We have been playing with the prototypes here for a couple of months and this tool is way cool.  Study the pic below because we have made a beneficial change to the 18″ blade we think you will really like.

Here’s what is different; the 18″ blade is unique and has some new functionality that will save you time. The bottom scale is in inches (32nd’s) and regardless of what hand you hold the square in, you can set the long leg to whatever distance you desire from the end of the blade.

The top scale features centering rules on each face, one metric and the other imperial.  I would not use the imperial centering rule for finding centers, I would  use this scale with straight leg aligned on 9″ (zero on the center scale) and as such, converts the square to a killer hook rule–reads from the leg out as opposed to the end of the blade in.

Opposite of the imperial centering scale is the metric (.5mm) centering scale which reads either left or right from the center. This is what I would use to find centers, i.e., 42.5 on the left and 42.5 on the right and you know center. This is way easier than reading 2-23/32″ on the right and 2-23/32″ on the left.

In addition, for those of you who are trying your best to wean yourself from the lunacy of imperial measurements, with the long leg set to 9″ on the lower scale, you can use the top scales to quickly convert between imperial and metric. This is cooler than you think.

We are also including in the kit a standard 12″ blade, all imperial because, hey this is America damit! (Not my view, but we need to pay rent here…)

Milled from solid stainless steel and graced with a black chrome web, this is the next tool in our Bridge City Essentials series. We will begin accepting pre-production orders as soon as we quantify our costs in a couple of days.

Now, I don’t have a tree-house anymore, but IF I DID, this tool would join Ms. June, 1963 as one of my most cherished belongings.

Your thoughts?

–John

Sometime in the next day or so, we will be announcing the pre-production run of the next Bridge City Essential–an updated version of our MG-4 Marking Gage and calling it the MG-5. Stainless steel, black chrome…OK, I will fess up–this black chrome is the coolest stuff–I am hooked.

Frankly, the world does not need another marking gage but this one is notable because it has two “business ends” one, a beveled cutter for straight work and a scribe pin for following curves. It is small, fits the hand great and the black chrome just feels oh so sexy.

We are working on pricing but the MG-5 will be well under $150 so it won’t break the bank…hell, what I am thinking, all the banks are broken! Don’t know how many we are going to make yet and don’t know if we will make it again (We are in the anti-inventory business) so give it a ponder.

Here’s a Sneak Peek of the prototype;

–John