Dewalt’s new Tough Series tape measures are advertised with a 100-foot drop rating.
The fine print says that the Dewalt Tough Series tape measures are still perfectly functional after a 100-foot drop into packed soil.
Advertisement
I imagined that the impact testing was done using drop weight towers, and tried to work out how drop rating claims relate to more realistic scenarios since tape measures should always be secure when working at height. But, all that was for naught.
Recent Stanley Black & Decker investor communications convey exactly how the Dewalt Tough Series tape measures are drop-tested.
[The Tough Series] also features a measuring tape that can survive a 100-foot drop. This is a test done many times via drone by our engineers. It’s one of their favorites.
That does sound like fun. Hmm, this is one of Dewalt engineers’ favorite tests. What else could come close to dropping tools out of the sky?
I’d hope that impact tests are done as well, but at least now we know – Dewalt Tough Series tape measures are drop-tested using drones.
Are any other tools impact-tested in a similar manner?
Advertisement
Drop tests with soil as the impact surface still isn’t exactly a very scientific measure, or at least it’s very imprecise. Is the drone drop testing done at the hand tools HQ in Connecticut, or power tools HQ in Maryland? This could make a difference. What happens when you drop the same tool on concrete?
A few years ago, a tool brand tried to show off their power tool durability by tossing a cordless drill out of a helicopter and onto a grassy field. I suppose dropping tools from a drone is the modern equivalent.
I wonder if Dewalt did the same sort of testing over a parking lot or other similarly hard impact surface.
Charles
If they wanted to do some kind of standard drop test, certainly refering to Mil-Std-810 would be a great start. Plus the miliarty aspect I’m sure would get many users excited. But may not reflect reality, where the typical use case is dropping stuff off a scaffold.
candrews
I’m just going to invite punishment with this, however I just received a couple Ryobi 25′ tapes yesterday, and they seem quite similar. No idea on a ‘drop test’, however they are well-armored. And they’re less than $6….
https://www.homedepot.com/p/RYOBI-25-ft-Tape-Measure-with-Overmold-and-Wireform-Belt-Clip-RTM25/300753184
Michael Hester
I’ll give you a second on the ryobi. I bought mine from a direct tools store for four dollars. That price is hard to pass up for a full-size tape measure. Its a 16 foot thumb lock. I have to say that I am extremely impressed with it. One caveat, the scale isnt printed on both sides of the tape. The 1/8” graduations are printed between every inch which help me ascertain the factorial of the measurement very easily. I haven’t drop tested it or anything but it seems to be as durable as any of my other tapes. Time will tell…..if i can keep from losing it before its time
Charlie
A more impressive (and relevant) test would be how many seconds it can last in the hands of a 6-year old.
JG
This is a great idea. My kids are that age now to be perfect testers
MM
Many years ago I used to be involved with some research involving the packaging materials used for MREs. I rented a scissor lift and used that for the drop platform. Made it very easy to adjust to different heights.
Jared
The problem is, any attempt to make these metrics more scientifically repeatable will undoubtedly reduce the drop distance the manufacturers can publish.
I’m not picking on Milwaukee or Dewalt for choosing to do these tests on “packed soil”. You can imagine if Dewalt tested these new tapes on concrete instead and found out they could survive, nine times out of ten, a 40′ drop – then “drop tested to 40-feet” on the package is going to sound a lot less impressive than “drop tested to 80-feet” that Milwaukee puts on theirs. Few people will notice that one brand is using superior test criteria.
It’s kinda like “reach”…
Koko The Talking Ape
They could always launch the tape measures straight up into the air with a catapult-like device that uses springs or compressed air. Use a video camera a known distance away to determine the angle and thus the height they start falling from.
But as Stuart says, using “packed earth” more or less negates the value of the tests, whether they used drones or catapults.
Incidentally, the one time I dropped a tape the front hook got bent. I bent it back, but I was never sure it was exactly what it used to be. That would throw off my measurements by some tiny amount. But I guess it didn’t matter in real life, because I forgot about it until now.
But if a tape had some way to protect the hook without hurting the tape’s usability, I’d take a look a look at it.
Mr. X
If tape manufacturers expect 40, 80, or 100 foot drops, maybe they should think about including a lanyard loop on the tape case.
I’d be far more impressed if DeWalt, Milwaukee, Stanley, or any other manufacturer of tape measures could figure out a way to imbed “reading a tape measure” in grade school math curriculum. It would be great if I did not have to teach my high school electrical shop students how to perform this very basic and valuable skill… I’m pretty sure I learned this in the 5th or 6th grade.
James
Hahaha true to many new workers have no idea about the very basics. Im bridge builder when we drop a tape (or anything) if it goes further than 6 inches its dead. 20 ft onto rocks then into a river even if it lived though that its washed away .
Michael Hester
Me too! I learned during the mechanical drawing semester in my seventh grade Industrial arts class. I wonder if those are even offered in school anymore?
Jbongo
Now if only I had a drone to test drop more tools from the sky! How high do you think a hammer could go? 😀
Joatman
Why doesn’t someone come out with a tape measure that has a retractable leash that can clip onto a belt or pocket…..3 or 4 ft would suffice. Wouldn’t that eliminate the possibility of accidentally dropping it from a 40 ft ladder onto someone’s head? How hard could it be to engineer something so simple? No more drop tests.
Joatman
Or….. just add a lanyard hole.
MM
It would be trivially easy. But I think it’s missing the point. Or pointS, really.
The first point is that the marketing people want big impressive numbers to put on their packaging. The second is that dropping is a proxy for rough in general. While I don’t expect to ever drop my tape anywhere near that kind of height I can think to myself that if a tape can withstand a big drop it will likely also survive sliding around in the back of my truck bed, being banged into stuff while it’s hanging off a tool belt, and other sorts of rough use.
They’re not trying to solve an epidemic of dropped tapes, they’re trying to demonstrate how tough their product is.
Joatman
Yep, I understand the point of demonstrating how tough one can be. But when we’re talking about a plastic product, it can only be so tough, regardless of the amount fiberglass glass they use, when dropped from a considerable height. In such a test, different results would be produced depending on the initial point of contact. But I’m with you….I’m not usually up so high that I would need to worry about it…..but if I was, and dropped one, and shattered it……..well…..they only cost the amount of a pizza.
Frank D
Why not drop onto asphalt and concrete?
It could be standardized, repeatable and verifiable … 😉
MM
Because that generates lower numbers, and that doesn’t sound as good from a marketing perspective.
There’s nothing new about this, it’s been going on in various feilds for decades. A great example is audio gear. A repuatable company will quote RMS power ratings under real-world conditions. A less repuatable one will quote peak power instead, because the number is higher so it sounds more impressive. Same nonsense as how you can by a shop vac rated “5 horsepower” even though a wall outlet can’t supply that much power.
Mr. X
Then why not drop it from 1000 feet into a pool? Hit it with some compressed air, spray it down with WD-40, and claim your marketing prize. In all seriousness, some transparency with the testing parameters is a reasonable expectation .
Just about any decent tape can survive a fall from most common working heights these days. Anything higher and OSHA regulations and common safety practices kick in. On most construction sites, the damage is done while the tape is deployed. The toughness of the tape itself is more important than the toughness of the case. Interesting that the marketing teams seem to devote less time to the durability of the tape than they do to the case.
MM
I suspect they don’t drop it into water because everyone knows that’s a bit silly while “hard packed dirt” sounds like a fairly common jobsite so it withstands a little scrutiny.
Don’t get me wrong, transparency and reasonable test parameters are a totally reasonable expectation, and I totally agree that the toughness of the tape is more important (to me, anyway). I’m not defending what the marketing squad seems to be doing here, I can just see how & why they do it.
Michael Hester
I think all of these marketing claims are ambiguous at best. Wheres the video of this test? Standardizing dropping on asphalt or concrete would pretty much eliminate that as a selling parameter. Plastic can only hold up so much. I would be more impressed if they cut the distance in half and dropped it on real world surface but I’m willing to bet they can’t handle that type of an impact
Plain grainy
These tests are done with the tape retracted. How about some tests with the tape locked at 1-2-3 feet? I still think they should make a glove with a tape pocket on the backhand. It would be usable while in the glove, and you probably wouldn’t know it was there. Don’t have it on your strong hand though, sure will notice it while using a hammer.
MM
I once received some sort of “3 in one miracle tool” as a white elephant gift. It was a wristband equipped with a built-in tape measure, a light, and a magnet for holding screws.
Plain grainy
After watching workers constantly reaching in their tool belt. Just seems more plausible to have it as part of your hand. My 25’ tape doesn’t have much heft to it.
HiggiML
I think if you drop your tape from 80′, you perhaps deserve to have it brake. A more useful test might be how many times can the tape be knocked off a standard workbench onto concrete or how many times can it be dropped in the dirt before it starts to misbehave.
HiggiML
Whoops… *break*, not brake.
Nam
Please check out Komelon TS series