Starrett 505A-12 Protractor $23.62 @Amazon

[steve-u]

Amazon has the Starrett 505A-12 ProSite 12-Inch Dial Protractor on sale for $23.62 with free shipping if you have an order over $25 from Amazon. You can always add on a spring clamp for $1.60 or so if needed to get to $25 or more.

http://www.amazon.com/Starrett-505A-...9?ie=UTF8&s=hi

[gwyneth]

I have one but have yet to encounter the one or two tasks for which it must be the perfect tool (actually, I have yet to figure out what those one or two tasks are.)

However, it does seem as if it has to be the perfect tool for something. In theory it's supposed to be for picking up angles so you can set them on the cms or table saw but...

[steve-u]

For me it will be helpful next time I install crown molding which should be failry soon. Wall angles usually are not 90 degrees but somewhere between 87 - 93 for me. I cut crown standing up against the fence on my miter saw for corner joints.

Steve

[mschrank]

It has been noted that this unit does not often live up to Starrett's good reputation for accuracy. I bought one and was disappointed to find that it shows about 44 degrees as being half of 90.

Consensus seems to be that they are OK for rougher work like carpentry, but not accurate enough for fine woodworking.

[gwyneth]

Its user interface--if such a simple tool can have a user interface--is not too clear (but maybe that's because human ability to use slide rules and such has all but evaporated).

It's also a little funny to see these great big sturdy arms and the two tiny, almost flimsy plastic dials.