# Starrett/Woodpecker square issue



## beevis (Jul 30, 2010)

I purchased a used 12" Starrett 4R grad combination square on eBay and just got it today. Seller said he had checked it for square against another square. It appears to be relatively new, not vintage, with a forged steel head.

Well, checking it against my brand new Woodpeckers 12" square, the Starrett is off about a 1/32" over its length.










It reads the same whether I hold it inside or outside the Woodpeckers square.

The funny thing is both square seem to pass the square test on a scrap piece of wood, scoring a knife line and flipping it over. Both are extremely close to the point of barely being able to distinguish any discrepancy. If anything the Starrett might be a whisker off.

So what gives? Is there a more definitive test I can do to determine which one, if either, is out of square? Or is it worth trying to adjust the starrett somehow by filing something? The Starrett appears wildly out of square (by engineering standards, at least) in the photo.

Thanks!


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## TungOil (Jan 16, 2017)

first you need to establish for sure which one is out of square, but I'd bet on the combination square being the culprit as they can be temperamental and are pretty easy to knock out of square. It could have happened when it was shipped to you.

luckily they are easy to adjust. FWW just did a video a few months ago on how to true up a combo square, you should find it easily on YouTube. Just takes a little filing on the 'bumps' inside the head and you will be back in business.


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## GR8HUNTER (Jun 13, 2016)

DITTO ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ :<))


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## HokieKen (Apr 14, 2015)

Hard to say. If either one is off 1/32", it should be obvious though. Only thing you can really do is find another square and check them both against it. Have you taken the combination square apart and cleaned it? Could just be something down in the seating area that's throwing it off. The good news is that if it is the combination square, you can tune it with a small file.


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## pintodeluxe (Sep 12, 2010)

Get a board with a perfectly straight edge and strike a line with a sharp pencil. Flip the square around and strike another line. Do this with both squares individually.

If the second line is superimposed over the first, it's square. If the line is thicker at one end, it's not square.

I have actually heard complaints about Woodpecker squares having issues. My Starrett is the one I trust, but I have a reliable 6" square from iGaging as well.


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## jimintx (Jan 23, 2014)

Interesting stuff. Some day wood shop work may be at a level that requires this type of implied accuracy, so I want to find that you tube video of how to adjust it.

In general, though, i agree that the combo sq can be tuned up and cleaned up for overall, directional, improvement.


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## HokieKen (Apr 14, 2015)

> Interesting stuff. Some day wood shop work may be at a level that requires this type of implied accuracy, so I want to find that you tube video of how to adjust it…
> 
> - jimintx


It's pretty easy. Down inside the slot, there are 2 small machined pads that the locking screw pulls the blade down against. You can use a really fine needle file to remove small amounts off of one or the other pad until the blade locks down square. Go slow though, just a little metal removed can make a big shift in the blade angle.


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## wormil (Nov 19, 2011)

Use a marking knife instead of a pencil.


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## Unknowncraftsman (Jun 23, 2013)

I have a few that I've dropped I file the lands down and work just fine.
I also have a # 61 starrett that I use for a master square.Thats my reference square.It come out only to set up or check my other squares.Then it's put away never left out in the bench to get knock on the floor.


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## RichT (Oct 14, 2016)

> Use a marking knife instead of a pencil.
> 
> - Rick M


+1 on that.


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## mitch_56 (Feb 7, 2017)

If both those pass the square test, you're doing it wrong


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## beevis (Jul 30, 2010)

Thanks everyone.

Between flipping the blade around in the Starrett, and finding a tiny burr on the outside corner of the Woodpeckers, the issue appears to have resolved itself. The Starrett now sits perfectly flush against the Woodpeckers.

Thanks!


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## HokieKen (Apr 14, 2015)

If the blade on the Starrett isn't square on BOTH sides, make sure you mark the side that IS square. DAMHIKT


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