After only 20 years I learned how to use a speed square

[Derek Cohen]

I bought the Delve square on an impulse, and can honestly say that it is one of the few WP tools I use everyday. It is a handy little square. Of course when I bought it, it was only around $40. Igaging makes a square that is similar in I believe 4" and 7" versions that are handy too. I bought the 7" one and use it often. They are quite a bit less expensive than the WP's.

I like the idea of the drilled holes for laying out parallel lines but, outside of its use as a square, I do not feel that the remainder is accurate enough for cabinet work. I would rather use a dedicated protractor for setting angles. I prefer metric to imperial, and WP do not make these (anything?) in metric.

Lastly, WP missed an opportunity with the offset blade (one side is 1/4” and the other is 3/8”) - this is a great idea of theirs, but the other side could be 1” instead. Why? When marking a common 1/4” mortice or tenon, one should only mark from a reference edge and not (as they do in their video) mark from both sides if a 3/4” thick board. That is thinking like a machinist and not a woodworker.

I have a cheap aluminium 6”/150mm speed square, no doubt from China, nicely made but inaccurate. I took a little time to file it, and now it is spot on. Useful, but in a workshop I mostly grab a Starrett 150mm double square.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Edwin Santos]

Lastly, WP missed an opportunity with the offset blade (one side is 1/4” and the other is 3/8”) - this is a great idea of theirs, but the other side could be 1” instead. Why? When marking a common 1/4” mortice or tenon, one should only mark from a reference edge and not (as they do in their video) mark from both sides if a 3/4” thick board. That is thinking like a machinist and not a woodworker.


Regards from Perth

Derek

Hello Derek,
You have a good point about the advantages of working off a single reference surface.
But I don't understand why you would want the the other side of the foot to be 1" in your example. If you were marking a 1/4" mortice on a 3/4" workpiece, wouldn't you want one side of the foot to be 1/4" and the other side to be 1/2"? Or am I missing something?

[Derek Cohen]

Edwin, the 1" other side should read 1/2".

Mark 1/4" from the reference side (the height of the one leg). Flip the square and mark 1/2" from the other leg. Difference equals 1/4" mortice/tenon.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Jason Roehl]

One of the handiest uses of a speed square is to hold it on a 2x4 as a saw guide when making a cut with a worm-drive circular saw. There is a huge difference in the stability of a house’s framing between those with studs that were cut to a line, and those with studs cut with a guide.

[Jim Becker]

One of the handiest uses of a speed square is to hold it on a 2x4 as a saw guide when making a cut with a worm-drive circular saw. There is a huge difference in the stability of a house’s framing between those with studs that were cut to a line, and those with studs cut with a guide.

Funny you should mention that...I'm doing repairs on the shed in our backyard and I made significant use of my speed square yesterday for exactly this purpose. The speed square plus a stick and a couple of clamps were the necessary tools for the job; the latter because I don't have power out there and had no desire to use a very long extension cord that would have been needed for my "fancy" tools.