Been using the same 60-year-old bevel protractor since 1998

My old journeyman gave me a beat up Starrett bevel protractor when I started out. Everyone on my crew now uses digital angle finders from Amazon. Tried one last week on a boiler header job in Gary. Took me twice as long because I kept second guessing the readout. The old tool never needs batteries and I can feel the angle by hand. Why fix what isn't broken? Anyone else stick with older measuring tools?

3 comments

3 Comments

miles_young5927d ago

Read somewhere that old machinists could read a tenth of a thousandth just by the feel of a mic. That stuck with me because it's not just about the accuracy of the tool, it's about how well you know it. Digital stuff gives you a number that looks precise but doesn't tell you if you've got the angle set right on a complex piece. The old tools need you to use your head and your hands, not just your eyes. My buddy tried a digital protractor on a pipe fitting and it kept resetting every time he bumped it, drove him nuts. The old Starrett just sits there and does its job, no glitch screens or flat batteries.

grace_campbell26d ago

My old Vernier calipers never let me down, just took a little patience and a good eye.

blair_martin27d ago

Back in the day my old man had a set of calipers he swore by from his Navy days in the 60s. They were dented and the markings were half worn off but he could eyeball a measurement within a hair. I borrowed a digital caliper from a buddy once and spent ten minutes trying to figure out why it kept flashing at me.