What will the Stud Thud enable me to do that I'm unable to do now with my $5 Stanley Special? That is, HOW is it superior to other magnetic stud finders?
Hi Nestor,
Sorry for taking so long to respond but the forum banned me "forever" when they thought that I was trying to sell something...I thought I made that clear at the onset.
Anyway, let me address your questions---which are all valid ones:
The reason that I invented a studfinder that does what the StudTHUD does was because I have used most of the stuff that's out there...from the electronic ones to the magnetic ones. I'm only going to discuss magnetic ones since the electronic ones are in a
world of their own and that's all I have to say about them ; )
My first stud finder was the Stanley that you mention. It was always my favorite because I knew that when it indicated that it had found a screw, then the chances were good that I was right over a stud. The problem with it is that it is much too wimpy; i.e. magnet is weak and the mechanism is way too sensitive. If you're on a wall that has the typical aberations such as little specs of stuff stuck in the paint, they will deflect the pivoted magnet and suggest that it has found a screw...which means that you really have to watch the thing very closely and make sure what it is telling you is correct. It is also position sensitive which means that it works differently or not at all depending on how it is oriented. Additionally the head of the magnet is very very small. Which means that unless you drag it smack dab over a screw, it won't pick it up. And lastly, due to the magnet's lack of strength, it is limited to sheetrock---you'd be hard pressed to find a screw underneath tile and it would never be able to pick up the presence of the nails in plasterboard or worse, in lath and plaster.
As far as the other magnetic ones out there, the best is the Magic Stud finder. It is a very clever design. It uses stronger magnets and its method of indication is unambiguous. I came up with the approach for the StudTHUD without ever having seen the Magic Studfinder. According to my IP attorney, although there are similarities between us, there are very fundamental differences that allow us to coexist without infringing on each other's patents. I tend to think that the Magic Studfinder is limited to finding screws in sheetrock. It might be able to pick up the screws under tile but beyond that it's not going to work.
As far as the other magnetic studfinders, they are no more than big magnets that you rub on the wall until you feel the pull of a screw. They're fine for sheetrock but that's about it. You can't feel the pull of the nails under plasterboard or lath and plaster. It's like trying to hold a magnet in your hand to find the North Pole.
So here are the advantages of the StudTHUD over all the other magnetic stud finders that are out there are:
1. Ease of use: it's so obvious that all you do is ask someone to rub it on the wall to find a stud and wham! As soon as they ride it over a screw, the magnet plunges forward and whacks the wall. If you move it away, the magnet returns to its resting position and is ready to "thud" the next screw. If you just let it go when it's in its "thud" position, it'll just stay attached to the wall showing you where the stud is.
2. You don't have to look at it since it can be held in any position and its "thud" will tell you when it's found something.
3. It will find fasteners in ceilings and floors. This is useful if you need to find out where the strapping is in the ceiling. I'm not sure how useful it is for floors---but I guess a more useful variation on this would be to find hidden metal in wood that you're going to plane. So rather than ruining your planer's blade, the StudTHUD, can be rubbed over the surface of the board and it will thud whenever it finds even the slightest piece of metal.
4. There are no parts to lose. (Magic Studfinder has those discs) The StudTHUD has everything locked up inside of the housing.
5. The size and shape. It is small enough to stick in your pocket but big enough so that you won't lose it. It feels just right in your hand.
6. The magnet is 1 inch in diameter. This makes it very easy to find fasteners since it is scanning such as large area. Anyone should be able to find a screw in a sheetrocked wall within 10 seconds. From that point, you just move it straight up to find more and then straight down. Then move it 16" to the left or right to find fasteners in the adjacent studs and you've got a solid picture of exactly what is going on behind that wall.
7. There are 3 different flavors to choose from:
The
"Lite" which, like all the StudTHUDs has a 1" diameter magnet, but it is of a weaker strength. So it is strong enough to find screws under sheetrock but beyond that you should get the "Pro".
The
"Pro" has a much stronger magnet and is adjustable. This makes it capable of finding fasteners in any kind of wall. From sheetrock to plasterboard to lath and plaster. To aid in the indication of fasteners, the body is clear so that you will not only hear the thud, but you can also see the magnet move when it is being attracted to metal in the wall. This comes in real handy when you have no idea how a wall is constructed. I was pleasantly surprised when I used the "Lite" to find studs in someone's condo and was confused as to how the "Lite" was "thudding" the wall. It didn't make sense. So I got out the "Pro" and it became very clear. They had used steel studs that were mounted sideways! The Pro, due to its visual and audible indication, allowed me to "see" exactly what was going on because the magnet's amount of movement was greater over a screw than it was over the steel stud! Very cool.
The
"Mark Too" has the same strong magnet as the "Pro" although it is not adjustable at this time. It is unique from the "Lite" and the "Pro" in that it can find studs on either of its ends. One end works just like the other StudTHUDs where it will "thud" the wall when it finds a screw. The clever part is that once you determine which screw or screws that you want to mark, you just flip the
"Mark Too" over and it has another, smaller magnet that will push a pencil tip out as it rides over a screw and will leave a mark directly over the fastener. You don't need to look at it since it's automatic.
I've just finished up the final versions of the "Lite", the "Pro" and the "Mark Too". I'm going to work out some packaging because I'm sending these out to be evaluated. I've posted some pictures at my Studthud site. So you can check that out to see how things have changed since last Decemeber when I did the video.
So, I hope this kind of answers some of your questions. I'd be more than happy to send a sample to anyone who would seriously like to try these out. So drop me a line at
[email protected].
Thanks for your time,
John