WOODRIVERAluminum Straight Edge 38"

Straight. Flat. Heavy. I have not checked it for accuracy as I don't have a facility to do so, but FWIW it certainly seems accurate. It's better than anything else I've had. Packaging is minimal but it was packed to survive shipment no problem.If the MFGR happens to read these - consider a heavy cardboard sleeve (with a hanging facility) for long-term storage - you're not giving these things away, and the thin paper box you use now is woefully inadequate.

I’ve used it several times since I’ve gotten it, works perfectly. Highly recommend. Perfectly straight and easy to use. The ruler on the side is actually helpful in setting up a jointer.

My 6" jointer has not been a good partner in my shop. After watching The Wood Whisperer tune up his jointer I decided to go for the full treatment. I disassembled all the large components and most of the small ones. Thoroughly cleaned all the moving surfaces. The jointer is 22 years old, this was the first disassembly, and boy was it due for cleaning. I greased mating surfaces very lightly as recommended by John White (Care and Repair of Shop Machines). This jointer must have had a limited sales run because there is, literally, no manual available anywhere. With a bit of guessing I reassembled with no leftover parts.That's where this straight edge came in. It is dead straight. Happily the outfeed table is dead straight too. The three knives in the cutterhead were ALMOST right, within two thousandths of an inch, but that's not really good enough. This straight edge worked great for testing the ends of each of the three knives. With a lot of patience I was able to get the knives leveled to the outfeed table to half a thousandth, maybe a little better. No other straight edge I have would have done this. Then the infeed table was tweaked to match everything else.Why was this straight edge so great?1. Dead straight. Straightest tool in the shop.2. Enough aluminum to be heavy so it stays put, but it's still light enough to move easily with one hand.3. Machined straight edge is very smooth--smoother than the cast iron infeed and outfeed table surfaces.4. Stable! Most of the mass is in the bottom. Definitely not top heavy at all. Never tipped over.5. Easy to grab. The extended height was a reliable gripping surface even with gloves on.6. Graduation scale. This was an unexpected bonus. For example, it helped with making sure it was well balanced when extending it almost two feet beyond the edge of the outfeed table.The only downside is that the straight edge comes in a lightweight cardboard retail box. There is no case. I'm concerned that the aluminum surface will get nicked, or it will be bumped, dropped, dinged, and lose its lovely straightness. But hey, I have a workshop that can make a nice custom case for this precision tool.

No complaints...a well made and pleasant to handle straight edge

I'm a fairly new hobby woodworker and I don't make a cut or run a board through the planer or accross the jointer without slapping this thing on it. The quality of my techniques is still developing so a board isn't flat until this straightedge says it's flat.