Old timer showed me a marking gauge trick and I felt stupid for not knowing it sooner

I've been struggling for months to get repeatable mortise marks on door hinges. I was using a tape measure and pencil every single time and they were always a little off. Then this guy at the shop I sub for in Portland watched me for 5 minutes and handed me a marking gauge set to the hinge depth. I lined up the gauge with the hinge barrel and scored both sides in like 10 seconds flat. Has anyone else had one of those moments where a simple tool you always ignored suddenly makes your job way easier?

2 comments

2 Comments

walker.alex5d ago

Man that hinge trick is one of those things you wish you learned day one. I had a similar moment with a story pole for cabinet face frames. I used to measure each opening separate and always ended up with gaps. Then a guy just told me to cut a piece of scrap to the exact width and mark everything off that. Now I never use a tape for layout anymore. The marking gauge thing you mentioned works great but those old timers will also show you how to use a knife instead of a pencil on the gauge. Gives you a way cleaner line and it locks into the wood better for chisel work. Did you set the gauge with the hinge barrel itself or just guess at the depth?

ryan_flores5d ago

That story pole trick is gold, I read about something similar in a woodworking book once. The guy called it a "story stick" and said old school cabinetmakers would use one for every single job. Setting the gauge with the hinge barrel itself is the way to go, you just slide the barrel of the hinge right up against the gauge fence and lock it in. No guessing at all that way, the depth is perfect every time. I tried the knife trick too after reading about it, and yeah that pencil line can get fat and throw things off easy.