Big Horn 19641 Rotape Beam Compass, Gray/Black

The product overall is great. Not easy to use for some, I can see why the reviews. It takes coordination and practice. I think if it was able to use a regular pencil or pen instead of lead replacements that I’ll have to order from staples or somewhere, I think that it would be the perfect tool for any amateur craftsman or seamstress. I have rigged up a ink pen and ground down a pencil to fit. I still use the brass fitting and lead provided, please note: tighten it so it will not slip while using and don’t press too hard! For me this was a great investment and was extremely excited to use it and will have many uses the years to come:)

Better than I expected and it works perfectly. For years I have attempted drawing radius curves onto my projects using the old string method. I am so glad that I finally jumped to the "other" side. This pro pass is accurate, well built and offers perfectly drawn lines. It does not matter if they are straight or radius. It is very easy to use, comes with everything you need and will end the frustration in the shop. It can be used for many things around the house as well.

I bought this because I wanted to paint a large (30 inch radius) rainbow for an aquarium background. This enabled me to draw progressively sized concentric arcs for a picture perfect rainbow. I have 3 criticisms. First, it was a little tricky to figure out how to load the lead in without it falling out. Second, the pin that holds the compass to center tended to come loose, so I had to hold the pin in place. Third, the lead wore down ridiculously quickly. I would have liked this instrument much better if it had simply been designed for me to use the pencil or pen of my choice. I think this is especially true for artists who may want to use ink, watercolor pencils, etc.

I recently bought an antique round table that was 47" and could expand to 69" - I wanted to make a protective cover to place under the tablecloth - this tool made the task of drawing large circles much easier and accurate than any other method I could think of. Highly recommended - I have not seen alternative products on the market for large circles like this.

Cool idea but just use the lock and clasp on a tape measurer. For $50 it comes with 2 little pieces of lead that u have to tighten to the tip once those are gone no idea how u will use it because a small pencil won’t fit. Also the hole to attach it to whatever material ur using to make the circle is very narrow it comes with a holder but can easily lose should of made it wider to at least be able to fit a screw in the middle to hold

Great product

This product works well as intended and is easy to make circles. It arrived with one piece of lead which was broken into 3 smaller pieces. Upon speaking with the seller, they immediately sent out replacements with dozens of sticks of lead! Excellent customer service!

I like the concept of this tool. However like many of the other reviews, there are some design flaws with this tool - 1. The instructions say to “add 1/8” to your measurement. The one I was sent was actually 5/8” of an inch off. 2. The tape doesn’t come out to the supposedly 6’ length and it doesn’t retract as the manufacturer states. 3. I agree with other reviews regarding the lead - it would be better designed to hold a regular #2 pencil since the little pieces of lead seem to be a specialty item. 4. The tape that was shipped to me came with a damaged tape end already kinked at the end. I’ve ordered a replacement to see if it will be closer accurate to the 1/8” the manufacturer says to add. The whole purpose of having the tape on this was to eliminate the need to use a separate tape measure to layout the desired radius. If the tape is not accurate this defeats the whole purpose of having this tool.