Double Grip Gauge or Quad Gauges

Do any of you, that use a boxcar base, use either the double grip gauge or the quad gauge? If you do, do the tongues have to completely clear the base? On the double grip the tongues are much more flexible and they’re flat. But I still worry about the base getting nicked by the tongues. Please share your secrets! Thanks.

I want to know the same!! Did you ever figure this out? I’m positioning my pins for the first time.

Thanks!

Hi Kerry,

For what it’s worth, I use short pieces of brass rule as pins when I’m using a base. I’ll attach a photo. Let me know if you need any more info on this solution.

Best of luck!

I like Henry Compressible Gage pin from NA Graphics. They are designed to be used with photopolymer plates. Before I discovered them, I made my own using 3M Double Sided Foam Tape and a section of transparency sheet.

On the double grip the tongue is fine. You have to make sure that you don’t print on the tongue though. Nothing bad happens if you do, it just bends it a little. You have to make sure that the actual body of the double grip doesn’t get crushed by the base. 

I’ll put my plate on the base in the bottom left with the crop marks right up against the edge and print on the tympan. Since the crop marks are at the very edge of the base I’ll know where the limit is for my gauge pins to go. The double grip are great for making minute adjustments for register.

I have quads but havent used them with the base. Sorry.

FWIW, the way the double grips are the tongue has some room for compression and on the quads it’s more rigid and less forgiving.

Patrick, thanks for the tip!

I just got mine in the mail. Really looking forward to trying them! 

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions. I was thinking that there should be a way to make them as others have done with the brass rule or foam tape. I love options!

I just used quad gauges for the first time (Kort) and the tongues touched the base, but they didn’t crush anything so just be cautious when trying it out for the first time but you should be good 🙂

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