Axminster "precision" combination set square - total joke

[Inspector]

Aww it is not the square that is out, the rule is tapered. :wink:

Pete

 

[lurker]

I have long assumed that Axminster QC department were its customers.
So long as there is a no quibble returns policy it's a reasonable business model ...... I suppose.

 

[AJB Temple]

As mentioned in the original post I already have Starrett gear which is excellent, so this was just a cheapie for a specific purpose. The fact that the rule will not lock makes it useless for any purpose.

Bahco get a fair few bad reviews as well - not square / loose / inaccurate rule markings (some say the ends are half a mil short, so no use for depth checking).

I think Axminster are stupid if they really do follow a policy of not QC checking their goods before sending them to customers. Destroys brand loyalty really fast.

 

[transatlantic]

Whilst I agree that the Axminster stuff is getting really flaky these days. I have bought a few items recently that were sent back as they weren't fit for purpose. I think they're going down the route of little to no quality control, and hoping they turn out good on average.

Is it fair to judge a product that you bought second hand on ebay? ...who knows how it's been treated. Especially a precision instrument that can easily be knocked out of square just by dropping it awkwardly.

Edit : oh wait - you said Shop soiled. So the Axminster ebay store? .... yeah - thats pretty bad then

 

[Eric The Viking]

Aww it is not the square that is out, the rule is tapered. :wink:

Pete

I bought a couple of Bahco 300mm adjustable squares recently, after "several people" suggested they might be good value.

No, they're not square (by my book not close either). Gentle attempts to fettle them by filing the nibs in the stock failed. At this point I noticed the rules, when put up against each other, show a lot of light in the middle using two of the edges, and a lot at the ends using the other pair of edges.

Yup, they're curved.

Now I have decent wet+dry in various grades, and a glass plate, and a proper Axminster straightedge (which is straight, enough for woodwork, anyway). I can take the curves out, probably, but can I get the sides parallel using manual techniques? Not so sure.

Serves me right, I guess. I can still use them for distance setting, rough distance setting, I mean...

PS: don't get me started on the not-adjustable level bubbles in the stocks. One is passable, the other is quite ludicrously off - never checked in production for sure. Why do they even bother? Bahco, put the cost towards buying some straightedges for the rule production line, and make sure they get used...

 

[Doug71]

Get yourself a magic square and all your problems will be solved

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dB0MBGiX8TQ

 

[transatlantic]

Get yourself a magic square and all your problems will be solved

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dB0MBGiX8TQ

So many downvotes. People have no sense of humour

 

[AJB Temple]

Yes, it was from the Axminster eBay shop so brand new and all still sealed in the packaging. I checked the rule this morning against my genuine precision 1 metre bar (proper engineering tool) and the ruler is not dead straight either.

Axminster claimed when I spoke to them before buying, that these tools were fully accurate and undamaged, except that moisture in the sealant bags had caused some light surface rust on some parts. There certainly was a little bit of rust, but that was not an issue for me. The actual machining of the parts is simply poor.

 

[AJB Temple]

Edit: in the interests of fairness, Axminster refunded the £15 today, zero fuss. So that was very quick.

 

[Racers]

Aww it is not the square that is out, the rule is tapered. :wink:

Pete

I bought a couple of Bahco 300mm adjustable squares recently, after "several people" suggested they might be good value.

No, they're not square (by my book not close either). Gentle attempts to fettle them by filing the nibs in the stock failed. At this point I noticed the rules, when put up against each other, show a lot of light in the middle using two of the edges, and a lot at the ends using the other pair of edges.

Yup, they're curved.

Now I have decent wet+dry in various grades, and a glass plate, and a proper Axminster straightedge (which is straight, enough for woodwork, anyway). I can take the curves out, probably, but can I get the sides parallel using manual techniques? Not so sure.

Serves me right, I guess. I can still use them for distance setting, rough distance setting, I mean...

PS: don't get me started on the not-adjustable level bubbles in the stocks. One is passable, the other is quite ludicrously off - never checked in production for sure. Why do they even bother? Bahco, put the cost towards buying some straightedges for the rule production line, and make sure they get used...

I have just checked mine, I bought another 400mm one to use the rule in a Chesterman protractor head I was given, and they are both straight, it must be the luck of the draw whether you get a good one.

Pete

 

[powertools]

Yeah but how does that help you if you need to mark a square line and theres only 60mm of available space?

Adidat

If I understood your question I would try to answer it.

 

[Eric The Viking]

I have just checked mine, I bought another 400mm one to use the rule in a Chesterman protractor head I was given, and they are both straight, it must be the luck of the draw whether you get a good one.
Pete

Yup, I had that thought too.

Mine are significantly cost reduced from the picture: Aluminium clamping pin and knurled nut, instead of brass, similarly the plug for the spirit level part. The corners (arrises) weren't broken on the rule either, and there were sharp milling marks in the slot for the clamping pin (and signs of a lot of chatter) so I ran a thin diamond plate along those, as they would wear the aluminium stock and pin pretty fast otherwise.

If the plug unscrewed, I'd re-set the level on the really bad one, but I suspect it's pressed in so I probably can't remove it without destroying it.

Shame - will think twice about Bahco in future, as both of them are pretty bad. It may be they're offloading B-grade production to Toolstation though - where did you buy yours from?

E.

 

[Racers]

I bought mine from eBay.


Pete

 

[NicoWilson]

I have one of these. Excellent quality, so far.....

 

[RogerS]

Lifted direct from wiki;

Starrett employs about 2,000 people worldwide and the company claims to be the last remaining full-line precision tool company to be manufacturing their products within the United States.[1] However, much of the firm's manufacturing takes place at facilities in the People's Republic of China, Brazil, Germany, and the UK, with 28% of Starrett's worldwide sales being in Brazil in 2013.[2][3]

No point being obsessive about a name anymore. :roll:

Doesn't matter if they have on-site QA/QC. And a lot of these companies do.