I do all my measuring with a steel square. You see it takes the place of a two-foot rule. It's useful for squaring up, too. See, it has the 1⁄16, 1⁄4, 1⁄2, 3⁄4, and 1-in. spaces.
My dividers are my compasses. I draw circles, mark pieces, and find centres with them. The pliers are used to twist the binding wire and to hold the metal when it is to be heated, or soldered, etc.
You can get a wooden block like this anywhere. Hard wood is best. This block is 6 × 4 × 4 ins. You see, I cut out a hollow bowl-shaped place in the top. When I want to work a flat piece of copper into a rough bowl shape, I hammer it into the depression. The opposite end of the block, which is flat, is useful in many ways, too.
Bench vise
I couldn't get along without my bench vise. Here it is; made of metal. It can be fastened to a table as well as to a bench. It holds any tool used for shaping and also the metal when I wish to file it.
This piece of 3⁄8-in. hexagonal steel, 5 in. long, tapered at one end down to 1⁄16-in., is a punch for making or pressing holes in copper or silver. The size of the hole depends upon the length you drive the punch into the metal.