Miter square

For the square in London, see Mitre Square.

Miter square

A mitre square with a wooden stock, a steel blade, and brass rivets
Other names	Mitre square
Classification	Hand tool Square (tool)
Used with	Pens, pencils, marking knives
Related	Square (tool)

A miter square or mitre square is a hand tool used in woodworking and metalworking for marking and checking angles other than 90°. Most miter squares are for marking and checking 45° angles and its supplementary angle, 135°.^[1][2]

A miter is a bevelled edge – usually 45° – used, for example, for making miter joints for woodworking.^[2] Squares are tools designed for marking and checking specific fixed angles, usually 90° or 45°, though most squares are exclusively for working with 90° angles.

Description

As with 90° squares, there are many different types of miter square. Miter squares are usually made from two fixed parts, a stock and a blade (sometimes called a tongue).

The blade on a modern factory-made miter square is typically a thin piece of metal which is fixed at 45° onto or into the stock, forming a 'T' shape. The stock is usually much thicker than the blade and is made from wood, metal or plastic. Until the development of factory-made squares in the 18th century miter squares were made entirely from wood, though some woodworkers still make themselves wooden miter squares.^[1]

Other forms of miter square include the dovetail square, with the blade set at an angle suited to marking out dovetail joints, and the Japanese miter square, a flat piece of metal with a thin metal stock along one edge – similar in construction to a speed square.^[3]

Some other types of square incorporate miter squares, such as combination squares, speed squares, and try squares with a mitered stock.^[4][1]

Examples

• 
  Square with a wooden stock, a steel blade, and brass rivets.
• 
  A metal miter square
• 
  A try square with a miterd stock
• 
  Combination squares incorporate a miter square
• 
  A square similar in design to historic wooden try squares.
• 
  Square made from beech
• 
  A mitered T-square
• 
  A miter bevel.^[5]

References

1. Salaman, R. A. (1975). Dictionary of tools used in the woodworking and allied trades, c. 1700-1970. New York, USA: Scribner. pp. 472–479. ISBN 978-0-684-14535-8 – via Internet Archive.
2. "mitre square | miter square, n.". Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. July 2023. doi:10.1093/OED/4371811980.
3. Truini, Joseph (September 1986). "Measuring Up". Popular Mechanics. Hearst Magazines. pp. 87–90. ISSN 0032-4558. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
4. "The Multi-talented Combination Square: A Whole Lot Of Tool In One Small Package". www.woodcraft.com. Archived from the original on 31 October 2020. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
5. Schwarz, Christopher (27 May 2014). "Melencolia Square, Part 2: An Angular English Friend". Lost Art Press. Archived from the original on 27 October 2020. Retrieved 27 October 2020.