Sterling Dovetail Rule DTR -5 Installed in a Vintage Starrett 12″ Combination Square
For those woodworkers without smaller squares we have now made the DTR-5 which is designed and made for popular 12″ cobination squares that most woodworkers have in thier toolkit. The DTR-5 is .089″ Thick and .445″ tall on the larger end and .090 on the smaller end. We have tested its fit on several vintage and modern 12″ Combination sqaures like Starrett, Brown and Sharpe, PEC and others. While we cant garuntee that it will fit ALL 12″ combination sqaures it should fit most.
With my introduction of the DTR-3, I have received many questions recently about what Dovetail Rule (DTR) is best for squares you may already own. I have written this blog post to help people check their existing square to find the DTR that is the best fit for their existing square. You can always purchase a Dovetail Square (DTSQ-2 ) which is a complete Square with a DTR installed. You Can purchase a complete Dovetail Square here. Many woodworkers go this route so it’s always setup and they don’t have to go through changing their graduated rulers to the DTR in their square.
Dovetail Square
However, we also understand that many already have some squares and would rather use one they have. In some cases, we could already have more than one square and can leave a DTR setup as a Dovetail Square, which is ideal.
Starrett makes a quality square that is very common in the marketplace either as a used item or brand new. NOTE that Starrett 6” double squares and 6” Combination squares use thicker rulers than their 4” squares (both combination and double).
Combination squares have a complex head, one side at 45 Degrees and the other at 90 degrees to the ruler. A double square has both sides of its head (casting) at 90 degrees to the ruler. The picture below is a Starrett 6” Combination Square (part number 11H-6-4R).
Starret 6″ Combination Square
I will now show how to measure your square by using popular Starrett 6” and 4”squares. The 6” Rulers measure about .076” in thickness as shown here.
6″ Starret Ruler Thickness
This is about the thickness of our Dovetail Ruler DTR-1 which is nominally .075”. Note that the slot in the cast head on the Starrett 6” Combination Square measures at .0845” That’s wider than the ruler by about 10 thousandths of an inch. You can purchase a DTR-1 here that will fit 6” Starrett squares with rulers and slots this size as well as many other brands 4” Squares; such as Lee Valley, PEC, Pinnacle. Please post Comments to this blog as a community we will continue to list brands that are compatible with the DTR-1.
6″ Starrett Slot
The other measurement we are concerned about is the “height” of the ruler groove. Measuring the Starrett Ruler, the edge to the slot is around .342”. The groove to the edge distance is the “throw” of the clamp shoe. The clamp shoe tightens down with the spinning of the thumbscrew drawing the ruler tight against the groove in the square head casting. DTR-1 units are nominally .330” tall which is .012” less than the groove height. (It could be helpful to think that the DTR is half a ruler tall) Most squares have no issue with this small difference in height as the threads on the clamp shoe make up this difference with a very small extra turn.
DTR-1 units work VERY well in 6” Starrett squares as they are .075” thick and .330” Tall. DTR-3 units can also work well since they are about .080” thick and .335-.340 Tall. DTR-3 Units can be purchased here.
Which Dovetail Ruler (DTR) is best for you? You will need a Vernier caliper and measure your square ruler and slot to make the best decision. NOTE: A digital caliper is helpful, like the one in the picture – inexpensive ones can be about $10-25. Machinists will spend $100-200 for higher quality calipers. (If you know how to use and read an “analog” dial caliper you probably are not reading this blog.)
Note that you need some clearance in the width of the slot to the thickness of the ruler, it’s not as forgiving as the height.
Below is a Starrett 4” Double Square, this unit I purchased used and cleaned up in my shop. This unit is still in production in 2023 (Starrett 13A).
This unit has a ruler that is about .064” Thick (.0645 in the picture) and The height is about .300” (.2995” in the picture).
The Slot in the cast head is slotted at .0715”, for this particular square the clearance is .007” Our DTR-2 is .064” thick and .300” tall. The DTR-2 was made specifically for 4” Starrett Squares. I do not know of any other 4” squares that use rulers this thin.
13A Slot
I hope you all find this blog helpful to choose the best Dovetail Ruler for your existing square.
It’s been a LONG time coming but the picture above is the first set of Series I Roubo Curves that have been made since 2019. Roubo Curves are stainless steel french curves that are large scale for use on full size furniture.
The pandemic lockdown made these a very hot item. Then the supply chain issues, and inflation made them unavailable for about 2 years! Now that stainless steel has moderated and supply more regular, we will have these in stock again very soon!
I am turning on ordering for “Pre-orders” today and we will start shipping the pre orders the week of Thanksgiving in the order that they were placed. I also have a short run of the Roubo Series II Detail Curves coming in the shipment as well.
The response for Dovetail Squares was just awesome, thank you all for your support. I am currently working on a small batch of DTR-1 and DTR-2 units so look for those in the next 4-6 weeks.
Best wishes to you all, we really appreciate you all!
Hello everyone! We are excited to have shipped our preorders last week ahead of schedule and have the DTSQ-2 in stock for sale on our website. You can purchase your Dovetail Square DTSQ-2here.
Dovetail Square
The second run of these units is nearing completion so we should stay in stock at current order pace. We are thrilled with how these new Dovetail Squares came out, the technology of laser marking has improved where we can now have our whole logo marked and be legible on the DTR (previously the “Tool Works” looked like a line).
We have a limited number of “oops” DTR-3 (the DTR-3B) units for sale. We had one batch of 12 have the profile down to the .090” “skinny end” be .086” shorter than spec. These units are 100% functional but are not to our full 1.375” length so we are discounting these units for customers that would like a deal. The picture below shows the DTR-3B behind the standard DTR unit, to show the difference in the “skinny” length. You can purchase one of these units here.
We also found 12 DTR-2 units for Starrett Squares in our travel show kit so we put them up on the website as well. You can purchase the DTR-2 units here.
In my last blog I shared that we were working on new Dovetail Squares and that they should be available in Late October. We have made great progress and are happy to share that we will be shipping the new version DTSQ-2 squares about a month early. Here is a prototype with a group of DTR-3 units behind it. The DTR units are now out getting plated, and then they will go to laser etching of the Logos.
Since the Fine Woodworking Article by Frank Strazza (read in our last blog) we have been deluged with inquires. We have turned on the DTSQ-2 in the store so people can place their orders. PLEASE NOTE that orders placed now will be shipped in the order they are received the first week in October!
A note regarding DTR ruler availability; they will take some additional time to get back in stock. With the new material we have sourced, there is additional grinding time to make the DTR-1 and DTR-2 units and we need to make sure we get ahead of the demand for the DTSQ-2. We will also be stocking the DTR-3 in the future which is .080 -.082” thick and .340” tall.We thank all of you who have been so patient and supportive, it’s been rewarding to have the support. We are beyond excited to to be back with one of our flagship products in Stock!
I met Frank Strazza (http://www.strazzafurniture.com) at Hand Works in 2015 where we were setup next to each other in the Amana Furniture Shop. Frank makes exquisite woodworking benches and has featured Houndstooth dovetails on them for many years. Frank was one of our first customers at Handworks to purchase a Dovetail Square when they were first released back in 2015.
This month when my Fine Woodworking Magazine (October 2022 issue #298) arrived in the mail, the cover immediately caught my eye as Franks work. Opening the cover of the magazine, I confirmed the article was indeed written by Frank. On Page 54 and 55 Frank explains how he cuts his tails and checks them for square before marking his pins with the Sterling Dovetail Square. We are honored that such a craftsman who is known for his dovetailing work cite our tools in his writing.
We posted recently about the 18+ months of challenges the pandemic and supply chain issues from the pandemic have impacted our business. We are working on a new Dovetail square with newly sourced steel for the rulers and castings for the square heads. Should everything continue to go well, we expect to have stock of the DTSQ-2 available in our online store in late October.
The castings are slightly larger with our DTSQ-2 units (over the DTSQ-1) but still have a great balance and heft in the hand. We are very pleased to have found a new source and believe that you all will too!
First, we want to thank all our loyal customers and fans. It has been a long time since I have posted a blog update. When the pandemic started we saw a huge surge in business since many people were enjoying more time at home with flexible work schedules providing more shop time. We were very thankful for this surge, its timing was excellent as my day job was eliminated due to the sharp initial recession from the shutdown. What we all didn’t know was how the pandemic would ripple (and ruin) the supply base for nearly every industry in the world.
It’s been an EXTREMLY challenging time these last 18-20 months. Our business is VERY small and we don’t have the buying power to get the attention of casting and steel suppliers especially when much larger companies and industries needed their materials. We had not been able to source the special steel for our rulers or castings for our squares for some time. Additionally, stainless steel prices have maintained their increase at 2.5 times what we paid for our last run of Roubo Curves in November of 2019. Unfortunately, we don’t believe that any of our fans and customers will invest approximately $250 for a set of our stainless steel curves. Until prices abate we will not be able to offer these for sale. NOTE: that we have a limited amount of Series II curves still in stock, but once these are gone they will also be out of stock until stainless steel prices abate.
We continue to do our best, even in this punishing environment for our small business.
I continue to work on alternatives for our Dovetail Squares and some recent developments in the last 2 weeks look promising. Should everything continue to go well, I should be able to offer a new version of the Sterling Dovetail Square (the DTSQ-2) in Late October. There is nobody more motivated than us to get this product back in stock!
Thank you for your patience and understanding, without your continued support we would not be able to continue without you!
For our 2020 Small Business Saturday special we are “Hammering Rona” with a special price on our Plane Hammer, Limited Quantities! Its our special thanks to all our supporters and customers and to give back to all of you that are worn out from COVID19.
We are looking forward to 2021 with our new commercial space getting Electrical and Air Conditioning completed before Thanksgiving! Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for the latest updates!
We are very excited to offer a new series of Stainless Steel French curves to our Roubo Curves® Product line!!!
We are offering these two new profiles as individual units, and are available for $40 each plus shipping. Just like our original “Series I set” these curves are made from 304 Stainless Steel precision cut with a laser and then processed with a nice matte finish that is easy on the eyes for layout work – No Glare. The finish on the curves allows for marking with a pencil to reproduce curves on multiple items and then easily wipe away.
The “Detail curve” RC-2-2 is just over 12” long and has many intricate curves to detail your projects with.
The “G Curve” RC-2-1 is a gentle curve is a scaled version of a popular curve that provides a nice gentle use curve for gentle arcs. This curve is also just over 12” long.
Since May 2015 at Handworks 2015 where I introduced the Sterling Dovetail Square, I have been asked if the Dovetail Blade will fit in the Starrett 4inch Square. For unknown reasons Starrett makes thier 4″ squares with blades that are .018″ thinner than virtually every other square maker.
I have been keeping a tally of how many people wanted Dovetail Rules for their Starrett squares and in April 2017 I completed a run of DTR-2 units specially designed for 4 inch Starrett Squares. Note that the DTR-2 will fit Starrett 4″ Double squares and 4″ Combination Squares. The dimensions of the Sterling Dovetail Rule DTR-2 are: 4″ long, by .300″ tall on the taller end, .90″ on the smaller end and .064″ thick!
The DTR-2 along with your Starrett 4″ Double Square is an excellent alternative from purchasing a entire new square such as the 2.5″ Pattern Makers Square that costs $150-300 (The pattern makers squares are now called the Starrett 14D or Starrett453E )
