Old N Rusty Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 In flea market in New York City, i found a stainless steel folding ruler, it is a six foot, ruler with a brass fold down end, on the brass is the patent mark and date 1916. Other marks are, # 1206 and "lufkin rule co. Saginaw Mich. made in USA. A blacksmith ruler? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 When a blacksmith uses it, YES. (grin). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fciron Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 The ones I've seen that were marketed with the label "Blacksmith Rules" where 2 foot brass rules with one fold and an integral hook on the end. Still sounds like a good find. I'd snatch up on any metal folding rule with a hook. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fe-Wood Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 sounds like a masons rule. Like Glen said, if a blacksmith uses it then.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimw Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 it is absolutely a blacksmith ruler..............I have dozens of them that I have been accumulating over the years............bill gichner used to sell them for fifty bucks apiece! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bentiron1946 Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 If a blacksmith uses it of course it's a blacksmith's tool! I enjoy looking through eBay once in awhile but nearly always gag a little at the stuff they have listed as being blacksmith tools. They will have a boiler scaling hammer listed as a blacksmiths straight/cross peen hammer or welders chipping hammer as a blacksmith made prospecting pick. These folk that sell stuff on eBay have sure got the imagination. They will sell an obvious rock hammer as blacksmith sledge hammer and list an obvious blacksmith handled tool as a rock working hammer. And it gets even worse when you get to hammers used by jewelers and silversmiths. If they wanted to get it right all they would need to do was open an on line tool catalog but I guess it's more fun to be wrong. <_< Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbruce Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 I bought this Lufkin ruler at the western states conference around 1988. It was new at the time. There was someone selling them for around $35, and said they were the last of the Mohegains............Definatly a smiths ruler, it has a circle guage ( I rarely use it) on one side......don't know what I'd do without it when I'm doing layouts.............mb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spears Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 The "Lufkin" name might only be found on things like 25' yo yo style tape measures these days, but in the "Made in USA" days, their micrometers, depth mics, rulers, etc were every bit as good as Leroy Starrett Co. You not only have a relic, but a fine instrument made by hard working quality minded people who built things that hardly wear out. Many Lufkin instruments don't die, only the owners. Nice find! Spears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old N Rusty Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 Thanks for the info guys, it is a tool that i will never sell, and will treasure. I have a wife that loves to bring home from garage sales things she thinks i will like. Saturday i became the owner of ANOTHER Stilson pipe 24" pipe wrench. A tool that they dont make anymore because they never broke and are still as good as the day it was made. It was funny when the fellow she bought TWO chain falls from said"I never expected a lady to buy them!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 Well if you really want to know what *they* considered it to be then you will need to dig up some old catalogs and see what they listed it as. I've had some discussions with people who have totally mislabeled items on various sales sites: their basic belief seems to be that they have no need to know what they are selling and it's perfectly legit to sell things under false pretenses---something that could get a regular store a visit from the states attorney general and a false advertising suit... I particularly liked the one who told me in an e-mail that they were homebound and so couldn't do any research on the items they were selling on-line---if they only had had access to a computer and the internet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old N Rusty Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 The wife has brought home some monkey wrenches, some large ones. all called a" pipe wrench", we laff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 The rule in my marriage is that we do not buy things related to our crafts for each other---what we do is to notify the other when we have found something and let them decide if they want it or not. I cheat on this quite a bit as I know a lot more about my wife's craft than she knows about mine and so can make a good guess at times. This rule is to avoid having one's spouse spend our limited money buying you something you DON'T want when with that money you could have bought something you had really been wanting. Her craft is Spinning and I once even bought her a spinning wheel without her input! Unfortunately she liked it so much I then had to transport it back to the USA from Germany when my business trip was over... We're a Steel---Wool family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CurlyGeorge Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 Great pun, Thomas!! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Turley Posted April 21, 2011 Share Posted April 21, 2011 Though I've never worked with Francis Whitaker, I'm told that he always used a folder in preference to a "yoyo." Too easy to burn the mylar off of the yoyo. I have a wonderful Lufkin yardstick made of spring steel with a spring temper. It is good for laying out. Lufkin and Nicholson brands were assumed by "The Cooper Group." I'm not sure if Cooper kept up the fine quality that the old Lufkins had...the ones that were from Saginaw, MI. http://www.turleyforge.com Granddaddy of Blacksmith Schools Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E.F. Thumann Posted April 23, 2011 Share Posted April 23, 2011 Lufkin, in fact, still does make tape measures. They are available through Grainger ( as well as other supply hoses I'm sure), and are complete/utter garbage. The wonder of what $7 will buy you when you are purchasing from a catalogue. When guys in the factory who don't-know-which-line-is-a-1/16th, need a new one they get a lufkin. All of my men in the metal shop get Stanley leverlocks. Most guys who work alone would be very very surprised to know the level of non-conformity in the reading of different brands of tape measures at say, anything over four feet. When you are in a shop/on a crew, first rule is, everyone uses the same brand/same model tape measure. That rules OUT a bunch of problems. Yes, I love puns;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve H Posted April 23, 2011 Share Posted April 23, 2011 I'd like to SUE lufkin. Guess what my opening dimension was? Look closely Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monstermetal Posted April 23, 2011 Share Posted April 23, 2011 I'd like to SUE lufkin. Guess what my opening dimension was? Look closely REally?? Thats nuts Steve... never seen anything like that ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JNewman Posted April 23, 2011 Share Posted April 23, 2011 Lufkin, in fact, still does make tape measures. They are available through Grainger ( as well as other supply hoses I'm sure), and are complete/utter garbage. The wonder of what $7 will buy you when you are purchasing from a catalogue. When guys in the factory who don't-know-which-line-is-a-1/16th, need a new one they get a lufkin. All of my men in the metal shop get Stanley leverlocks. Most guys who work alone would be very very surprised to know the level of non-conformity in the reading of different brands of tape measures at say, anything over four feet. When you are in a shop/on a crew, first rule is, everyone uses the same brand/same model tape measure. That rules OUT a bunch of problems. Yes, I love puns;) The shop I used to work in made fixtures and templates for a railway car manufacturer as well as patterns. Some of these were up to 30ft long and had to be accurate to 1/32" over that length. We found the Stanley Max Steel tapes to be within those tolerances, and had one that we had confirmed to be accurate for doing all checking before delivery. Often the no name or store brand tapes were out by as much as 1/16" over 16'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CurlyGeorge Posted April 23, 2011 Share Posted April 23, 2011 WOW. Cybo, you got a "Collector's Item" there. Put that sucker on Flea bay and make a fortune!!!:unsure: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fosterob Posted April 23, 2011 Share Posted April 23, 2011 Could get confusing when you need something 113" long Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marksnagel Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 Ok, how many of us just checked our tape measures? I will when I get home. Mark<>< Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 29, 2011 Share Posted April 29, 2011 When I worked in a custom wood shop the boss would test all tapes before buying them or letting them in the shop---the little metal piece on the end is supposed to move a bit so that inside and outside measurements are the same; but many of them were "off". And if he caught you snapping a tape back into the holder; well it wasn't pretty! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmy seale Posted April 30, 2011 Share Posted April 30, 2011 when i am/was measuring fishing necks,etc. i used a caliper and "cut a inch" meaning i'd measure from the 1 inch mark instead of the very end. also when making long measurements i use the same tape.that way if it's a little off you end up with the same measrement Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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