# Golden Compass



## RJT501Win (Apr 21, 2012)

Yesterday I came across a reference to a Golden Compass.
Always looking for new knowledge I did some research and Wow is there a lot. Those old mathematicians were way ahead, no computers to crunch numbers back then. Brilliant!! Fantastic how nature conforms to this rule on so many occasions. Also known as a Fibonacci Gauge I decided to make one and ran it over some of my projects. The projects that look the most pleasing conformed fairly close to the gauge. The ones that didn't conform certainly weren't as appealing, one box I had made always looked wrong to me and was way out. It was an easy project to make I ripped down a scrap of hardwood, sanded them up and cut them to a plan I found on the internet. I certainly will be using my Golden Compass on all my projects in the future.
Cheers
John T


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Also known as phi, the golden proportion.


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

Handy to keep the Golden Ratio in mind when designing any projects.

Michelangelo was well aware of the proportions in the human body....


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

Cherryville Chuck said:


> Also known as phi, the golden proportion.


and Fibonacci gage/ratio/sequence..

https://math.temple.edu/~reich/Fib/fibo.html


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## RJT501Win (Apr 21, 2012)

Thanks for the link Stick. I find the old stuff very interesting and reading it with great interest but when it got to the heavy math's it started to do my head in. I will continue to making my projects to my Golden Gauge knowing basically how it works. Don't get me wrong I do appreciate the technical side but math's and I never got along, that is why I left school at 16 and took up a trade. You didn't happen to be a teacher in earlier life Stick?
Cheers
John T


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## curiousgeorge (Nov 6, 2006)

*Fibonacci Gauge*

John,
Check HERE for some more info on the gauge.


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

It does work, I have the Table of golden Ratios taped up on the wall behind my Radial Arm Saw so I can refer to if for my projects. But your eyes don't lie, when you look at something think it looks out of proportion , it usually is not following the d golden Ratio.

Herb


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

rjtwin501 said:


> Thanks for the link Stick. You didn't happen to be a teacher in earlier life Stick?
> Cheers
> John T


yur welcome...
not that I remember...


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## OPG3 (Jan 9, 2011)

This is a *FANTASTIC POST*! Once again, several members have stepped-up to the plate with great info. Great thanks to Stick for his info, which I printed.

Otis Guillebeau from Auburn, Georgia


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

OPG3 said:


> This is a *FANTASTIC POST*! Once again, several members have stepped-up to the plate with great info. Great thanks to Stick for his info, which I printed.
> 
> Otis Guillebeau from Auburn, Georgia


thanks...
since you liked that so well have some more....


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## firstmuller (Aug 28, 2014)

And how do you use this in Sketchup?
Allen


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

firstmuller said:


> And how do you use this in Sketchup?
> Allen


take your pick...

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=fibonacci+sketch+up


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

firstmuller said:


> And how do you use this in Sketchup?
> Allen


more...

fibonacci Software - Free Download fibonacci - Top 4 Download


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## firstmuller (Aug 28, 2014)

Stick486 said:


> more...
> 
> fibonacci Software - Free Download fibonacci - Top 4 Download


You are the man Stick.
Thanks
Allen:blink:


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

Stick, you outdid yourself. Fantastic I've got a fibonacci headspin going.

Herb


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## PaulH (May 30, 2012)

*golden ratio*

This is a great subject, thanks to John.
There is as Stick says a lot of heavy maths involving the wonderful basis in nature, yes I have been a maths teacher and for me it's absolutley fascinating.
In my new life and for other woodworkers it comes down to: if your short side is 'a' then long side should be 1.62 * 'a' . This will guarantee the 'golden ratio'
This works for all the sort of sizes we woodworkers will use.
If your designing buildings one would look to the mathematical derivation and use a more accurate value for the 1.618......

Cheers
Paul


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

sorry guys...
I just use it a lot...


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## PaulH (May 30, 2012)

firstmuller said:


> And how do you use this in Sketchup?
> Allen


Mark off width using ruler guide. Then draw box out from width. as you pull it to give the length you'll find that it gives you a dotted diagonal and a pop up gives some text to say golden ratio and that's it.
Cheers
Paul


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## OPG3 (Jan 9, 2011)

*Old math was great!*



> This is a great subject, thanks to John.
> There is as Stick says a lot of heavy maths involving the wonderful basis in nature, yes I have been a maths teacher and for me it's absolutley fascinating.
> In my new life and for other woodworkers it comes down to: if your short side is 'a' then long side should be 1.62 * 'a' . This will guarantee the 'golden ratio'
> This works for all the sort of sizes we woodworkers will use.
> ...


AMEN PAUL!

Math was and always will be my favorite among the subjects! Math is not subjective to opinions - the answer is either right (correct) or wrong (incorrect). In school, I personally hated subjects where my teachers / professors wanted me to "read between the lines". I love science, too; but over the years - the definition of science seems to have become warped from what it used to mean! The expression: John Doe has it "down to a science" tends to no longer have a valid meaning, in consideration of how the word science seems to have been redefined. 
As you can see on my avatar, I build several types of the ancient calculators commonly referred to as an abacus. I have found these to be EXCELLENT math-teaching tools for youngsters. There are several types that I build: Chinese Abacus, Japanese Soroban, Indian Iota, Slavonic Abacus and Salamis Tablet. It is very tedious to build these of high quality to a level that I am personally proud of. I use nice hardwoods for the frames with usually poplar dowels for the rods. I buy "pony beads" from Wal*Mart, but every one must be drilled-out to suit my needs - I devised a way to drill them quickly and accurately. I made most of the tools that I use for making these and it gives me great pleasure to make them and tutor children in math with these. These enable children to quickly learn addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, square roots, cube roots and percentages! Everything people see and do on an abacus is visual and "carry-overs" are natural. Nowadays we deal with larger numbers than in the days when abaci were initially developed, so instead of the typical 13- rows; mine have 24- rows. "Decking" doesn't change, but I delineate units, tens and hundreds with uniquely colored beads. I also add decimal places via copper or brass pegs in the reckoning bars. Each abacus that I sell are serialized and kept in an inventory complete with a photograph. Some of my creations are now all-over the planet. Otis didn't invent the Abacus, he simply improved it. 

As Stick has told us, The old guys often were super smart and could figure things out!
Thousands of years ago structures were built that still to this day - with all of our modern technology defy logic!

Otis Guillebeau from Auburn, Georgia


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