Found out my grandfather's old wooden framing square is off by 1/16th of an inch

I was using my grandpa's old framing square for a shed project last weekend and kept getting gaps in my cuts. Checked it against a new square from Home Depot and sure enough, it's bent out of whack by about a 16th over 24 inches. Looked it up online and found out heat or moisture can warp old steel squares over decades. Anyone else run into a family tool that's secretly useless?

2 comments

2 Comments

jake_chen4h ago

Yo @fionaw54 might be onto something but maybe it's just not worth the hassle.

fionaw548h ago

Gently bend it back the other way by about a 16th past straight to account for the spring-back. I've done this with a few old levels and squares from my dad, and it usually works if the metal isn't too hardened. Just go slow and check it against a known straight edge a couple times.