Digital Angle Finder Restocked at Lee Valley

[Jeff Wright]

The digital angle finder that sold out at Veritas/Lee Valley a few months ago is now in stock. I just ordered mine. See:

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2%20%20&cat=1,51&p=58801

[Don Bullock]

I was fortunate to get one of those when they offered it a few months ago. It's amazing how many different uses I've found for it that aren't even related to woodworking. It's a handy tool.

I'm in no way connected with Lee Valley or the company that makes this tool.

[Bruce Benjamin]

The digital angle finder that sold out at Veritas/Lee Valley a few months ago is now in stock. I just ordered mine. See:

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2%20%20&cat=1,51&p=58801

Very interesting...What appears to be nearly identical at Harbor Freight, http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=96874 costs twice as much. You don't see that every day. The only difference I can see is that the Lee Valley version has 4 black screws around the display where the HF version has only 2. Other than that they look identical. But the HF version doesn't list the guaranteed accuracy.

Speaking of accuracy, .2 degrees is half of what the Beall and Wixey angle gauges claim for their accuracy. (.1 degree). Has anyone who has one been able to check for accuracy? $20 is pretty inexpensive I'm not sure I'd be happy if one I got was actually off by .2 degrees. .2 degrees would certainly show up if I were setting a saw blade to 45 degrees for a bevel. I've checked both the Beall gauge I have and the Wixey gauge I sent back and both appeared to be dead on accurate, or at least as close as I could tell using a few different methods. Hopefully the Lee valley unit is dead on accurate too. I realize they are different tools but they both can be used for a lot of the same measurements.

Bruce

[Mike Henderson]

You guys convinced me to order one. I'll see how it works out.

Mike

[Doug Shepard]

I never need much of a reason for ordering stuff from LV but I've got a Wixey angle guage and I'm trying to think if there's a significant use for this that the Wixey couldn't do?? I'm not coming up with much. Is there a reason I'd want both?

[Chris Friesen]

Has anyone who has one been able to check for accuracy?

You can re-zero the device if desired. I set mine on my tablesaw and it read zero when closed and 180 when open, and zero when closed again. Fairly repeatable measurements. For $20, hard to go wrong.

[Bruce Benjamin]

You can re-zero the device if desired. I set mine on my tablesaw and it read zero when closed and 180 when open, and zero when closed again. Fairly repeatable measurements. For $20, hard to go wrong.

Well, if my math is correct there are about 179 other degree points between the two extremes of 0 and 180.;) While it is encouraging that it actually reads zero and 180 when it should it might not read 57.05 degrees when it should. That was what I was hoping to find out.

Whether it costs $20 or $200, if it isn't accurate it isn't worth even $2.00 to me. I don't know about you but I can't afford to burn $20 on something that's worthless.

Last year I was at my local Harbor Freight and bought another fairly different version of the gauge in question. (They sell two types) I brought it home and tested it against my engineer squares and by doing the same 0/180 test you did. Nope, it was a piece of crap. I think I paid about $20 for it with a coupon. I'd say I went wrong with that one and I returned it the same day.

I'm not saying I expect the LV gauge or the virtually identically HF version to be junk. I'm asking if anyone has tested it to see if it's more accurate than the .2 degrees they claim or if they are finding it is off by about .2 degrees. If it's off by that much I don't need it. Heck, I probably don't need it anyway but if it's truly accurate and only $20 then I can add it to my growing collection of tools that I don't really need but were a great buy.;):D

Bruce

[Jeff Wright]

I have the Beall Tilt Box, a Wixley knock-off, and find it inadequate to set my table saw accurately. Yes, I did zero it out first! I tested it by setting the blade at 90 degrees and cutting a piece of wood and rejoining the two pieces back together and found they did not align straight. I lost confidence in the tool since then and haven't used it since. I expect the LV tool to arrive later this week.

[Jerome Hanby]

Thanks for the heads up, I just ordered one.

[Chris Padilla]

Does it have a level bubble built in?

[Dave Lehnert]

http://www.leevalley.com/images/item/woodworking/markmeasure/99w6305s1.jpgThey posted it Friday night. I placed an order and it shipped out from Lee Valley today.
This purchase I feel confident about. 1) It's from Lee Valley 2) If Lee Valley had any problems with the first batch they would never had offered it again.
I once ordered a Tack hammer from them. It was on back order at the time. In a few days they sent me an e-mail saying They received there shipment but felt the hammers were not up to there standards and would not ship them out. Now that is first rate customer service.

[Bruce Benjamin]

I have the Beall Tilt Box, a Wixley knock-off, and find it inadequate to set my table saw accurately. Yes, I did zero it out first! I tested it by setting the blade at 90 degrees and cutting a piece of wood and rejoining the two pieces back together and found they did not align straight. I lost confidence in the tool since then and haven't used it since. I expect the LV tool to arrive later this week.

Jeff, you're wrong about the Beall being a Wixey knock-off. It's the original. It works on a completely different principle. I don't understand how the Beall works exactly but it doesn't use any moving parts to determine the angle. The Wixey does. The Beall is all electronic. Very different so your claim is wrong.

According to my conversations with J.R. Beall, he originally developed the version that Wixey uses and contracted with a company in China to build it. He wasn't happy with it and decided to redesign it. The Chinese company kept his design, (not with his permission) and started manufacturing them and selling them to whom ever would buy them. Wixey was the first to buy them apparently. He then finally got his current design finished and released it to the public. He spoke of a law suit against Wixey but at the time I was talking with him the suit wasn't finished. I exchanged emails with Wixey and he confirmed that he didn't have anything to do with the design and had bought it from a Chinese company. I don't have anyway of confirming Beall's story but I believe it to be true. He seems like a very decent and honest man.

Regarding your troubles with the Beall, it's either operator error or your's has a defect. Mine has been perfect. It is more sensitive to movement than the Wixey so it takes a little practice to get accurate results. The first unit I got was from the very first batch and the buttons were too stiff. It made it difficult to push the zero button and hold it steady. I talked to J.R. Beall about it and he immediately sent me out another one. I hadn't even returned the first one yet. The second one was from a second batch with softer buttons and it works much better. It still took me a few tries to get it right but since then I have had zero problems getting it to work perfectly. You have to hold it very steady when you zero it. But it's not difficult at all.

I wrote a detailed review on SMC and another WW forum comparing the, (second) Beall to the Wixey. I had both brands. They're both good units but overall I liked the Beall best. I returned the Wixey. If I had never came across the Beall Tilt Box I would've been perfectly happy with the Wixey. But after comparing the two side by side, (as carefully as I could) I found that while they both seemed to be equal in accuracy the Beall had some features that I liked better and it was a little more precise.

The level of customer service I received from Beall was outstanding. Everyone I spoke to was very friendly and helpful and J.R. Beall even called me when he heard I was having a problem. I don't know where you bought your Beall or when you bought it but if you called Beall it wouldn't surprise me if they offered to exchange the unit you have for a new one and paid for the return shipping too. You should at least give them a chance, (and get your facts straight;):D) before you give up on them.:)

Bruce

[Jeff Wright]

Jeff, you're wrong about the Beall being a Wixey knock-off. It's the original. It works on a completely different principle.

Bruce, I'm no engineer or expert on these tools. Knock-off may not have been the best wording. My intent was that the Beale is a similar tools to the Wixey in its use IN A GENERAL SENSE. I doubt any issues I had were user caused. I am one of few folks who read directions, manuals and the like and my attention to detail can usually put most people to sleep. Maybe I will give it another try.

[Alan Schaffter]

Very interesting...What appears to be nearly identical at Harbor Freight, http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=96874 costs twice as much. You don't see that every day. The only difference I can see is that the Lee Valley version has 4 black screws around the display where the HF version has only 2. Other than that they look identical. But the HF version doesn't list the guaranteed accuracy.

Speaking of accuracy, .2 degrees is half of what the Beall and Wixey angle gauges claim for their accuracy. (.1 degree). Has anyone who has one been able to check for accuracy? $20 is pretty inexpensive I'm not sure I'd be happy if one I got was actually off by .2 degrees. .2 degrees would certainly show up if I were setting a saw blade to 45 degrees for a bevel. I've checked both the Beall gauge I have and the Wixey gauge I sent back and both appeared to be dead on accurate, or at least as close as I could tell using a few different methods. Hopefully the Lee valley unit is dead on accurate too. I realize they are different tools but they both can be used for a lot of the same measurements.

Bruce

The new Wixey protractor is supposedly accurate to .1 also, but a bit more pricey.

http://www.wixey.com/digitalprotractor/images/8inch_01.jpg

[Chris Friesen]

Well, if my math is correct there are about 179 other degree points between the two extremes of 0 and 180.;) While it is encouraging that it actually reads zero and 180 when it should it might not read 57.05 degrees when it should. That was what I was hoping to find out.


Just for you, I went and tested mine against a Staedtler 30/60/90 drafting triangle. It read within 0.05 degrees of the expected values. No guarantees that it's accurate at the ~3600 angles I didn't test. :)

[Bruce Benjamin]

Just for you, I went and tested mine against a Staedtler 30/60/90 drafting triangle. It read within 0.05 degrees of the expected values. No guarantees that it's accurate at the ~3600 angles I didn't test. :)

Just for me??? Aw Shucks! ;) Thanks for that. That sounds pretty darned good to me. Now I just have to decide how bad I want something I don't need. As I said before, I have plenty of tools I don't really need just because they were such a great buy. I use my Beall Tilt Box to set the angle on my TS blade and set the fence on my jointer. I've used it to set the bevel on my RAS and my CMS. I could use the LV gauge to set the miter gauge but it's an Incra 1000se and it's always been completely reliable. It could be used to set the angle of my CMS and RAS. Actually, I rarely do anything but straight cuts on either my CMS or RAS but it's good to know I could use it for that.:D What else? Checking angles when assembling projects or trying to match another project. I can sit and play with it while watching TV on the couch. :rolleyes: I'm sure I can come up with something else.:cool:

Bruce

[Jeff Wright]

Actually, I rarely do anything but straight cuts on either my CMS or RAS but it's good to know I could use it for that.:D What else?
Bruce

How about measure for crown molding corners (inside and out), or corners of basemolding.

[Bruce Benjamin]

How about measure for crown molding corners (inside and out), or corners of basemolding.

Please...PLEASE!...No more crown moldings or baseboards!!!:eek:

Yes, it would work quite well for that but my goal is not to have to do either of those again. Or at least not on a house. For furniture though I don't mind. But hopefully the box to which it's being attached is already perfectly square. Well, hopefully anyway.:o

Bruce

[Spencer Hochstetler]

I usually don't have a need for knowing an absolute angle of things so I use a common bevel gauge. For setting a table saw blade angle, the built-in gauge gets me in the ballpark and then I test/cut-to-fit. How you do guys use these things?

[Bruce Benjamin]

I usually don't have a need for knowing an absolute angle of things so I use a common bevel gauge. For setting a table saw blade angle, the built-in gauge gets me in the ballpark and then I test/cut-to-fit. How you do guys use these things?

I attach the Beall Tilt Box to the side of my blade, crank the handle until it reads the angle I need. That's nearly always 45 degrees but I have done an occasional odd angle. Or, I attach it to my jointer fence and adjust it until it's square to the tables. It's faster and easier than trial and error for me.

Bruce

[Bob Feeser]

The Bosch Digital Protractor is an excellent example of what these do, but the price is quite a bit higher. I have checked the Bosch and it truly is accurate. To get a perspective, it reads out in tenths of a degree. Considering that there are 360 degrees in a circle, and with tenths of a degree, that means you have 3600 dots in a circle, no matter how small the circle. It it is accurate enough to give you a true 90.0, or 180.0 for example, then it is accurate to something greater then a tenth of a degree. So looking into 36,000 dots in a circle gets kind of crazy.
So for the Lee Valley tool, an accuracy of within 0.2 is pretty darn accurate, especially considering it is a $20 tool.
I use the Bosch when I need to get an accurate setting for something other than a 45 or 90. The Starret gauge is easier to use for that. The Bosch is a larger unit. It also has a built in crown molding calculator. You lay the protractor up against the back of your crown molding to get the angle of where it lays on the wall, then press the button, and then take the protractor over to the wall, and measure the angle of the wall. (They are rarely a true 90) then press the button again, and it gives you the miter setting, and press it again, and it gives you the bevel setting. You set your miter saws miter and bevel setting, laying your crown molding FLAT on the miter saw and cut perfect crowns every time. (As long as the miter saw is accurate. )
I am tempted to get one of these because of how reasonable the price is but I have the Bosch, and a Starrett Jobsite protractor that is within a few tenths of a degree in accuracy, and holds an angle well when you want to place it up to some work, then transfer that angle to a piece of wood, but believe me for 20 bucks I am tempted.

[John Keeton]

Just when I had reached that equilibrium point of thinking I didn't need any more tools for awhile!! You guys remind me of the quote "Don't tempt me - I can resist anything but temptation."

Did notice that the instructions have certain working limitations. Working temperature: +5°C ~ + 45°C and Working humidity: < 85%RH. The temp range wouldn't present any issues, but in our summer weather, the humidity limit may be an issue at times. Any thoughts or has anyone had experience with high humidities and the effect, if any?

[Bob Slater]

I have a Bosch digital angle gauge (one of my fav tools) and bought the Lee Valley one a few months ago to get into tighter spaces. While the build quality seems like you get what you pay for, it was spot on with the Bosch in terms of accuracy. (Assuming the Bosch is accurate). Good use of $20 if you ask me.

[Mick Zelaska]

I went on line at LV to get one of these things for $20 and somehow I ended up with $200 of stuff in my cart.

[Chris Padilla]

I went on line at LV to get one of these things for $20 and somehow I ended up with $200 of stuff in my cart.

Yeah, I can't ever figure that one out because it happens to me with each order from LV....

[Rick Levine]

Yeah, I can't ever figure that one out because it happens to me with each order from LV....

You guys should be smart like me. I just responded to their email ad and just spent the $20 plus shipping for the gauge. ;)

[Jerome Hanby]

Got mine in from Lee valley. Looks like a decent tool and appears to be accurate. Don't think you can beat it for $20. Unexpected bonus are the two beautiful catalogs they included!

[James White]

Does anyone have a free shipping code?

James

[Mike Henderson]

Does anyone have a free shipping code?

James
I wish! Does LV ever give free shipping?

Mike

[Billy Dodd]

Mick,
Mine only cost me $60. What a deal.

[Larry Rupert]

Great guys, now there goes some more of my money in a few minutes....

:D

Larry

[fRED mCnEILL]

I picked mine up a week or so ago.

But interesting, when I checked a monht or so ago to see when they were coming in the guy told me that they had 10,000 on order. I live in Canada so I presume the 10000 was for the Canadian division. If so. that is a BIG order.

Fred Mc.

[jay hanks]

"Very interesting...What appears to be nearly identical at Harbor Freight"

For the same money I will take Lee Valley quality over Harbor Freight quality any day. Mine was 27.00 to my door, still waiting but I bet it will not be long.

[Bruce Benjamin]

"Very interesting...What appears to be nearly identical at Harbor Freight"

For the same money I will take Lee Valley quality over Harbor Freight quality any day. Mine was 27.00 to my door, still waiting but I bet it will not be long.

You missed my point. My point was that you don't very often see identical items sold elsewhere for half the price of Harbor Freight. It's usually the other way around.

Considering how they appear identical with the exception of 2 screws I'll bet they came off of the same assembly line. If my local HF had one of these in stock and the price was the same I'd have bought it from HF. If I buy something I don't like from HF I can drive 2 or 3 miles and easily return or exchange it. The same can't be said for Lee Valley. All that being said, I too am waiting for my Lee Valley gauge. It should be here on Thursday.

Bruce