Reach For A Stanley (October 2010)
Stanley Butt Markers
I can still remember when pre-hung doors first became available.
I was doing contracting during the summers when in college and had bid the installation of 20 plus interior doors.
When I arrived on site with sharp chisels and Yankee push drills, I was surprised to see all the doors hung in their frames, pre-hung. 
I was in and out in a flash compared to the four doors per day I had figured and walked away with a few extra bucks for next winter’s beer.
In addition to the chisel and the push drill the butt marker was an essential tool when it came to hanging doors.
Stanley made this simple tool in three sizes for 3, 3 ½ and 4 inch hinges.
The model numbers are 373, 373 ½ and 374 depending on size.
Using the tool is quite simple and great for avoiding mistakes.
First you lay out the hinge location on the edge of the door.
I always used 8 inches up from the bottom and 6 inches down from the top with the center butt located in the middle. To save mistakes I would lay out the door, then transfer the marks to a story pole for laying out the jamb. Using a story pole not only saves mistakes, it can be used for all the doors in a project.
It is good practice to put an 'X' on the hinge side of the layout line on the story pole, door edge and jamb.
In other words, the X goes above the line that is eight inches up from the bottom and below the line that is six inches down from the top.
With the story pole laid out, place it about an 1/8 inch down from the top jamb and transfer the layout to the hinge side jamb.
The 1/8-inch space is the clearance between the jamb and the door and on a proper hung door should be constant all the way around the door.
Once the layout has been completed, select the Butt Marker that matches the hinge size.
Most residential and light commercial jobs will have 3 ½ inch butts.
Place the edge of butt marker on the layout line and covering the X.
The stop ears should be tight against the edge of the jamb or door.
Rap the top and bottom of the marker to drive it in the wood about as deep as the thickness of the hinge.
Push down on the handle and the marker pops out.
I also scribe a line along the edge of the door at this time.
Holding a pencil with the same length of lead as the thickness of the butt sticking out beyond the thumb and finger, you can mark a line the depth of the hinge mortise on the edge of the door at each hinge location.
With the hinge mortises laid out it is now just a matter of chiseling out the wood and mounting the butts.
This is slow work and must be done with care to avoid damaging what is very often an expensive piece of woodwork. But, with time and practice it gets easier and four doors a day; hung, mounted and cased is a good day’s work.
The Stanley Butt Marker is not a rare tool and it should be relatively easy to pick up a set.
Most will be new in the original plastic case and many new in the box. As far as price goes, about $20.00 is a reasonable expectation.
I have never seen a marker that needed sharpening but if yours does need to betouched up, do so on the inside of the cutters. Filing on the outside could change the width of the layout.
I am aware of the Stanley No. 95 Butt Gauge and the No. 281 Butt Gauge and Mortiser.
These may have been around but I do not recall anyone using them. The ease and foolproof nature of the Butt Marker just made it the tool of choice.