laser distance measuring tool
how may of you are using them & what brand . Any comments on there performance and functions would be greatly appreciated
thanks
Discussion Forum
Discussion Forum
Up Next
Video Shorts
Featured Story
The FHB Podcast crew takes a closer look at an interesting roof.
Featured Video
Highlights
"I have learned so much thanks to the searchable articles on the FHB website. I can confidently say that I expect to be a life-long subscriber." - M.K.
Replies
Hilti PD30.
Very accurate and very easy to use. Sunlight can be a problem but most of the measurements I need to do are inside. Very helpful when you have a room full of junk, to get a measurement you just need a line of sight.
Bought for $350 at HD.
Jon Blakemore
RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA
Did you consider anything lower priced? I do not need pinpoint accuracy, mostly just rough room measurements for finding square or lineal footage. $350 is too good for what I need.
Stanley just came out with a lie of these, three tools that increase in accuracy with a corresponding increase in price. Have yet to find out where they can be found, however.
http://www.stanleytools.com/default.asp?TYPE=CATEGORY&CATEGORY=LASER+MEASURING
I believe the top of the line goes for about $450. The cheapest may be $250, though I can't recall where I read the numbers from.
"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." Invictus, by Henley.
I saw an ad in the latest issue of FHB for a stanley laser tape for $99 if I remember it right...definitly caught my eye! ...and it claims that it's very accurate.Justin Fink - FHB Editorial
Bought one of those yesterday. Took it out to the garage I'm trimming out. Laid down a tape from jamb to jamb, the distance was 14 3/4". Put the laser against the jamb and pointed it to the other jamb. Read 15 1/4". Tried it several more times, but it didn't change from 15 1/4".
So it was off 1/2" in 16 feet. Obviously not ideal test conditions, but, I'm not gonna use it to cut base or crown, though it would be nice to be as accurate as my FatMax.
I got it for job estimations, so the homeowner wouldn't have to hold the end of a tape, but instead stand there and be impressed with my arsenal of high-tech gizmos. I know I am.
I was gonna spring for a $400 model at the nest convention, but I think this'll do for now.
"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." Invictus, by Henley.
How accurate is your FatMax? Wonder what the tolerances are for a tape measure.
That was the $100 new Stanley model? It's actually made by Leica. It has a +/- accuracy of 1/4" @ 100'. That's compared with +/- 1/16" at 650' for the Hilti. Must of been a bad apple - sure doesn't seem to inspire confidence.I've been checking, and based on the recent Tools of the Trade review and another article I found, it seems like the Spectra LM150 is the (relatively) low priced ($350) unit to get. Both reviews mentioned that the Spectra (Also Trimble) was the easiest to use, as well as having a couple of advanced functions not found in the PD30 or Leica classic.It's about $330 at Amazon, but I'd like to get my hands on it before I spend that kind of cash.JT
Interesting application for the laser measurement tool (measurer?) Laying out a new lighting circuit, all steel conduit along a garage ceiling, solo. Set one JB, determined the location for the next, needed to know the length between the two, but the tape wouldn't stay straight. Whipped out the laser, pointed at the JB, and the thing spit out an error. Tried it twice more, both errors. By the way, the JBs are metal. I figured they were too reflective. I put some electrical tape on the JB, flashed the laser at it, and it gave me a good number. Cut the conduit and installed. Sweet. And I was only gonna use it for estimates.
"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." Invictus, by Henley.
Stop... stop... you're gonna ruin my tool budget!
I've blown the tool budget so many years in a row, I've decided to make the budget what I spend, lol. Aka, no budget. Of course, when DW asks why there's no food on the table, I'll lay that little laser gizmo on her plate and say, bon apetite. I will no doubt need surgery to have it removed from my, well, you can guess.
Actually, I've used it more for work related uses than estimates, so far. And although its accuracy is not as great as the more expensive models, it is highly more accurate and useful than the ultrasonic models, which are nothing more than pet toys, IMO.
"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." Invictus, by Henley.
I've been close to buying one as a present to myself, and had been considering the Spectra/Trimble model - it gets a bit higher ratings than the Hilti- easier to use, a few more functions, etc.But now until the 14th, Home Depot has a 25% discount on all Hilti Laser tools, bringing the cost of the PD30 from $349 to $261.The Trimble unit is about $330 on Amazon.Still not sure whether I'll jump on one yet...JT
i'm using the hilti pd 30 to measure framing on my current paid vacation in the NC mtns that several of you have helped with on the forum.i'm moving some doors and some walls and shoot from the bottom to the
top plates for new studs.
finally got the AD&E stand zeroed to the tapes so I can set the stop, place stud and cut. No tape to measure cuts, just the tape on the stand. Its much faster and more accurate.Gary Katz is using his for trim.I can work alone and do not deal with the bend in the tape or the pulling or the standout or anything.i'm sure the novelty will wear off but the efficiency will increase and the steel tape is still necessary for layout but not much more.The Milwaukee 28 volt kit is also saving all sorts of time here and all over the place.One of the most useful tools is this forum.Thanks.
For those doing interior work (finish carpentry, electrical, drywall, etc.), how would you go about evaluating a unit, cheap or expensive, before trusting it?
http://www.buildingareameasurement.com/ldm0503.pdfhttp://toolsofthetrade.net/articles/showarticle.asp?articleid=1957&qu=laser+distance&ct=TOTTThese are the two reviews that were helpful to me.JT
Its nice placing your trust in someone else. I definitely use Car & Driver to tell me what vehicle I should buy next.
Come on, you do no testing for yourself?
I saw the new FatMax (model TLM 100) distance finder today for $100, and it looked pretty slick.Is this the one some of you have been talking about?My question is are these things just good for general estimating, or are they accurate enough to measure for running trim, baseboards, crown moldings, etc.?Here's the link:http://www.professionalequipment.com/xq/ASP/ProductID.4230/id.15/qx/default.htm
Edited 12/11/2005 1:10 am by nikkiwood
That Stanley model is accurate to 1/4" at 100'. The other models mentioned here, Hilti, Spectra, and Leica are accurate to about 1/16"-1/8" at 600'.Depends on your needs and uses I guess; the Stanley is actually made by Leica, and there are two other advanced models that HD sells on their website at $249 and $499.jt
I know that's the spec (1/4" in 100'). But I'm curious to know if anyone uses this model, or the more expensive ones in place of ####tape for measuring stuff that has to be cut to exact size. I can see where they would be great for general estimating purposes.********************************************************
"It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."
John Wooden 1910-
I bought the cheap one, and it's not as accurate as advertised.
http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=66326.10"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." Invictus, by Henley.
Our trim guy picked up the FatMax at JLC LIVE a couple of weeks ago. He has about 1000miles (slightly exagerated) of crown to run and most of the runs are less than 18' so it should be as accurate as a tape measure.
I'll ask him Monday if he's used it and if it is working for him.
Yes, I did consider other models.The problem is I heard various reports that the cheaper models ($20-120) would not give consistent measurements. I use Hilti for measurements for drafting so I need to be at lease within an inch.Bottom line for me was I could buy a Ryobi skill saw or a HD77. I'm confident in my measurements with the Hilti and I expect to get many years of service.It's one of my favorite tools now.
Jon Blakemore RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA
There are no cheap laser measurement tools. The tools you are referring to I believe use some sort of ultra-sonic system, with a plain laser pointer. I have one such tool by Straight-line and it has a cone-shaped depression that is used for the measurement. It is a POS, and the only thing I use it for is to get the cats riled up, they play with the laser dot and come running wihen they hear the 'tick-tick-tick' when I press the button.
"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." Invictus, by Henley.
Stanley recently introduced a laser-measurement tool that is truly a laser unit - not an ultra-sonic.The size of the "dot" or measurement spot on the ultrasonic's is about 4-6' diameter at 50', the laser unit's "dot" at 50' in more like 1-2".The new stanley has impressive specs for a $100 unit, but I've not seen it in any stores yet.I also have one of the straightLine models and it's maybe okay for rough numbers, but almost useless really.JT
I have a Leica Disto Classic 5a. It is excellent when installing crown moulding. It will measure internal distances up to 200 m with a precision of +/- 1 mm. Leica promises +/- 1,5 mm, but it is actually more accurate than that. (1/32"= 0.8 mm)
Re: Leica Disto Classic 5a (now A5)I looked this up, and the info on its capabilities was sketchy.I assume you can set the machine to measure inches instead of metric, right?For inside measurements, does it account for its own length? That is, if I'm measuring from wall to wall (crown molding, for instance), does it automatically give you the overall measure, or do you have to add for the machine itself?They claim it will work outdoors; have you had a chance to try that?Thanks. ********************************************************
"It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."
John Wooden 1910-
Edited 11/30/2005 9:24 pm by nikkiwood
Yes to all of your questions. If you use it outdoors in bright daylight, you will need reflectors, when measuring distances longer than 30 feet
I've used the $35 ultrasonic beastie and it was fine. Plus/minus a few inches, but I was just inventorying asbestos-containing materials (flooring, ceiling, etc) so a very similar application to estimating. Some of them with have a multiplication mode and may alway throw in a 8-foot ceiling height.
Maybe one of them also calcs the sum of 4 walls plus the ceiling. I made an Excel table for that. One table for 8-foot walls and one for 7-foot walls (trailers - blech!).
Yes, they save time and tripping over the junk in the room.
How do any of these units handle reflection (of the laser light) when the surface is at an angle relative to the wall its sources from? For instance, let's say I have a room where one wall is one large opening and yet adjacent with a 45º angle?I'd love to see how this could measure my projector-to-screen distances for home theater setup, but I'm also concerned about its ability toi reflect sufficiently off the projection screen. These will be weak to strongly acute angles (5º-25º).BTW, 1/4" in 100' (ratio of 1:4800) sounds decent considering I have never met anyone capable of residential-building to that tolerance in Georgia. So, 1/16" in 650' is so overkill as to be a joke, IMO. A 1:4800 ratio is like saying you are off one-inch in 1-1/3 football field lengths. Ah 4th and inches.
The funny thing about these lasers, is that the reading is within +/- 1.5 mm of the true value, regardless of the distance measured. It is not a ratio thing. That means that you will be able to measure the football field vithin +/- 1,5 mm or +/-1/16".
Now I´m not sure if it is +/- 1,5 mm or if the measurement is within 1.5 mm of the true value, wich means +/- 0,75 mm or 1/32" I have to look it up.
Edit:
It is +/-1.5 mm (1/16") for the Leica Disto Classic 5A.
Edited 12/8/2005 9:09 am ET by mattias
Nuke,I just tried my Hilti (unscientifically) and it seems to be pretty accurate to about 15° or so. If the surface is somewhat reflective that can skew the readings though.
Jon Blakemore RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA
I'm curious how these would work for measuring the exterior footprint of a house. I measured one yesterday... there are basically no targets at the outside corners, so when you stand at one corner aiming the unit, what do you aim at down at the other end of the wall? It sounds like you'd either have to tack a target on at the cornerboads or get someone to stand there holding one.
The house I measured had many shrubs planted along it. Sure would have been nice to beam a laser thru all that rather than thread my tape thru.
David,That is the biggest issue I have with mine. A combination of a few factors all work in unison.1. The laser is not bright enough to be seen unless it's dawn or dusk. If you can see the sun you're pretty much guarenteed that the point will disappear at >3'. So you can't necessarily see where you're aiming at.2. Holding the laser steady can be a problem. I've seen some with scopes on them (more expensive Hilti option) but even with the scope I'm not sure that I could be steady enough over 50+ feet to get a good reading. I'm sure you could rig up a tripod but that gets problematic.3. The lack of a good target, like you said, is also an issue. One of the things I've intended to do for a while (but haven't yet) is to start carrying a 12"x24" piece of AL coil that I could use as a target.Alot of the houses we work on have vinyl so it would be pretty easy to use a spring clamp to affix the coil to the outside corner and take it from there. If they have wood corners I would think a few small tacks would be acceptable. Masonry presents a problem.I've shot to the inside of gutters before and added the distance to the true corner. This can work but factors 1 & 2 come into play.Like the shrubs you mentioned, I love it when I look at a basement with stuff piled everywhere because I imagine that anybody else would have to spend 30 minutes to get what I can in 5 with more accuracy.
Jon Blakemore RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA