Your cart is empty.
Your cart is empty.Product Description
Jean-Luc M.
Reviewed in the United States on July 24, 2023
Very bad build quality. I hardly got to use mine before it broke.
James
Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2023
It can get jammed often and you have to take it apart to fix it but does the job when it works
Jazznupe
Reviewed in the United States on September 29, 2022
I originally was going to drop a point because the tape is oriented on the spool with the meter side up and therefore the foot side down. You can get by that by just looking at the foot side and holding that up when you start to unwind. You will just have to flip the roll over when winding. Not a dealbreaker at all considering this is less than $20 and you get 165 feet of useable tape. Think about that next to a metal tape measure that only goes from 25 to 50 feet and look at the price of the 50 ft tape measure. This tape is supposed to be waterproof; it appears more water resistant, meaning hopefully it won't fade or run if it gets wet, but I wouldn't plan on using it to measure an area where it will sit in the water. It has a metal ring on the end so you can attach it somewhere at the starting point and be able to conduct measurements without the help of someone to hold the tape. The reel feels solid, and the handle seems to be good enough for the long haul as long as I don't abuse it. Again, under $20 is what makes that just fine. The value is here for this product. Hope that helps.
Jazzie
Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2022
This measuring tape is great for measuring residential lots or any area actually that is of quite a distance. The tape pulls out easily and I am pleased the case is not heavy and/or labor intensive to carry around. The crank works very well. My only issue has to do with reeling the tape back into the case; as you need to watch it to make sure that the tape doesn’t get twisted when rolling back up into the case. This situation happened the first several times I used the tape measure, but now that I am more cognizant of paying attention to how it rolls up, I have not been having any problems.
AndySki
Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2022
My prior Measuring tape reel was downright painful to use. It's one of those ones in a heavy metal case, with a small non-geared crank to wind the tape back in. On top of that, the tape itself was made of steel. That sounds like a nice tape, doesn't it? All metal and heavy duty. Yes, it's definitely tops in the durability department, but terrible as far as usability goes. It was OK for measuring short distances, but once you got out close to its limit of 100 feet it was literally a pain to use. The short crank didn't give much leverage to be able to easily wind that heavy steel tape back into the case, and because it wasn't geared it took what seemed like forever to get it all back in. All the while my hands would cramp up because of the work that was involved in turning the crank, plus there was no really comfortable way to hold it while using it.This Dowell tape is a dream to use in comparison! The fiberglass tape is so much lighter and easier to deal with, and the LARGE and LONG crank handle brings even the entire length of 165 feet back into the real very quickly. The whole thing is very lightweight, in fact, and the carrying handle on the end is very comfortable to hold. The tape is marked in SAE units on one side and Metric on the other. It feeds in and out between two posts which keep it properly aligned and prevent it from being pulled back in to the reel too far.This thing is truly a pleasure to use. No longer will I dread those long measuring tasks!
Robert Crandall
Reviewed in the United States on July 9, 2022
I am a fan of the Dowel line of tools.Sadly this one lacks some quality.It is replacing a Dewalt and those are big shoes to fill.At first the crank didn't work. There was some plastic flash tucked down inside. Once I got that out it worked ok.The tape itself looks like it was stamped on some type of roller. I don't see those numbers holding up in rain or snow so I will have to be careful of that.It will still work for laying out my corals or gardens but they really need to upgrade this to be competitive.
TheEngineer
Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2022
This Dowell Open-Reel Measuring Tape is well-built, with a solid, but lightweight, ABS frame, and a fold-over crank handle. The surface finish is smooth and the frame has no sharp edges, gaps, or flash. At a total weight of just 1lb 14oz, the measuring tape is easy to hold in one hand and the crank moves smoothly to wind the tape back into the frame. The internal rollers do a good job of keeping the tape from coiling/tangling when rewinding.The tape itself is clearly marked in English units on one side (feet in red + inches in black) and metric units on the other side (meters in red + centimeters in black). The crank handle folds-over both to become more compact and to “lock” the tape, preventing it from unwinding when not in use (see photos).The tape is nominally 165ft / 50m in length. The first four inches are used for a metal end-hook and the reinforcing strap that holds it on (see photo). It is roughly ¼” longer than actual in that first 4 inches, but when measuring 100ft lengths, that’s not particularly significant. When fully unwound, the tape actually measures 156ft 7inches in length ( =50.46meters ).At this price-point, this is a nicely-built long-length measuring tape.
Doug G.
Reviewed in the United States on October 3, 2022
Pros:Smooth mechanism, easy to turn hand-crankCompact and convenient to carryCons:The printed gradations in feet measurement look faded and are inconsistent (some numbers are printed too close to the edge of the tape)When I bent the tape, it did not easily recover; it kept a crease
Recommended Products