The diamonds, many call them "truss markings". But in Canada, the are joist markings. The 3/4 inch floor sheeting is rated to a maximum of 24inch span. Or, 4 spaces (5 joists) for every sheet. But to shrink it up so it has more tolerance and not at it's "maximum" They use a spacing that is smaller than 24in, but bigger that the old standard, 16inch (6 spaces/7 joists). So they divided the 96inches by 5 spaces, to get a distance of 19.2 inches. Some people erroneously call it "19 1/4". But it's not. It's slightly smaller than that, and the fraction changes at each spacing. So it has to be a decimal number. Framers who have to use them a lot, refer to the system as "nineteen-two's", and sometimes they call out the numbers as "54 diamond" (or what ever number), meaning... mark it at the ninteen-two mark closest to 54.
Unless I heard this wrong but in Frame 2:10, "after the 16: centers" you said that using the black diamond allows placing a "extra stud" for the same 8 foot plywood? The 16 inch has 7. The black diamond marks only allows 6 studs per 8 foot wall so that would be 1 less.
19.2 and 24 are for roof truss/rafter/purlin framing. You can use 24 for 2x6 stud walls if local code allows it. 19.2 is very painful unless you're spray foaming... because insulation bat or rolls come in appropriate widths for 16" and 24" spacing. You will have to do a lot of cutting and will waste a lot of insulation. Very expensive mistake. No good reason to build stud walls at 19.2 that I can see, other than to make the cabinet installer curse you.
I would like to point out that the 19-3/16" spacing is actually most commonly used in floor joists made of engineered wood products such as TJI joists...i have never encountered it in building any walls or roofs ever.
I put some additional markings on my tape measure every 1.75 inches to make it easier to count rack spaces in the 19 inch rack cabinets for electronic equipment.
@ the 1:37 and 2:10 mark you state that the diamond stud layout offers an extra stud and load capacity per 8 feet. 8 feet @16" requires 7 studs, joists or rafters 8 feet @ diamond requires 6 studs, joists or rafters 8 feet @24" requires 5 studs, joists or rafters
I suppose this video serves 2 purposes. 1-To make someone with no building knowledge feel like they just learned something. 2- To amuse those of us with real building experience who know that if you needed to know any of this, you have so much to learn grasshopper, so so much to learn. Oh, I just had the stark realization what the definition of 'google education' is. If you know why a carpenter's pencil is square, you know what I'm talking about, and are chuckling right now.
Here in Canada, we went officially metric in 1976. Sort of. Our major trading partner is the US , so we have a mixture of imperial and metric. Our tapes show both. Our lumber is still the old sizing. All of the building codes are metric with imperial in brackets. We didn’t ask for the change.. it was forced on the public by an oppressive government dictate.
That little bit of wiggle in the hook end of the tape allows for the thickness of the hook. It is slotted the exact distance of the thickness of the hook material.
You know, I really like this guy. He's like a cross between Ron Hazelton and Wilford Brimley. I just hope he hasn't got the diabeetus. =P Thanks for the video! I now know what those diamond graphics are for on a tape measure. Nice.
My favorite tape measure has all kind of information on the back of the tape too, like decimal conversions, the right size tapping holes for wood screws, all sorts of stuff.
I’m sorry Tom. I’m really not “that guy”. I love your videos and view almost all of them. In fact your information kept me from wasting money on a drill press mortising attachment. So thank you and keep up the good work.
If we are honest, the inches thing mystifies some of us as well. But since my mathematical comfort zone fails right after my 4-digit pin numbers I will stick with the inches for the remainder of my time.
British tape measures are different - we have imperial on one side and metric on the other. I have just checked one of mine and it has the markings - which I had never even noticed, especially the black diamond.
Nope - not on mine. It's a Stanley 10ft 3m tape, proudly emblazoned with Made in England. There's cms and ins. Every 10cm and every 12ins are marked in red, but no diamonds, etc.
Thanks for clearing up those "pesky" black diamonds, I hate to admit it but I have been doing carpenter work for 35+ years and never bothered to find out what they were for. I will prolly never use them but hey now I know I can if I want to. 8-) 5*****
2' oc is used for other applications like core walls in commercial building and soffets, not just light structures like sheds. I also framed houses for years ad never used the black diamond even once
Me neither. Used 12" OC, 16" OC, 18" OC and 24" OC. Mostly 16" OC on rafters, ceiling joist and load bearing walls and 12" OC sometimes on floor joists.
Do you know why the metal catch on the end of the tape measure moves? or what the flat notch in it is for? First, it move depending on whether you hook an edge or push against a wall. if you hook something then it needs to pull out to keep you measuring the same as if you push it against a wall at which point it slides in. an example of this is if you hook the edge of a piece of plywood it pulls out to place true zero at the edge of the plywood and if you push on the floor or a wall the it retracts to keep true zero at the corner point. Two, the flat notch in the end of a tape measure is so you do not need a dummy to hold the end. simply insert a nail or a screw at true zero from where you need to measure from and hook the tape on it with the flat notch, as mentioned above the end will pull out and read true zero at the dead center of the nail.
usually the 19.2" and 24" are used for roofs. most trusses are at 24" oc and sometimes purlins will be at 19.2". seldom are those values used in walls.
Awesome, thx....always wondered about them black diamonds , never seen the tape with the doubled amount on the bottom for centering but I gotta get me one.....
We have reloaded this video because an error regarding the black diamonds was noticed by a viewer. We had verified this earlier when fixing another tape measure video but forgot this one. This video has been fixed now and I will go sit quietly in the corner for a while to ponder the error in my ways!
I really love my tape that shows the half-distance along on the lower edge, but can never find the damn thing when I need it. Menards carries a "lay flat" steel tape that is perfect for constant measuring and cutting with a chop saw. Anyway, thanks for this video. Mp
i saw this video used in a blog post and idd just like to say im very impressed by your video. Straight to the point, very informative, good tone, and even a little humility at the end. I will be subscribing and i hope you continue to produce such quality videos
great and simple ,did you ever teach?You sound like my old instructor in A I T after basic training when I joined the 926th combat eng.1971,wow, i'm old.
Love your stuff Tom. You've helped me a lot. I pick something up with each one. But holy smokes, are those your legs, or are you riding an ostrich? Yikes ! (only kidding buddy. Keep'em coming.) Eric
Great video! Thanks for taking the time to explain and do so in such a way as to not have the viewers feel like a total "tool"! ( a little shop humor, very little. I know because I now know how to use my three tape measures!)
I know more lol take end of a tape wrap the hook end around and line it up with 216 this represents 2016 the year... Now line up tape so it it parallel on both sides with numbers up. Go to the year you were born and your age on the opposite side will correlate so say if you were born in 1975 the number across from it will be 41. Only wrong if you havent had your birthday yet.. And always right because next year just move up a year to 217. Isn't math crazy
But....You can't get insulation batts that are 19", either 16" or 24" around here, So What are you really saving. not much in the whole project. Saves neither time nor money in some projects.
In Canada the 19.2's are used all the time, but... only for floor joists. Never for roof truss or wall studs. Never thought if it, but using it on roof or wall would cause insulation problems like Dawn Dyer said above me.
My old carpentry teacher taught me a trick with the tape measure . Find a number , any number and lock the tape measure and bend the part where the 0 is to the number you chose and look in where the loop would be and it tells you what half of that number is. For example if your number is 66 and u bend it in half u will see 33 in the round part.
The movement of the hook is to compensate for the thickness of the hook. It allows for measurements taken by butting to accurately be transferred when hooked and pulling. This movement should not be taken into account.
Yep, and no two tapes are the same because of this, especially as they wear. Never switch tapes in the middle of a project and use the whole tape for a long layout, not mark to mark.
+Brandon Blount I've come across that problem myself but only with low quality tapes. Letting the tape reel in fast and smack hard will elongate the holes that allow hook movement, ruining the calibration. I'm a framer by trade and all my guys on my crews use only Stanley Fat Max tapes. These tapes are by far the best tape on the market. Easy to read, super strong blade with a 11' standout. I'll never use another brand of tape and I recommend you try one if you haven't already.
Your favourite tape wouldn't be much use in most of the world because it only shows inches. I much prefer my Canadian tapes that have inches & metres because I can measure more different things with them. BTW: I think you will find that, while 16" is the most common stud spacing, the codes do specify different spacing depending on the size of the lumber used. 16" with appropriate sized lumber is usually the best compromise spacing so that the panelling doesn't bow between attachment points.
how about this, why does the 6 and the 9 look the same upside down? When reading the tape upside down I often mistake them. I've been a carpenter for 25 years and this still gets me. I'm also slightly dyslexic :) but really!!!!
How about the "play" in the hook end of the tape. It moves slightly when you push it against something, and moves the other way when you hook something.
That compensates for the thickness of that tab. It slides out when you measure the outside dimensions subtracting its thickness but slides in when you put the end of the tape against an inside surface to measure between say two walls or two uprights or the inside o a cabinet.
Thank you, for your video very helpful for my home repairs .. Do you have any more videos? ...I've been in a bit of spin with my protractor recently, stabbed my leg hand chest and head ..is it possible for you to cover this in your next video?
The diamonds, many call them "truss markings". But in Canada, the are joist markings. The 3/4 inch floor sheeting is rated to a maximum of 24inch span. Or, 4 spaces (5 joists) for every sheet. But to shrink it up so it has more tolerance and not at it's "maximum" They use a spacing that is smaller than 24in, but bigger that the old standard, 16inch (6 spaces/7 joists). So they divided the 96inches by 5 spaces, to get a distance of 19.2 inches. Some people erroneously call it "19 1/4". But it's not. It's slightly smaller than that, and the fraction changes at each spacing. So it has to be a decimal number. Framers who have to use them a lot, refer to the system as "nineteen-two's", and sometimes they call out the numbers as "54 diamond" (or what ever number), meaning... mark it at the ninteen-two mark closest to 54.
Unless I heard this wrong but in Frame 2:10, "after the 16: centers" you said that using the black diamond allows placing a "extra stud" for the same 8 foot plywood? The 16 inch has 7. The black diamond marks only allows 6 studs per 8 foot wall so that would be 1 less.
this may be the most straight forward video on the entire internet
19.2 and 24 are for roof truss/rafter/purlin framing. You can use 24 for 2x6 stud walls if local code allows it. 19.2 is very painful unless you're spray foaming... because insulation bat or rolls come in appropriate widths for 16" and 24" spacing. You will have to do a lot of cutting and will waste a lot of insulation. Very expensive mistake. No good reason to build stud walls at 19.2 that I can see, other than to make the cabinet installer curse you.
I would like to point out that the 19-3/16" spacing is actually most commonly used in floor joists made of engineered wood products such as TJI joists...i have never encountered it in building any walls or roofs ever.
I put some additional markings on my tape measure every 1.75 inches to make it easier to count rack spaces in the 19 inch rack cabinets for electronic equipment.
@ the 1:37 and 2:10 mark you state that the diamond stud layout offers an extra stud and load capacity per 8 feet.
8 feet @16" requires 7 studs, joists or rafters
8 feet @ diamond requires 6 studs, joists or rafters
8 feet @24" requires 5 studs, joists or rafters
That was frickin' awesome man! thanks for the visuals!
Without a doubt this is the best quick tip/info video I've seen on RUclips. No added BS. Thanks. Subscribed
BRILLIANT unravelling of an age old mystery. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THANKS! 10 years later and still useful!
Fantastic video, Now I totally understand!
This should go viral! Thanks!
I suppose this video serves 2 purposes. 1-To make someone with no building knowledge feel like they just learned something. 2- To amuse those of us with real building experience who know that if you needed to know any of this, you have so much to learn grasshopper, so so much to learn. Oh, I just had the stark realization what the definition of 'google education' is. If you know why a carpenter's pencil is square, you know what I'm talking about, and are chuckling right now.
Well, I have always assumed it is to prevent rolling...is there another slightly more practical reason? Just curious.
Here in Canada, we went officially metric in 1976. Sort of. Our major trading partner is the US , so we have a mixture of imperial and metric. Our tapes show both. Our lumber is still the old sizing. All of the building codes are metric with imperial in brackets. We didn’t ask for the change.. it was forced on the public by an oppressive government dictate.
Great video brah. And for the folks calling for metric measure bahaha.
Love the vibe, brother.... Great job!
That little bit of wiggle in the hook end of the tape allows for the thickness of the hook. It is slotted the exact distance of the thickness of the hook material.
You know, I really like this guy. He's like a cross between Ron Hazelton and Wilford Brimley. I just hope he hasn't got the diabeetus. =P
Thanks for the video! I now know what those diamond graphics are for on a tape measure. Nice.
My favorite tape measure has all kind of information on the back of the tape too, like decimal conversions, the right size tapping holes for wood screws, all sorts of stuff.
Black-diamonds are used by iron workers for their truss lay-outs.
The diamond isn't for stick framed rafters, it is for engineered trusses and engineered floor joists.
I just used to have a problem with them retracting at 100 mph and almost losing a eye or a finger but the newer ones have fixed this!
I’m sorry Tom. I’m really not “that guy”. I love your videos and view almost all of them. In fact your information kept me from wasting money on a drill press mortising attachment. So thank you and keep up the good work.
If we are honest, the inches thing mystifies some of us as well. But since my mathematical comfort zone fails right after my 4-digit pin numbers I will stick with the inches for the remainder of my time.
British tape measures are different - we have imperial on one side and metric on the other. I have just checked one of mine and it has the markings - which I had never even noticed, especially the black diamond.
Nope - not on mine. It's a Stanley 10ft 3m tape, proudly emblazoned with Made in England. There's cms and ins. Every 10cm and every 12ins are marked in red, but no diamonds, etc.
Mine is a cheap B&Q one, will now have to check my other's to see if it is on all of them!
Thanks for clearing up those "pesky" black diamonds, I hate to admit it but I have been doing carpenter work for 35+ years and never bothered to find out what they were for. I will prolly never use them but hey now I know I can if I want to. 8-)
5*****
What is the brand of the tape measure that shows the "center" of a measurement at the bottom? I sure need that!!
The diamonds at 19.2 are truss marks. More importantly engineered trusses because they aren't as strong as solid trusses which lay out at 24.
2' oc is used for other applications like core walls in commercial building and soffets, not just light structures like sheds.
I also framed houses for years ad never used the black diamond even once
Me neither. Used 12" OC, 16" OC, 18" OC and 24" OC. Mostly 16" OC on rafters, ceiling joist and load bearing walls and 12" OC sometimes on floor joists.
There is also a left hand tape. And a right hand tape measure.extremely helpful for us dislexic people.
Had a guy workin for us that called 16th marks "the little lines" "its 3 little lines boss"
Do you know why the metal catch on the end of the tape measure moves? or what the flat notch in it is for?
First, it move depending on whether you hook an edge or push against a wall. if you hook something then it needs to pull out to keep you measuring the same as if you push it against a wall at which point it slides in. an example of this is if you hook the edge of a piece of plywood it pulls out to place true zero at the edge of the plywood and if you push on the floor or a wall the it retracts to keep true zero at the corner point.
Two, the flat notch in the end of a tape measure is so you do not need a dummy to hold the end. simply insert a nail or a screw at true zero from where you need to measure from and hook the tape on it with the flat notch, as mentioned above the end will pull out and read true zero at the dead center of the nail.
also the tape "box" itself has measurements on it as well. good for taking inside measurements rather than bending the tape.
usually the 19.2" and 24" are used for roofs. most trusses are at 24" oc and sometimes purlins will be at 19.2". seldom are those values used in walls.
`The diamond marks are called E I B marks for "Engineered I-Beams"
Cool video! Thumbed up for learning something new! Also the humor factor was spot on! Thanks!
Awesome, thx....always wondered about them black diamonds , never seen the tape with the doubled amount on the bottom for centering but I gotta get me one.....
Some tapes have black and red diamonds. They both can be used for laying out beams to support concrete forms in poured concrete buildings.
We have reloaded this video because an error regarding the black diamonds was noticed by a viewer. We had verified this earlier when fixing another tape measure video but forgot this one. This video has been fixed now and I will go sit quietly in the corner for a while to ponder the error in my ways!
I hold my pencil in the right hand and the numbers are always upside-down. very annoying .
I was another one wondering about those black diamonds. Thanks!
I really love my tape that shows the half-distance along on the lower edge, but can never find the damn thing when I need it. Menards carries a "lay flat" steel tape that is perfect for constant measuring and cutting with a chop saw. Anyway, thanks for this video. Mp
i saw this video used in a blog post and idd just like to say im very impressed by your video. Straight to the point, very informative, good tone, and even a little humility at the end. I will be subscribing and i hope you continue to produce such quality videos
16" for future cinder block measurements also. 16" plus or minus 4" and you have your hole. Mostly for plumbers I guess
great and simple ,did you ever teach?You sound like my old instructor in A I T after basic training when I joined the 926th combat eng.1971,wow, i'm old.
Why the tape measure is counting every 25mm is a mystery to me
two foot centres are ok with girts and if you bare roof rafters directly on top.
Diamond layout is mostly used for timber frame homes
Rusty Shackleford and electricians and fitters
Love your stuff Tom.
You've helped me a lot.
I pick something up with each one.
But holy smokes, are those your legs, or are you riding an ostrich? Yikes !
(only kidding buddy. Keep'em coming.)
Eric
The diamonds are for BCI floor joist layout and trusses,also when yo do layout with the end of the tape
against a wall,make sure you subtract 3/4".
Thanks for the explanation. I did not know what the diamonds were for.
The first stud on layout is never set at 16”. That’s important to know.
ok, here is what we do. over time we have the government start stretching the lines on a tape measure until they match up with the metric lines.
Genius video idea. Thanks!
Great video! Thanks for taking the time to explain and do so in such a way as to not have the viewers feel like a total "tool"! ( a little shop humor, very little. I know because I now know how to use my three tape measures!)
I've been using tape measures for decades and never even noticed those little marks, as much as I can recollect.
I know more lol take end of a tape wrap the hook end around and line it up with 216 this represents 2016 the year... Now line up tape so it it parallel on both sides with numbers up. Go to the year you were born and your age on the opposite side will correlate so say if you were born in 1975 the number across from it will be 41. Only wrong if you havent had your birthday yet.. And always right because next year just move up a year to 217. Isn't math crazy
Black diamonds not just for skiing! Always wondered about them.
Awesome thanks for posting
Thanks never knew what these markings were for
I never knew that I am a new subscriber and thank you for this helpful info .
They are used for floor trusses although I suppose you could lay a wall out that way if you were the cheapest person on earth.
Thanks mate ! Nice and concise. I wondered about the little black diamonds… I see some other vids on the subject are over 12 mins long ! Sheesh !
You look like a younger Wilford Brimley.
Thanks for that lesson. Very helpful.
this is the best comments page I've ever read on YT.This page goes in the YT hall of fame.Funny comments.
Excellent video. Teaching gift.
Very informative..great explanation good video.
Black Diamond = 19.2 inches
explained very well.
I wouldn't have guessed what it all meant
That is classified information.
19.2 (the black diamond) is used all the time these days....it is still supportive and you use 1 less stud per 8 foot wall...saves money and time
But....You can't get insulation batts that are 19", either 16" or 24" around here, So What are you really saving. not much in the whole project. Saves neither time nor money in some projects.
In Canada the 19.2's are used all the time, but... only for floor joists. Never for roof truss or wall studs. Never thought if it, but using it on roof or wall would cause insulation problems like Dawn Dyer said above me.
Thank you
That was neat to find out. Thanks!
try using metric
My old carpentry teacher taught me a trick with the tape measure . Find a number , any number and lock the tape measure and bend the part where the 0 is to the number you chose and look in where the loop would be and it tells you what half of that number is. For example if your number is 66 and u bend it in half u will see 33 in the round part.
steven mckinsey
Dont forget the clip movement on the end
I was going to mention that as well
The movement of the hook is to compensate for the thickness of the hook. It allows for measurements taken by butting to accurately be transferred when hooked and pulling. This movement should not be taken into account.
Yep, and no two tapes are the same because of this, especially as they wear. Never switch tapes in the middle of a project and use the whole tape for a long layout, not mark to mark.
+Brandon Blount
I've come across that problem myself but only with low quality tapes. Letting the tape reel in fast and smack hard will elongate the holes that allow hook movement, ruining the calibration. I'm a framer by trade and all my guys on my crews use only Stanley Fat Max tapes. These tapes are by far the best tape on the market. Easy to read, super strong blade with a 11' standout. I'll never use another brand of tape and I recommend you try one if you haven't already.
you should add the mark on plate is the side of stud and the X is side where stud will be. So you dont mark center but the side. clarence
THANK YOU! This is so helpful :)
Stanley fatmax is the best tape out there for your money
Excellent video Thanks
Subway sammitches are 11'' at best.
Interesting and clever!
Your favourite tape wouldn't be much use in most of the world because it only shows inches. I much prefer my Canadian tapes that have inches & metres because I can measure more different things with them.
BTW: I think you will find that, while 16" is the most common stud spacing, the codes do specify different spacing depending on the size of the lumber used. 16" with appropriate sized lumber is usually the best compromise spacing so that the panelling doesn't bow between attachment points.
I want to buy a tape measure like your favorite with half scale. can't find it anywhere. help
You can find them at Lee Valley Tools
www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=32558&cat=1,43513
Spot on👍
how about this, why does the 6 and the 9 look the same upside down? When reading the tape upside down I often mistake them. I've been a carpenter for 25 years and this still gets me. I'm also slightly dyslexic :) but really!!!!
I had no idea. THanks
Useful information
I have one tape measure with small triangles on the 1-31/32 inch mark, on both edges of the tape. Do you know what that one is for?
Most of my tapes have 10ths and 100ths on the top & inches and 8ths on the bottom.
Why are the numbers upside down? Like most people I'm right handed, so I hold the tape in my left hand and make marks with my right hand.
my tape measure has a mark at just below the 2 inch line (or about 50mm).
GREAT VIDEO
Cool! Thanks!
How about the "play" in the hook end of the tape. It moves slightly when you push it against something, and moves the other way when you hook something.
That allows for the thickness of the hook, so the markings are accurate for both inside and outside measurements.
I knew that, you should include that in your video. Good Job.
That compensates for the thickness of that tab. It slides out when you measure the outside dimensions subtracting its thickness but slides in when you put the end of the tape against an inside surface to measure between say two walls or two uprights or the inside o a cabinet.
nice video with pretty useful information. I do have a question that no one can seem to answer. Why is the first foot in a larger font than the rest?
I don;t have a clue why that is.
So in summary, the tape is for measuring studs. What was that middle part again?
So maybe some of those people in the I Got Mail series could be right about you? :-)
Thank you, for your video very helpful for my home repairs .. Do you have any more videos? ...I've been in a bit of spin with my protractor recently, stabbed my leg hand chest and head ..is it possible for you to cover this in your next video?
Very informative, thx
Thank you for video !!!