ohn Rabone (later John Rabone & Sons) was one of Britain’s leading manufacturers of measuring rules, tapes, and levels. The firm traced its origins to the late 18th century (commonly cited from 1784) in Birmingham and became especially well-known for high-quality boxwood folding rules with brass fittings. They later operated from the Hockley Abbey works and continued as an independent company until merging with James Chesterman of Sheffield in 1963 to form Rabone Chesterman (later acquired by Stanley).
The No. 1171 is a standard carpenter’s/joiner’s folding rule in the Rabone range. These rules were typically made of boxwood (a stable, fine-grained hardwood ideal for precise graduation), with brass hinges, tips, and often protective or decorative end pieces. They usually offered multiple scales (inches to 1/8, 1/16, etc.) on the different faces and were produced in 2-foot (and sometimes longer) lengths as practical, portable workshop tools. Rabone rules of this type were widely used by carpenters, joiners, and other tradespeople from the late 19th century well into the mid-20th century.
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