Thickness Gauge

[Christophe Mineau]

I need to add a little explanation,
So it is a thickness gauge, it can gauge from .8 mm to 23 mm with a precision of .2 mm.
You will see an application with the next tool I'll post.
It is made for setting up any tool with a depth stop, think about the drill press for instance.

The main piece is made out of solid ebony (Macassar ebony), it is precisely (hand) shaped to keep all faces perpendicular and straight, especially the thin part of the wedge.
On top, there is a scale, engraved in the wood with a scriber, and then filled with black epoxy. The photo don't show it very well, but it is quite visible anyway.
The precision of the scale has been made with the help of CAD. That is to say I first made the wedge, then precisely measured it, and made its drawing and scale divisions on the computer. I printed it out at full scale, glued up the paper on the wood and then scribed over the paper.

For the numbers, I though it would add a nicer touch and it will also strengthen the tip to had a brass touch to that ebony, so I cut a brass plate, and pinned it, and epoxied it onto the wedge, after having shaped it precisely.

The brass engraving is done with a carbide tip point, (reshaped on a diamond stone to get a three faces point instead of a rounded point, so that to get a nice little chip).
This part is quite stressful, you're playing on the nearly finished work, and the least awkward movement could ruin the master piece !
But it did pretty well, even if I feel I still have to practice.

Then a bit of black sharpie on the engravings before polishing and that's it.

The tip is thin, and the brass is prone to scratching, so I thought it would be necessary to add it a leather sheath.
The bread is not as pretty as I would like, but it's not too bad.

Here it is...
Next, I will show the tool for what I made this tool ;-)
Cheers,
Christophe