Finally, we’re saved from that classic stud finder joke. You know the one: Someone on your job site or that dude you married picks up an electronic stud finder, puts it against his chest, presses the button and says “Hey, it works! It found the stud!” Arf. Arf. Arf. Yah, twenty times later, not quite as funny.
CH Hanson STUD4SURE Magnetic Stud Finder can save you from that and gives you a whole lot of additional benefits as well. Rather than working on batteries and beeps, this gem of a gadget works on magnets. It detects the stud by sticking to it. So, unless your comedic handyman has been swallowing dimes (and if so, you might want to rethink your relationship), the joke will be on them when the CH Hanson fails to detect their studliness.
The STUD4SURE uses industrial strength “neodymium” magnets. To use, simple hold the stud finder lightly against a wall and move it in a circular or figure eight motion along the area you hope to find a stud or nail. You’ll know it when it’s found. The powerful magnet will seal the stud finder to the wall, to the point that you can let go of it and it will keep on holding. Not only is this a neat trick, but it saves you from having to mark any points down. You can instead leave the stud finder there as you install your shelf, bracket or hang your picture. Of course, the stud finder can be adjusted to ensure everything is even – a simple level is built in. Despite the power behind it, the STUD4SURE Magnetic Stud Finder is still gentle of your walls – it’s coated with vinyl to reduce the risk of scuffing the paint job while you’re trying to find a stud.
The CH Hanson Magnetic Stud Finder
The best stud finder I’ve found is called Qwk Mag II this finder will find buried electrical boxes, find screws in wood construction, best for commercial construction but Qwik Mag II , it will find a stud thru 3/4″ PLYWOOD and 5/8″ sheetrock, great for demolition, you can find every screw and back them out and take full sheets off without having a huge mess, anyway check them out. There web site is http://www.qwikbackproducts.com all my carpenters have one, wouldn’t be without one
Ok… I’m a little confused (nothing new THERE), but how does a neodynium magnet detect my spruce 2×4 studs?
I could see this working with new construction where metal studs are more common, but still the standard seems to be 2×4 spruce. Unless it’s detecting the metal of the drywall screws used to hold up the plaster board on the studs…. but then I wouldn’t be able to nail a picture to the wall through a screw anyway?
Or am I missing some new obvious advancement in magnetic technology?
Hi Vicky! Thanks for the recent comments. The magnet actually detects nails and screws, which are typically in the wallboard directly over studs. By sweeping the detector around, you can find the nails and screws and after confirming a couple vertically, you’ve got a great shot at pinning down the stud location. Hope that helps.
Will this work to find studs behind a plaster-and-lath wall? I bought another brand of stud finder and it won’t find the studs.
Thanks. bob
Hi Bob! I haven’t tried the Stud4Sure on plaster and lath, but I have used it with some success on plaster veneer (on top of blue board which is then over the studs). It worked better than any electronic version I used. I think the main variable for you will be how deep in the plaster the nails are. If they’re relatively close to the surface, I think it should work. If not, that will likely present a problem for the magnets. Of course, if you’re dealing with any metal lath, then the Stud4Sure probably won’t do the trick. But these things are so cheap, I’d recommend you give it a shot and I’d guess you’ll have a better chance of success with this than any other electronic stud finder I’ve used. Good luck, and let us know if the Stud4Sure is a success on your project. We’d love to hear your feedback.
This stud finder was my inspiration for a little hack to the dewalt toughcase. I think I can hack in a surplus laser I have laying around to draw a vertical line all the way down the wall but not taking up too much space in the case. Here’s the idea sketched out in autocad. http://twitpic.com/1jobd7
Wait, it doesn’t do my awesome construction joke? This is disconcerting…I will have to start duct taping metal to my chest now.
I like your thinking Ty! We must adapt . . . and prevent stud-sensing jokes from suffering a tragic extinction. My only concern: duct tape + chest = ouch? Maybe a T with steel inserts instead? There has to be a way!
Manscaping and stud jokes in one fell swoop–what is not to like?
I bought one of these myself not too long ago and have to say I am impressed. Aside from the flaw Jen pointed out (it’s completely unable to detect/fake detect any of my studliness), it works really well for finding the kind of studs it was designed for. I even managed to find a few studs on a pretty thick plaster-coated wall, which normally confounds my electronic stud finder. For most jobs I’d pick the Stud4Sure from CH Hanson over electronic stud finders. It’s a great example of a tool using clever low-tech design in a way that trumps most of the modern electronic versions. I likey.