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DESCRIPTION: The product is a set of two vintage original American-made rulers by Starrett & Lufkin. These high-quality rulers are crafted in the United States, showcasing the exceptional craftsmanship and precision that these brands are known for. Perfect for collectors or woodworking enthusiasts, these rulers are a nod to the rich history and tradition of American toolmaking.
The Lufkin model 928 Mezurall ruler is brand new in original box and is 8 ft. long. Lufkin patented his retractable tape measure in 1934 and it was in production in American plants from 1934 until moved overseas in 2010.
What’s really interesting is the box. While reviewing ’s recent sales and current offers for sale, we noticed that only one of the more than 100 listings came with a box. While this could be considered “usual”, in that very few purchasers of rulers would keep the box around, we got curious and looked further - found out that during the 1970s-1980’s, Lufkin phased out boxes in favor of plastic “blister” packs. The one sale of a ruler with a box, mentioned above, sold for 3-10 times the price of rulers without boxes. Looks like this box may be worth more than the ruler? LOL!!
The other thing a bit peculiar was the fact that all the listings were for “chromeclad” rulers. Lufkin introduced this coated line in 1940, and it was an instant hit, in that it extended the life of the steel tape measure. While Lufkin continued to produce a line of non-chromeclad rulers, it appears that the vast majority of sales were for the heavilyy promoted chromeclad line. “Power of Advertising”!!
We had thought, when listing this sale for the two rulers that the big Starrett windup would be the highlight and not the little innocent Lufkin. After research into dating the two rulers, we found out how wrong we were in our assessment of the Lufkin ruler. Turns out that the Lufkin is very rare because of the patent numbers on the case - they indicate that this was made in 1934, the FIRST YEAR of production!!! Having this ruler is like having the first edition of a book. Lufkin ruler aficionados take note - grab this one because we don’t know how many, if any, 1934 Lufkin’s are floating around?
The Starrett ruler is the crank wind up type and is in a Polished Stainless Steel Case. It is 10 ft. long and has sixteenths inches/feet measurements on one side and “Pi Diameter scale” on the other side. This Starrett 10 ft windup all metal dual measurement ruler is an anomaly and not many are being offered for sale. Short length dual measure ruler were used by plumbers and machinists rather than surveyors and if we factor in that the case is all metal, rather than the later leather or vinyl clad versions, we can see why there are not many floating around on . This specialized ruler was made from 1909-1940’s. In light of the discovery that the Lufkin ruler was made in 1934, and that both rulers were sold together in the same sale by the same seller, makes me kinda lean towards this ruler being made in the 1930’s. However, this is only a feeling and cannot be guaranteed. What is guaranteed is that this ruler is a genuine original L.S. Starter product made between 1909 through the 1940’s.
CONDITION: the 92 year old Lufkin is exceptional, in that it is brand new in original box(box in excellent condition - no pieces off or tears and very little wear, other than a bit of light soiling).
The 77-117 year old Starrett is in excellent condition with only some non-descript use marks/scuffs to be seen. Crank is working fine and pulling out and cranking back ruler is quite smooth. Case is tight and shiny.
PRICING INFORMATION: searched the data base for sales of the Starrett crank type 10 ft. ruler and the Lufkin 8 ft. Mezurall ruler new in box. Found sales of each in different lengths(prices include shipping):
Starrett - we couldn’t find any sales of a 10 ft. wind up all metal ruler and so, we selected the three closest 12 ft. rulers. For the three we have the following(prices include shipping): a sale on June 20, 2026, for $57.90; on June 1, 2026, for $60.00; and, on May 14, 2026, for $99.39(sold “as is” because full retraction is not guaranteed).
Lufkin - only found one sale with original box, and it was made later than the 1934 year of introduction - in any event, the sale was on May 5, 2026 at a price of $99.39 for a 12 ft. chromeclad ruler in original box and having the integral red label that was introduced in 1940(the box was noted as being worn and included in the box was a Lufkin promotional pamphlet “stuffer”).
As stated elsewhere, the value of a vintage Lufkin ruler goes way up when the original box is included - I gather that this is due to these becoming collectible and not just functional.
In light of the discovery that the Lufkin ruler we are offering was only made during its initial year of production(1934), without a comparison, there is no realistic measure(pun intended) of what this is worth. We are going to have to guess as to Market reaction.
Inventory# 6066
