Thingamejig

This weeks blog is all about the Thingamejig, a unique and great little tool that has been designed to help you with scribing...

The goal of scribing is to create a cut line perfectly parallel to the surface the trim is being fit to. With conventional scribes this is done by moving the scribes along the wall with the point against the wall and the pencil on the component that is to be cut. 

Carpenters typically scribe a counter or piece of trim so it fits tight to a wall or cabinet using a scriber which is an adjustable marking tool like the compass used by a geometry student. Most carpentry scribes have a sharp point on one end and a pencil, lead, or second sharp point on the other.

The Thingamejig does the same thing as scribes, but in a slightly different manner. It has a three-winged head with replaceable carbide cutters screwed onto each. The distance between the foot - which rides against the wall or surface being scribed to, and the cutters, are adjusted by turning a threaded shaft. And after dialing in the desired setting the craftsperson secures the shaft with a lock nut.

This device allows you to create an extremely fine cut line and/or score the surface to reduce splintering when you cut. Unlike a pencil point (which is soft and subject to wear) or the scribing point on a set of scribes, the carbide cutters are sharp enough to leave a fine line and cut slightly into (score) the surface of the piece that's to be cut. The ability to score comes in handy when scribing across the grain in veneer plywood. 

The triangular blades can be rotated to expose a fresh tip and replaced when all are dull. Being carbide, they should last a very long time.

The Thingamejig works best when used to scribe to straight, smooth, or flowing surfaces such as fitting countertops cabinet fillers and trim to ceilings walls and floors. It's not an all-purpose scriber and won't scribe around moldings and irregular surfaces such as stone. Fortunately, there are plenty of other scribing tools that can do those things.

Click on the picture to watch the video

Cheers

Gaston