6 Roofing Squares Compared - Vote for the Best 

After 35 years working as a carpenter I know so many different methods for measuring and marking roof rafters iam starting to forget some of them . Everything from two sliding bevels and a protector,roofing ready reconer, sin tan cos on a scientific calculator , imperial framing square step of method, Essex board tables, making a full size L shaped square out of 4x2 and laying a rafter diagonal across it to find plumb and birds mouth cuts, construction master 1V calculator from when u had to go to America and get it your self or know someone coming home who would bring you one back no amazon at that time.for me personally the simplest method by far is Stanley 12 inch quick square used with construction master 5 app on my phone.

Hope you're keeping safe and well, Roger. You bloody legend!

The framing square is an amazing tool, and you can do alot with it. And i do use the marking on the on square to work out the lengths of rafters, or use the step off method. But! I also use my speed square for quick layout.

The ultimate roofing square. Looks very simple to use and well thought out. The next roof I do I will be investing in one.

I really like the American system ,you can work out the whole roof pretty easily including the more complicated ones ....without too much up and down . Basically 12" per foot run on the common 17'' on the hip and 13 on an octagon .The hip drop can be done easily with the square too .Have to say that Essential Carpenters square is a gem .Cheers Roger ,Robin !!

Great video! I bought a Roofus haven’t got it yet but I am looking forward to using it. I like some of the others you showed your a lucky man to have all of them to experiment with. I have some Chappell framing squares that are the best I’ve seen so far.

I'm 42 and learnt from my dad how to pitch a roof using an imperial framing square. I tried using a metric one and some of the other squares in this video and in my opinion it is much easier ti use imperial and a Ready Roofing Reckoner. You don't need a calculator, and there are far fewer numbers to think about when your fingers are numb and rain is running down your sleeve. Common rafters are set from tge 12"mark, and you just set it to 17" for a hip/valley cut. Robins sliding fence is a great way to make sure that you can repeat your cuts.

Hooray!!! at last got a hair cut now when I scratch my head I can feel it. Didn't know where to share this but just had to put it out there. i can actually hear now as well, have to start using my ear defenders again. Great site great lot of people good to know people still interested in the framing square.

The framing square and a traditional speed square are all you need. That Stanly quick square was the first one I bought myself when I started framing, the brass thread gave out in a month or two being carried around in my tool belt.

Really enjoyed this video, I'm from New Zealand and a working carpenter who retrained as a mature age student who went back to study full time at Tech. My boss has been building since he was 14 and has been in the trade 35 years so he does a lot of things by eye. I do watch You Tube videos but a lot of them are in inches which is no good to me.

Was given one of those yellow angle level things. Very slightly damaged. Used as a goniometer for setting bicycle saddle position. Brilliant. Surprised how much difference a millimeter up, down, backward and forward made

12” Stanley square are very good for simple roofs but if you can get your nut around the metric imperial the carpenter squares are incredible. I’ve not used the others as yet I got my Stanley from a good friend and I’ll treasure it forever

I either use a framing square with fence or 2 bevels using the ready reckoner,Was taught this at 18 and never changed methods 3 bevels for hips or 1 and the square,Iv cut more roofs using bevels than anything,Great videos Roger

I use a 'speed square' and the 'roofing ready recknor book' I must admit I'm surprised no one uses that book more, it give you every calculation you could possibly need from the commons, to the valleys Jack's and perlins.. or if it's a really complicated roof sometimes I'll draw it out on SketchUp. Great video guys as always I've found the hints and tips really useful over the years

Just had my square delivered what an awesome bit of kit . Well impressed with the quality of the engineering. British made as well. Good job. 🙏🏻

Thanks Roger great video

hi guys i started my apprentiship in glasgow 1965 half way through they changed to metric bit funny at first but we got used to it for roofing calcs i use hancocks roofing book cant beat it i live in australia now keep well

I’ve got the roofus professional completely made of solid aluminium bit more money but worth every penny great bit of kit easy to use

Muy bien explicado...saludos desde México..

I have been a carpenter/trim carpenter for over 40 years in America. I like to use the framing square with LS Starrett gauges which are more accurate than the other types. For my roofs I like the Stanley adjustable square which is more accurate than the typical swanson which you would use the pivot point every time. I just bought the Roofus square and tried it out. I agree with some of the people about not being long enough and if you have a board that is a little irregular it is not as accurate. I probably threw my money away but I just had to try it. Thanks for the great video

Dan Cox Square is a masterpiece and lovely to use

Hi Robin love the idea of the square anything to make life simple

I keep saying I will copy Robin and make a fence for my framing square but I never get around to it and just use a speed square but I really like the look of the roofus. Seems a clever little tool

I was taught to use the framing square back in the 60's when I was doing the summer job for my own money thing. To this very day, I still fall back on it as a check for all of the other devices i've acquired over the years. I have several version the speed square and I must admit it is the handiest thing for most framing, trimming and siding work. Not much to complain about there other than the standard comes up short on certain tasks and I habe to resort to the larger version to accomplish the task effortlessly. I do like the appeal of the educator's offering and I will be looking into purchasing one. It just looked like it is the next evolution in speed square tech. The only one I dont have. My carpentry days are quickly coming to an end as the warranty seems to have expire on this body and parts are not as limber as they were back in the 70's through the 2010's. So anything that makes me not have to physically exert myself (the braincell included), I will advocate with passion if it functions as described without a metric tonne of change and wffort! Great video. Clear and precise without all the unnecessary frills some of the channels throw in. Much appreciated. Thank you for sharing. And a lot of contractors and carpenters here the state's have an appreciation for the metric system. It is our customer base that is slow to come around to it. It is what is still being taught in schools here even in this so-called modern age! Change is too scary for some, I guess. Peace from the state's. Be well and satisfied!

I use Daniel Cox roofing square, it's a brilliant invention and I love using it with my greenhouse builds, worth every penny and best of all it's QUALITY british made, solid as you like, the times I have dropped it from the roof with no damage to the square a testament to Daniels build quality for sure. I do have the larger steel square and a speed square but daniels roofing square is my go to tool for the roof.

We would love to try robins roof square, looks an awesome bit of kit.

Framing square is where I started and then I discovered the speed square, it was a game changer, nice compact and fitted into my pouch. If you cut a lot of roofs stay away from any square that has moving parts, remember these things get abused on site and over time they give you problems. Most speed squares are under a tenner.

Good evening.you have great tools.We in Germany use a similar tool but it is a little bit longer in the carpenter version for long beams we call it Alpha Winkel . I am big fan of channel and i am also plumber.It is good to see that you have the same problems. Many regards from Wuppertal Westgermany

there s a metric swanson speed square, comes with a small book with all conversions in metres. handy as pencil marks are in 5mm increments

Great video Roger. Any plumbing videos on the way? I'm reading a book called Plumbing & Central Heating by Mike Lawrence and on page 87 there's a picture a young you. Keep up the good work👍

Got to be the quick square for me. Even when marking & cutting a straight edge on timber, with the base, it gives u a better grip. Plus you can butt jigsaw saws, circular saws up to it.

Bought Speed-type from Screwfix a few months ago - it was bowed and wouldn't sit tight on the timber. Reviews said lots of people had same problem. Checked replacement in store - same again! Whole batch everywhere was faulty. If you can, check tools like this in store before wasting time with returns and hunting down alternatives. Ended up with proper Swanson SpeedSquare from different supplier

I used an aluminum framing square with 2 brass bobbins for years also used a 12 inch speed square. Small one is a PITA .

Bloody hell Roger, you've got a 12" Stanley adjustable roofing square. Stanley don't make them anymore, and they are, in my opinion, the only roofing square you need. They are like rockin horse poo to get hold of now. Keep an eye on it on site, or some bugger will have away. Stay safe.

I am old, i work metric and imperial when it suits me. Metric is definitely easier. I used a Stanley framing square to learn and to refer anything I am unsure about. I use the Stanley quick square now. I would buy that essential square if I were starting out now. Easy to set and less to go wrong and less opinion

Great video

I've had the Stanley one for so long that I can't actually remember when I got it, nice and robust so it should last me until I retire I might consider having a look at the second to last one but the price needs to drop to below £50 to get my interest. If robin can get to that price point then I might have a look at his

the difference between here in the uk & America is that we usually are doing a roof works to old properties where they are not square plumb or even the same pitch on a change of roof on a hip or valley rendering all types of squares etc useless, we tend not to stick build as in the us with purlins etc not needing tables as much, a sliding bevel & a square will get any roof done with a use of tangents on your phone app, not needing an artic to carry your tools around, keep up the good work Roger & don't forget to tell folks we know a bit about roofing in the uk as well.

I have used the stanley adjustable quick square 7'' model (under £20) for about 25 years from way back when they were sold with a book of rafter length tables. Now sold without tables or detailed instructions some chippies that have them don't actually realise what they can do. When you know how to actually use to its potential the simple transition from common to hip or valley cut and then back in a few seconds makes it possibly my best ever tool purchase and one of my most used pieces of toolkit. You certainly dont need to spend anymore on more expensive squares.

I use the Stanley combined with a reg roofing square.When I do railings I use a straight edge and an angle finder.Then switch to the speed square.

Daniel Cox looks easy to understand .

the framing square kicks ass.

Good explanation tank’s!

I use the Stanley 12" adjustable roofing square...dargan tools are making a copy of it for €38 in toolfix

I brought 2 squares from Dan already, it works, pitched 3 roofs already, essential carpentry tools works very well, for £88 you can make thousands, and you can run the saw against the fence of the square,

Hi Robin can you tell me where I find the best roof calculations app as I could not find anything to click on that worked

Interesting!

Smallwood... like Robin's, so will be interesting to see what he comes up with. That 'Essential Carpenter Tool' one looks good too.

Never used any "roofing square" on any of the hundreds of roofs I've constructed, a tape measure, level, cobi square, string line and two sliding bevels is all I've ever used. I understand roofing squares and will try a few more versions now I've watched this but until buildings are manufactured perfectly in factories and sit on perfect foundations it will always be the joiners job to overcome every trades margin of error / bent spirit levels /windy days on the brick line etc(this does include joiners, we all own electric planers to fit doors in casings we fitted. Shhh.....😯)

My dad got me the first roof master when i started my apprenticeship so the I've use it ever since so it's the roof master for me

I've only ever used a 'roofing' square and a Swanson metric speed square - the others look interesting though.

I like the Swanson speed square and just recently got the Roofus which I also like.

im only an apprentice joiner not really many roofs but id say a speed square but there's a few there I wouldn't mind having lol keep the great content coming

Great tip to always cut over size first, can always cut a bit more , hard to add it on

The Roofus is a great tool. Every Joiner and Roofer should have one.

Stanley quick square and goss's roofing ready reckoner all day long. I actually use a 12 inch version made by timber frame tools which works exactly the same as the Stanley version

My Stanley 12” adjustable square was recently thrown away by a dim witted labourer and as it’s not made anymore had to find a replacement and that was the TF Tools adjustable square, handy as it has metric measurements as opposed to the Stanley’s imperial measurements and can used as a guide for the skill saw. The traditional roofing square has many uses as all the information is on the blades to get the dihedral angle for example that can be used to cut hopper boxes etc although with the internet it’s easy to look up charts or use an App for this sort of information nowadays.

Bloody hell Roger, lines everywhere on that timber! Bring back Robin? 😉😂

i use a 12 inch Stanley speed square with a Goss's Roofing Ready Reckoner. It is by far my favorite method. Only problem is the 12 inch Stanley is discontinued, so i mind the one i have left like its my first born.

The RoofMaster is the best piece of kit out there for roofing by a country mile, I've used all the other traditional methods but there is absolutely no beating the Roofmaster, just a phenomenal tool which makes the whole process of cutting a roof far simpler even for complex roofs, i'd never go back to any of the other methods

The Roofmaster is a brilliant tool, so simple to use. Everything you need to cut a roof (to a given pitch)is on the square, no need for additional rafter tables etc. Do i use one? No i gave mine to an apprentice who was struggling with roofing and never got around to replacing it.

I've not seen this answer to this on any video, how do you work out the height above plate on the hip so it matches the height above plate on the existing rafters?

I like the look of the ultimate roofing square myself.

It has got to be the Stanley quick square the bigger silver one I’ve used mine for 15 years there a few quid now on eBay the black square is to small to mark big timbers but I’m wanting one of robins roof squares he’s trying to market nice and big perfect for the job come on robin I’m waiting

Speed square for me, plus a ready reckoner book or a construction master calculator. That Roofus looks far too fiddly, I can't see it does anything that a speed square can't do. On the Ultimate Roofing Square, when you change the angle for a hip does it automatically give you the correct birds mouth ? ie. Is the HAP correct ? (that would be useful).

Triangles with a straight edge. Edit. AND a pivot. Most pivot from the right angle. Some pivot from one of the points of the triangle, such as the traditional framing square, the roof master and Daniel Cox’s ultimate square. This is more intuitive because you have 3 edges now, roof, plumb and seat and it’s the same for every roof. I think the roof master is underrated but it would make more sense if the writing was the other way up.

Carpenters Square for roofing and the speed square for everything else IMHO.. Cheers

i use Stanley quick square and the Dewalt ready reckenor not let me down yet

for beginners to understand - it's the essential carpenters tool for me....

I use the the stanley square and a free triangle app on my phone. Once I got my span I can work the roof out in secs

The Imperial scale of measure originated in the UK :)

I couldn't click on the poll for some reason but will happily provide comments here: First, I am a traditional timber-framer using a mix of English historic carpentry and more modern US techniques (e.g. Square Rule), so have different requirements to many and I don't have to work off of architects metric drawings. Although I grew up with the metric system, for timber framing I really like working in feet and inches. Some full sized framing squares sold in the UK have imperial one side and metric on the other. These are useless as you need to use both sides! Stair gauges are an absolute must have too! My current favourite is the blue Aluminium imperial framing square by Empire which you can still get at Homebase. I have two other Empire tools at present, which are both imperial speed squares - one is regular sized, the other a good deal larger. Both of these are really excellent. The only other tool I use for this stuff, which again is excellent, is an iPhone app version of the Construction Master Pro.

Anyone have any suggestions on carpentry books covering roofs and first fix

😘 TY :)

Oh geez. Can you tell me what that tool is for behind you???? It’s between your mallet and some drill bits???? I’ve got my dads tools, since my dad died and then my mum died. I honestly don’t have a clue what that tool is for???? My dad was a joiner. Please can you tell me what that tools for? 🙏💖👍❤️🤗🤔

Ultimate roofing square is very good, but I can't see why it is too expensive. I have seen it on line for £85!

There all tools that rearly help when pitching a roof but there is another way the way I was taught which is the one where u dim up ur half span and full rise minus half thickness of ridge divide them dims by 10 eg . 3m half span (which Has included for half thickness of ridge taken off ) and say a 2 m rise now become 300 mm and 200 mm respectively mark these sizes on a squared cornered piece of scrap ply ( there’s always some on site ) and cut out the triangle u now have half the triangle of the roof just smaller (looking from an end view ) all u do now is use this pattern to step down ur rafter along ur birds mouth line (normally a third in ) 10 times where u start gives u ur plumb

I hope Robin gets his framing square out there as well!

Framing square and a speed square. Every day of the week

I use the Chappell metric framing square with a wooden fence the same as Robin but also use a speed square

For me Stanley quick square takes some beating

The old boy who trained me taught me to read imperial and metric so I do the same with my Guy’s, joinery work metric all day long roofing work I like to jump to both. Anyway the answer to Rogers Question which Square. The old roofing square for joinery works. Speed Square all day long because of use and being able to fit it in the work pouch. Saying that I’ve just purchased Dan's roofing square but I will get my engineer friend to mark up the Hip degree in relation to my common degree, Dan’s happy for me to doctor his square for my own ease, I will let you know Roger how it turns out. The History of Metric Metrication in the United Kingdom, the process of introducing the metric system of measurement in place of imperial units, has made steady progress since the mid-20th century but today remains equivocal and varies by context. Most of government, industry and commerce use metric units, but imperial units are officially used to specify journey distances, vehicle speeds and the sizes of returnable milk containers, beer and cider glasses (though fresh milk is often still sold in multiples of pints, with the metric equivalent also marked). Imperial units are also often used to describe body measurements and vehicle fuel economy. In schools metric units are taught and used as the norm. Imperial units that remain in common usage in the UK are also taught. Adopting the metric system was discussed in Parliament as early as 1818 and some industries and even some government agencies had metricated, or were in the process of metricating by the mid-1960s. A formal government policy to support metrication was agreed by 1965. This policy, initiated in response to requests from industry, was to support voluntary metrication, with costs picked up where they fell. In 1969 the government created the Metrication Board as a quango to promote and coordinate metrication. In 1978, after some carpet retailers reverted to pricing by the square yard rather than the square metre, government policy shifted, and they started issuing orders making metrication mandatory in certain sectors. In 1980 government policy shifted again to prefer voluntary metrication, and the Metrication Board was abolished. By the time the Metrication Board was wound up, all the economic sectors that fell within its remit except road signage and parts of the retail trade sector had metricated. The treaty of accession to the European Economic Community (EEC), which the United Kingdom joined in 1973, obliged the United Kingdom to incorporate into domestic law all EEC directives, including the use of a prescribed SI-based set of units for many purposes within five years. By 1980 most pre-packaged goods were sold using the prescribed units. Mandatory use of prescribed units for retail sales took effect in 1995 for packaged goods and in 2000 for goods sold loose by weight. The use of "supplementary indications" or alternative units (generally the traditional imperial units formerly used) was originally to have been permitted for only a limited period. That period being extended a number of times due to public resistance, until in 2009 the requirement to ultimately cease use of traditional units alongside metric units was finally removed.

Ur rite about people argueing over the skill saw going in to far on the birds mouth

The kingsview optical roofmaster looks great but there is so little info on it. Not a single video of it being used to do a roof. Bizarre that the company selling this tool that can do what the others can't, and works a bit differently, hasn't put a video up showing its use to help its sales

Where can you get one of Robins framing squares?

One but last looks good but I was always happy with a simple roof /speed square t get my hips and commons mark them up on a peice of wood for regular checking and just use 2x sliding bevels. I always made a template for the birds mouth , fascia and soffit, especially when tying into existing but always cut fascia in situe......

Stanley' quick square every time. Too many gadgets out nowadays It's just using what you're comfortable with. All good tools there

If I’m correct does the black square only go to 45 degrees? Swanson speed square “original” has done my roof pitching for years. Only recently gone back over to framing square. Also a ready recknor was a stable part of my learning. Sometimes still go back to it for measurements below a metre. Stay safe all.

Whens robins roofing sqaure going to be out ?

hi i use a swires roofing square every bevel and length per metre is on the square very simple to use had it 30 years tony howkins

Speed square ...simples👍

I have a speed square, for size and versatility you can’t beat it.

Roof master is awesome 👍

Sorry. He has the same wood and brass set squares. Next to the wood and brass loop thing?. I just can’t figure out what it’s for???? There’s other tools I’ve found that I’m struggling to figure out?? Hope you can help??? 💖😂🤗

I want to see Robin's new patented design

Stanley quick square 👌🏼

I would never use any tool other then a framing square. To layout stairs or rafters...A speed square is not accurate.

Stanley framing square and a bit of trig

Can't beat the stanley quick square, but only the 12 inch version the other one is too small. I always have used inches for my roofs as I find it quicker to work stuff out as most pitches will work to a whole inch for example 45 degrees is a 12" rise and 47.5d degrees is 13" rise for a 12" run. I just use a ready reckoner and it is in fractions of an inch rather than a decimal point. I wish stanley would bring back the larger square, I could do with a backup!

Sorry to be pedant but that 72" example you gave isn't the height of the roof, its the rise of the rafter. The height of the roof is that 72" plus the height above plate (HAP).