Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire who can read a framing square?

I learned the trade using them, but use a calculator in in the process too these days, do it in metric as well, the company I contract to calls me in for the complicated ones, I'm semi retired now.

yeah, me too.....

and square buttons are indispensable.....

Those that can't figure how to use a framing square should set it aside and just play with power saws.

I use the construction master calculator App on my phone now too. There's a couple good construction apps. Cheney industries has a free one that acts as a calculator to figure concrete by the yard for any application you can think of such as slab, footer, block fill, cylinders etc .. and gravel/sand by the ton.

Anyone serious about framing carpentry and maximizing efficiency without compromising quality should read this. I found it pre internet, reading fine homebuilding when I started running a crew. Helped develop the system my crews use to this day. My 4 lead guys are on the same page, when carpenters/helpers move around from crew to crew it's seamless.


Most of the stuff in this pile is 20 years plus old. Everybody thinks framing carpenters are Mexicans or meth addicts. Still a few of us that love our trade and are proud of what we've built at the end other day. We're going the way of the dodo though

I call them Retard Marks

Yes learned many years ago, I know how to figure elevations too.

Applied for a job at a very small business just starting off about 17 years ago and on the application they had a simple math test on it. One of the questions was "How many 8ths are in an inch?"

The man who built my house did not own a calculator. There are math problems written all over the framing of our home. If it couldn’t be figured with a pencil or framing square, he’d have no part of it.

Hmmm

Pretty basic, wonder how many got it?

Like who’s the George Washington Bridge named after?

Wonder how many apprentice carpenters, or even experienced carpenters, could keep up with my Grandpa, 80 yrs ago? And using just hand tools. That old man would probably work them into the ground.

DF

Gus, I've got a couple sets of brass square 'buttons'

Lock em down and go.

Yeah thought it was funny. They were just starting off in a schitty part of town in Columbus OH ,so not a whole lot of bright bulbs. Was a great place to work and watch grow, ran the paint dept for almost 6 years and left.

an 8 lb. or even 10 lb. calf's head can be used to make adjustments, but only on certain occasions.

Had some Apprentice Carpenters come to my shop a few years ago...…………….we were pre-fabbing a suspended ceiling grid made from 4/4 x 6" CVG Fir that was built on a 10* skew (10* out of square with the sidewalls. I asked the youngsters how they would determine the angle. Their answer was they would use their Construction Master calculator to determine it. I asked them what they'd do if the batteries went dead......total silence! I the asked them if they knew what the magic number is. Dumbfounded, I had to explain it to them. I said to them "If you have a wall that runs "X" number of feet, and then turns direction to 10* (or whatever) How do you figure the angle?" Again, couldn't answer. "The magic number is 57 5/16". At the end of the straight section, you swing and arc at 57 5/16". Every inch up that arc equals one degree."
They went back to their school and tried it, and sure enough! Incidentally, the ceiling grid we are talking about was at the Carpenters Apprenticeship Training Center in Portland, Oregon

As for hammering your square to bring it back to square, it also works with using a prick punch. Also, when a circular sawblade gets a crack in it, the only way to stop the crack from continuing is to drill a hole at the end of the crack...………………..now you know why women have a belly button!

Exactly. I’ve used it plenty on a couple houses and other projects. Would need a quick refresher today, but ima dragging dead trees today. 😉

After ya'll get that square figured out who can tell me how to square a foundation (or check it for square) using Pythagoras' Theorem.....no googling.....

hint......3 4 5

I grew up in construction, and still use hand tools such as these daily. Drywall square, Framing square. Swanson speed square and carpenter square are used pretty much daily.
My truck is about 40% tools, 60% parts, with 3 types of ladders to get me to where the work is.

Still use mine fairly often. Used to use it every day for about 2) years framing homes. X/12 for common cuts, x/17 for hip cuts.

345 right triangle and on a rectangular layout, cross corners with a tape measure.