MARKING METERS
The beam and the fence can be made of wood or metal. Wood marking gauges are more common and may or may not have embedded brass strips to reduce wear. Some beams have ladders, but it’s best to use them just to set the fence a rough distance apart.
basic use
To use a dial gauge, loosen the thumb screw and slide the fence to the desired distance from the pin. Tighten the thumb screw and make a test mark; read what is necessary. Place the gauge guide against the edge of the workpiece and turn it so that the pin is tilted away from the direction you will move the square. Although most woodworkers feel they have better control by pushing the gauge, there’s no reason not to pull it if this feels better to you.
Constant and uniform pressure
A marking gauge will accurately mark parallel lines as long as you use consistent, even pressure to hold the gauge firmly against the edge of the workpiece. If you don’t, the pin may wander and will go astray. Pressing down firmly will also keep the beam parallel to the surface, preventing the pin from scoring at an angle.
CUTTING GAUGE
A cutting gauge is very similar to a marking gauge, except instead of using a pin to mark the workpiece, you use a knife. The advantage of this is that the knife cleanly cuts through the wood fibers instead of tearing them, like a pin does. This makes a cutting gauge the tool of choice whenever you need to score lines across the grain.
So you might think, why not throw away my marking gauge and just use the cutting gauge? Because since a cutting gauge knife leaves such a fine, crisp line, it practically disappears when you use it to draw a line across the grain. Shop Tip: To create a “universal” marking gauge, some woodworkers file the tip of their marking gauge to a finer point. This does an adequate job of marking both with and against the grain, but is still inferior to the results of the individual gauges.
basic use
The technique for using a cutting gauge is virtually identical to that of a scoring gauge, with one exception: be careful to use very light pressure. If the knife is sharp (a few licks with a diamond sharpener will leave it crisp), it’s easy to cut deep into the wood, leaving cross scratches that can be difficult to remove.
MORTIC METERS
A mortise gauge has two pins instead of one to simultaneously mark two parallel lines. It is specifically designed for setting the cheeks of mortises and tenons. One of the pins is fixed, while the other is independently adjustable.
In some cases, this pin fits through a simple slide; on others, there is a thumb screw or knurled knob mounted on the end of the beam. Many mortise gauges also feature a third pin on the beam opposite the two mortise pins. This allows the mortise gauge to also function as a marking gauge.
Placing the pins
The first step in using a mortise gauge is to set the pins. To do this, hold the mortising chisel towards the pins, adjust the movable pin to match the width of the chisel and lock it in place. Then slide the fence so the pins are the desired distance from the edge of the workpiece. Test the setup on a piece of scrap first and check the layout with a ruler. Read what is necessary.
basic use
As with the marking gauge or cutting gauge, the most important thing here is to firmly press the material against the edge of the work piece. All you’re looking for here is consistent, even pressure. Popeye-like strength will only cause trouble; more commonly, excess pressure will change the position of the movable pin or beam. Use a light, firm grip and tilt the indicator away from the direction of movement.
PANEL METERS
A panel gauge is basically a wood marking gauge that is designed to handle large panels. The difference is that the beam is much longer (typically 15″ to 30″) than a standard gauge and the guide is much wider. In the past, panel gauges were often made from mahogany with brass wear fittings. You can also regularly find old panel meters on the Internet at various sites, costing between $20 and $40 for a meter in good condition.
two hands
Using a panel gauge is definitely a two-handed operation. After loosening the thumbscrew (older versions often use a wedge to lock the beam in position) and adjusting the pin or knife to the desired distance from the edge, lock the beam in place. Then press the fence firmly against the edge of the workpiece with one hand while applying light downward pressure on the pin or knife with the other hand. Move the gauge slowly with even and constant pressure.
cutting disc
Instead of a pin or knife, the Bridge City panel indicator shown here uses a cutting disk. The disc is made of hardened steel and is chamfered to help push the fence into the workpiece as you move the gauge along the edge of the workpiece. This leaves crisp lines that do not break, even when cutting through the fiber.
DOVETAIL GAUGES
A dovetail gauge (or dovetail marker) is a single-use tool that is designed to position the pins and tails for dovetail joints. Quality dovetail gauges will offer the two most common angles for dovetails: a 1:8 slope for hardwoods and a 1:6 slope for softwoods. If you usually wear these two slopes, a dovetail gauge or a set of markers like the ones pictured above will do just fine (the gold marker is for hardwoods, the dark marker for softwoods). If you prefer to set your own angles, a bevel gauge is a better option.
Cross
To use a dovetail marker, first use a scoring or cutting gauge to set the depth of the tails to match the thickness of the wood. Then carefully set the spacing between the tails. Position the dovetail marker so that it lines up with one of the marks and so that the slope is in the correct direction. Then use a pencil or scoring knife to mark the side of the tail. Flip the marker over and mark the opposite side. Continue like this until all queues have been marked. Depending on how you cut your dovetails (I always cut the tails first and then use them to locate the pins), you may or may not want to mark the pins at the same time you put the tails on. Whichever method you choose, line up the marker with the layout marks you made on the end of the workpiece and mark their location with a pencil or scoring knife.
BEVEL GAUGES
A bevel gauge (or sliding T-bevel) is an invaluable layout tool in the shop. You can use it to check angles, set tools to match angles, and plot virtually any angle. Most bevel gauges feature a slotted metal blade and a wood, plastic, or metal stock or body, available in a variety of sizes. The blade conveniently slides into the slot in the body for storage. The blade is locked in place by tightening a wing screw, wing nut, lever, or knob at the base of the stock.
Duplicate an angle
A common use of the bevel gauge is to duplicate an angle so that it can be reproduced. To do this, loosen the wing screw or wing nut to make it tight and press the butt of the gauge against the edge of the work piece. Then tilt the blade until it rests on the angled end of the workpiece. Tighten the wing nut then use the gauge to duplicate this angle on another workpiece.
Fit with a protractor
In many cases, you’ll want to set the bevel indicator to an exact angle or read the angle you just set (such as when you’re doubling an angle). The most accurate way to do this is to use a protractor. The critical point here is to make sure the bevel gauge blade intersects the protractor base exactly in the center. Then adjust the blade to the desired angle or read the blade angle.