analogconvert13

By analogconvert13

Backwards. Leica-Lumix Macro-Elmarit 45mm

Yesterday's Blip of the Starrett protractor head, reminded me of this little 6 inch rule which I bought back in 1990.  It was made by a company in Portland, Oregon: Bridge City Tool Works.  Back then, they didn't have a lot of offerings in their catalog, but the quality was of a very high level.  What caught my attention, was that the 1/16" graduations run right-to-left, right-side-up.  There's a reason:  when one is setting up the fence on a table saw to cut a strip to a particular width, the blade is to the left of the fence.  It makes sense to have the end of the ruler against the fence - which can be adjusted laterally -, and then measure off up to the blade for the desired width of cut.  How simple, and how novel.  Bridge City has changed ownership since those days, and their offerings, while still innovative and well made, have acquired an aesthetic which not everybody may find pleasing.  Here's a link for those interested.  I will add that, on the other side of the ruler, the graduations are metric: millimeters and half-millimeters, but regrettably, they don't run right-to-left.

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