What's a good inexpensive 25' tape measure with at least 12 foot standout?

[EddieWalker]

I wear out quite a few steel tapes every year. For awhile, I was buying cheap ones like Lufkin and Stanly, but they broke or got stuck so often that it wasn't worth it. DeWalt was an expensive one that was really bad, and last year I bought a couple of Craftsman that where on sale at Lowes that surprised me at how horrible they where.

The only steel tape that I've found to really work well, day after day, for a few years, is Milwaukee. They have a few versions with different options. The most expensive has an end on it that's huge, and it catches and holds on everything. This is great, or supper annoying. The metal for the tape is thicker then anything else that I've seen and it really goes out a long ways. I found it to be very good when I needed that extra strength, but it's also heavy and bulky. I have a smaller 16 foot that I use all the time, it has a more normal end to it, so it's easier to use. The lock on the Milwaukee's is great, no slipping and when you release it, the tape comes all the way back in.

When on a job, I usually have 2 or 3 tapes out. One I carry with me, one I leave on my ladder or stool, and one on my tailgate where I'm cutting everything. There are a couple more in my truck.

It's a waste of money to buy anything besides the Milwaukee. It's that much better then anything else that I've used!!!!

 

[Industrial Toys]

Is there any hope at all for a tape that has a tear?

 

[Ford850]

Milwaukee is the best and most comfortable to use for me. I have a few Menards now too, which seem to be a good compromise of cost and quality. I like the high vis tape color and large bold numbers on the Menards tapes too. I recommend handling a few in the store because there are some with slightly different features that will feel much better in your hand than others.

 

[pokey1416]

Watch Lowe’s sale aisle. I picked up a Craftsman 35’ for $9. I think Lowe’s is pushing Craftsman products since Sears is out. Two things every contractor does at the store - pickup a shim pack and look at tape measures.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

Another vote for the Milwaukee, I also had a Fat Maxx that lasted for a pretty good while.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

Just tried a Milwaukee at Minards today. It was pretty bad. Maybe they make several models? This one was 25', and had a sticker on the side that said "stud" (yeah, it wishes).

You guys looking at a different Milwaukee?

 

[Industrial Toys]

MARKETING BS, but hey, obviouslty it works.

Make it BIG and TOUGH looking, Several colors and that garbage rubber stuff. TOUGH NAME, and thats all that matters. SAD!

 

[s219]

I wear out a tape about once a year on average. I used to keep putting refills in an old Stanley I had, from the 1980s, which was really well made. Then the refills got harder to find and finally my daughter, when she was about 3-4, dropped the tape measure in water and it rusted up the inside before I found out. So now I am using modern tapes and they are a mixed bag. I still have a fondness for Stanley, as they were from my hometown area and I met some of the old timers that invented the tape measure.

 

[/pine]

I remember the older carpenters on many jobs that were still using 6' folding rules for general carpentry and framing...seems like Lufkin (sp?) made some of the first steel tapes I saw being used...Like I said in a previous post...when Stanley introduced the 1" wide blade in the '70's' it was a game changer for the carpentry trades...

Another game changer was when Rockwell introduced the portable motorized "chop box"...think they were 9" fixed saws (miters only no bevel cuts)...

 

[downsizingnow48]

I've used the Stanley powerloks exclusively since the early 80's. I used to change the blade but after they switched to plastic cases that didn't make much sense. The only one I had fail from sticking was after I dropped it into a new concrete sidewalk. I cleaned it off best I could but it started sticking. Otherwise the failure, after much use, is when the mylar coating comes loose and gums up the inside. One time my brother in law had the tip snap off a fairly new tape, caused by letting it roar back into the case at top speed repeatedly. So too cheap to buy a new one, he punched new holes and refastened the tip at the 1" mark. Amazing how often he managed to cut stuff short.