Which tape measure?!!

[Ollie78]

I see loads of votes for the Vice versa but the last ones I bought had a new and annoying hook design that protrudes sideways quite a lot and I just can`t get on with it.

The other one I like is the stanley one with the window in the top for exact internal measurements, I have one but not seen them for sale here for a while mine came from France.

edit
Ha ha must have posted this at the same time as @benhen31 This is a different version than mine though, the one i have doesn`t have a button it just sort of stays where you put it automatically then you push it back in. Just googled it,called panoramic.

 

[johnnyb]

The tylon ones are what I use. I couldn't stand metric only either. The worst thing about them is they go rusty when used outside. There are better tapes I know but there good enough and cheap.

 

[Dabop]

LOL- off to order yet ANOTHER tape measure- never even seen a 'panoramic' before- amazing to think that in basically half a century of trade work, never even seen (or heard of) one before...

Got probably close to a dozen here, mixed bag of 3m/5m- mostly metric double sided but I do have a couple of ones with metric and that 'oldie timie hogsheads stuff' on them too for the incredibly rare time I do things in that... (I grew up in the 70's and was probably the last generation in Oz that ever even used/heard of inches lol- I know quite a few born after the end of the millennium that literally have no idea of inches/feet/miles etc and even I usually convert to metric- I never can remember the various conversions in the longer lengths lol)

I mostly prefer Stanleys (very common in Oz) but do have several others as well, possibly my favourite in the 3m range is literally a 'no-name' brand I picked up at a flea market when I was on holidays- it has no markings on it at all to indicate the manufacturer- but its the best mechanism I have used ever, and bought it for $2 lol (built a chicken coop with it when on holidays at a relatives place) and the SCA one is both cheap, and surprising nice to use as well

I got a pair of 30m ones I used to use a lot when I was doing solar installs offgrid (very handy for doing accurate large rightangles when you have a pair lol- do the old 3/4/5 trick) to set up footings and square off frames on ground mounts (used to assemble 10m plus ground mounts on site and weld together in place, but you do need to keep them accurate or mounting the panels on them becomes a nightmare lol)

And yes- having a number of them is mandatory- you never can find one when you need one (same with 10mm sockets lol)

 

[Cabinetman]

Dislike a tape that’s too big and heavy, some will unwind under their own weight if only held by the tip, so very annoying.
Told this story before, wholesaler friend of mine showed me a ccc tape that caused a customer of his to order a whole bunch of radiators that were the wrong size. A real inch was only about 3/4” long on the tape!
Soddin Chinese rubbish.

 

[Majimoto]

Yeah, that's so true. I have about 4 and never see any of them together. Lucky if I find one. Only happens to measures. Its a complete mystery how they move around by themselves

Problem is that, unlike coat hangers, tape measures seem to be celibate!

 

[undergroundhunter]

I have 2 vice versa tapes that I use, but when I'm in the workshop I prefer my 5m tajima. As somebody said BMI BM429241021is great for joinery layout.

Matt

 

[Scruples]

What ever one you choose make sure you have a good collection so you can have them in several places otherwise you spend so much time hunting around for it if you only have one or two.

That's true. I have one in the car, one in my decorators toolbox (Pod 1), one in my electronics toolbox (Pod 2), one in my elecrical toolbox (Pod 3) and one in my woodworking bag (Pod 4) and one in my desk, in the study (Pod 5). Never have enough tape measures. The only thing about them, for me, is that, as they are all slightly different, I keep to the same one for measuring both the measured length and the cutting length.

 

[Jameshow]

Dislike a tape that’s too big and heavy, some will unwind under their own weight if only held by the tip, so very annoying.
Told this story before, wholesaler friend of mine showed me a ccc tape that caused a customer of his to order a whole bunch of radiators that were the wrong size. A real inch was only about 3/4” long on the tape!
Soddin Chinese rubbish.

We had a chap at our men's shed with Learning difficulties (now past) who repaired a tape measure cutting 3/4" off and epoxying the tip back on it threw me for a few minutes!!

 

[TheUnicorn]

I have a 8m fatmax blade armour which is great, metric only, nice and clear, stands out about three metres before it collapses. Two things I don't like, it has an (clumsily oversized for everyday) extra large clip-on tip which you can take on and off (but is really fiddly to do so, I've buckled the end of the tape slightly trying to put the thing back on, I now just leave it in place save loosing it), also the whole thing is just generally too big and heavy, won't fit in a pocket, pulls your trousers down if you clip it on your belt. It generally sits in my tool bag whilst a 3m stanley powerlock gets used most days because I rarely in reality need to measure more than the length of a 2.4m board

 

[spanner48]

What ever one you choose make sure you have a good collection so you can have them in several places otherwise you spend so much time hunting around for it if you only have one or two.

I had that problem. Solved it by getting the smallest "shop's adveretising" tape, without all the fancy clips and button. And keep it permanently in a side pocket. Always put it back in; always have it ready. As an engineer: "Measure thjee times; cut once."