Kruishout - Marking/Scratch Gauge

And Now for Something Completely Different: the kruishout (Dutch), or you might know it as a marking or scratch gauge.

This is an essential measurement tool in woodworking! Note the sharp needle or point on the left side of the beam. This is used to scratch a line in the wood.

This specific one was from my grandfather. He was a carpenter specialised in making ship interiors.

Carpenters can own multiple of these gauges on a project, so they only need to set them to a specific size and have less work re-adjusting constantly.

Some variations may even use the tip of a knifeblade to actually cut a deeper line, e.g. when the grain is too strong to make a proper straight line. Or to actually cut very even widths of veneer. The Japanese or Chinese variants seem to use the knife tips.

I’m not so much into woodworking at the moment, but this surely is a keeper!
It’s also fairly easy to make some of your own. If you know a special use of this tool other than most uses shown on youtube, please leave a comment below!

Comments

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