thoughtful comment. Very good point about relative measurements once you have the initial measurement. I really looking for something middle of the road thought that I could find that for around $50-100. Compared to my HD combo square that I bought for $12, that will be a nice upgrade.

I do need to get a reference tool that I know is dead on, so maybe I should pick up a machinist square first.

Woodworking isn't that exact (like machining)....that's what a little glue/sawdust mixture is for :)

[Mike Kees]

Matt like others have already said the Starret is the one to buy. It will last and stay accurate, also as you mentioned just starting out this will be a tool you never have to upgrade. Brown & Sharp is another old brand that is equal to a Starret ,I have a 6'' one that I found on the auction site.

[Mark e Kessler]

Matt like others have already said the Starret is the one to buy. It will last and stay accurate, also as you mentioned just starting out this will be a tool you never have to upgrade. Brown & Sharp is another old brand that is equal to a Starret ,I have a 6'' one that I found on the auction site.


This is true, 2 of Starretts I bought (6” and 12”) I bought in 1991 for school are still in use today , the 6” needs a tune up as i have a nasty habit of taking the blade out/in which probably contributed to wearing the seat, but it’s not much, I can’t even guess how much I have built using that 6” but it has always been in my pocket/apron when I build - used in school professionally for many years and now hobby, i think i will update my will to be buried with it.

The 12” is still dead square.

@ $

[Matt Hagens]

I think I'll bit the bullet and buy a Starrett. Now which one? Steel or Cast Iron? Satin or Regular? My eyes aren't the best, so whichever is easiest to see.

[Mark e Kessler]

I think I'll bit the bullet and buy a Starrett. Now which one? Steel or Cast Iron? Satin or Regular? My eyes aren't the best, so whichever is easiest to see.


Good choice, you will be happy in the long run. I would do satin, easier on the eyes. I would imagine the steel would be more durable (thats what i have had for 30yrs) but the cast is probably pretty durable as well - hopefully someone else can share their experience/knowledge about the cast, i do have a cast that I bought a few years back to dedicate to the 24” rule and know issues, seems to be machined just as well as the steel the only difference I notice is the finish.

[ChrisA Edwards]

I have the Satin, easier to read than the normal stainless steel. You don't need to move them around to get the light just right to read them.

[mike stenson]

Another satin recommendation. There really is no comparison.

[Jason Evans]

Satin with a hardened head. Hardened steel is amazing. It will stay square pretty much forever. Cast iron, not so much it is soft

Keep some kind of oil on it, very light amount. Camellia oil was what I found to be recommended years ago when I bought mine. There may be better choices but I went with it because it’s natural and I don’t want to handle some kind of synthetic stuff all the time.

[Frederick Skelly]

A buddy of mine always says "It only costs a little more to go First Class."
You can buy a Starrett 12" combo square for only $17 more than your budget, if you can swing it. Here's a link (https://www.amazon.com/Starrett-C11H-12-4R-Combination-Square-Head/dp/B00C3J3G3E/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=28O4OPCZURC2L&keywords=starrett+12+combination+square&qid=1641945826&sprefix=Starrett+12%22+comb%2Caps%2C1369&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExOFpaOFRXODlZOUJRJ mVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNzM5NjgxMktMTVVFQ0tQSUROWCZlbmN yeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwODk1Njc2MjFINUYxSzBXS0k5QyZ3aWRnZ XROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05 vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=). I have one and love it.

Hope it helps.

[Mark e Kessler]

Here are the 4 that i use the most, the 4” and the 6” are the hardened steel, not in love with the double square but that size comes in handy also the hook rule is awesome and used all the time, would like to get the 6” hook in mm. Also the 6” has the satin finish (but is newer and not the same age. The 12” rule is original so that’s what the non satin looks like after 30 yrs of hard use. The one hanging up on the outside is the cast maybe 2 years old.

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[Keegan Shields]

I like premium tools. The PEC blem combo square feels and looks exactly the same as the Starretts I’ve handled. If you need a 100% square angle, I would use an actual square that doesn’t move. My 6” steel Woodpeckers square is my most used square and has handy graduation for layout. Great size for fence and blade adjustment as well. The 4” or 6” double squares are great sizes as well.

I thought I read somewhere that PEC actually manufactures Starrett combo squares, which I would believe after seeing their similarities side by side.

[Greg Quenneville]

Like the others have mentioned: Starrett. Or Brown & Sharpe, or Lufkin. Probably rare as hen's teeth in the US, but Moore & Wright (UK) made a nice combination set too. I have a Sears Craftsman one that I got for Christmas in 1970 that I still use, but I think that particular ship might have sailed.

Just as an opinion, I used to think that “pretty close” was good enough for woodworking. I don’t think that anymore. I mostly use machinist’s tools in the workshop because I add enough inaccuracies without starting off badly.

[Curt Harms]

Harry Epstein is a go-to for blemished PEC squares and other tools. they have 4 piece 12" sets for $50 - $75. If you want a standard to check squares against, consider a good plastic drafting triangle. Those things are supposed to be really square. I'm pleasantly surprised by the Empire brand combo squares from Home Depot. I very much doubt they're as durable as Starrett or Brown & Sharpe but for the $ they seem very good and won't be painful to replace if necessary. I'm pretty sure they're made in the U.S.A.

[Jim Becker]

I was fortunate to find some Starrett devices years ago used and they serve me well. I did get replacement rules for them from Lee Valley that have metric markings when I went in that direction a few years ago. The 12" version was an identical fit; the 6" tee version isn't a perfect fit but works for me. I believe Lee Valley has some nice equivalent measuring tools for a reasonable price, but I did not look to be sure.

[mike stenson]

I have Starrett, Mitutoyo, and PEC. I really don't trust any of them for machinist level squareness. They move. For that kind of accuracy, I prefer machinist squares. With that said, they're all about equal for me, except that my PEC double square doesn't lock nearly as well as my Starrett, so I have to take care when tightening it. In the end, it's a minor quibble.

[Mike Monroe]

I thought of one other option for you, the Patrick Leach Tool List. There's this in the January 2022 list, along with some other combination ruler offerings.

MS38 New old stock Union Tool Co. 12" combination square with
three heads; not to be confused with the Union planes club,
this firm was located in Orange, MA and was bought by Millers
Falls, it later relocated; in its original box, it has all
the features of the more costly Starrett, Union stuff was
normally the alternative brand (to Starrett) around here
were machinists formally outnumbered black flies and
mosquitoes; dried protective coating remains, a fine worker;
top:
http://www.supertool.com/forsale/jan/t43.jpg $75.00

[Dave Yoakum]

I've got the PEC blem 12" combo square and 6" double square. Nothing bad to say about them.