BOSCH GR16 Aluminum Telescoping Rod

After having two other products flake (not ship) it is good to find an affordable grade rod from a reputable source. There are several kinds of grade rods with different scales and features. This one combines several useful features. 16 feet long is adequate for excavating a basement. It is marked in feet, inches and 8ths, which I prefer (to feet and tenths). It has two useful scales. The main scale starts at 0 at the bottom and a laser sensor can be placed at any height to find if/where that height has been achieved. Sections are expanded from the bottom in this case. The back side has a scale that starts from the top and shows the height from the ground to the sensor. This is most useful for identifying the height of a given location. It is a bit awkward in that the sensor must align with the top edge, and most sensor clamps are centered at that point, so they are half way off the top. I made a modified clamp that clamped below the reference point. When used in this manner, the rod is expanded from the top down, with the last expanded section sliding to the correct spot. This means it is read at a comfortable height. It isn't necessary to climb a ladder and adjust the sensor and read it way up at the top. Just start expanding the rod with the top section first until the correct height is reached and then read it at a comfortable location near the bottom of the rod. The one thing this rod doesn't automatically do is cut/fill. That requires zero in the middle and adjusting the sensor to a position that matches the zero. Oh well. You can't have everything in one rod. Do a little math, keeping in mind that the difference is backwards from the reading (depending on which scale is used).

*update: This is a great story pole and feels like good quality for the price. I purchased 3 of these at the same $50 price point and this seems to be the best. I thought the measurements were off at first but it's just the way the design works. It's deceiving to the eye but the overall measurement is true. I just wish this came with a storage/carry bag like some of the others. Original: This seems like a decent story pole for the price. It's lightweight and compact, but the height measurements on the backside are off by a little over an inch at every extention. It's not terrible if you are grading your tolerance within that extention but if you need to go back and forth between extentions for your grade then good luck. Front side is fine, the measurements line right up.

I just received this and haven't used it in the field yet, but my first impressions are: 1) it's good and sturdy - no flimsiness and no play 2) construction seems to be solid - no flaws whatsoever 3) the coating and numbers seem to be of good quality and should last 4) the measurement markings are accurate Shipping was fast and the packaging protected the device when the delivery guy dropped it out the back of his truck. I would buy again, but it doesn't look like I'll need to for a while. Field work tomorrow. If something goes wrong with it I'll amend this review.

Good product

This grading rod works awesome. Easy to read and have slid it up and down multiple times with no fading of the numbers. I would give it a 5 star if it came with a sheath or case to store it in.

Probably the best quality you can buy although the coating finish was poor in places

Well built and easy to use. Accurate measurements. I would buy again.

Good grade rod but only numbered on one side

This product was just as described, very good high-quality aluminum. The markings are done very well and designed to last. Happy with this product so far.

It is well made. Has a useful feature in that the numbers on the back can be used to measure the height of a ceiling that is less than 16 feet by extending the smaller sections and reading the measurement on the back just above the bottom section. The grade rod seems sturdy enough to use in construction or surveying.

Good product. Measurements are easy to read. Great upgrade to the leveling rods supplied with my CST/berger rotary laser and auto level kits.

La calidad de los materiales está a la altura de lo que esperas de las herramientas y accesorios Bosch. Lo compre para usar con un nivel láser y un receptor láser de la misma marca. Como era de esperar funcionan en perfecta armonía.

For those of you, who have trouble making sense of how to use the measurements on the BACK of the rod, here is a quick explanation. Once you understand it, you’ll immediately know, when it will benefit you to use it, when the moment comes. As we know, the front of the rod shows the numbers starting from zero at the bottom of the rod, and it is intuitive and self-explanatory. You slide the extensions out to increase the ruler or measurement numbers on the rod. Done. The BACK, however, seems to make no sense if you just look at the numbers and there spacings. No, it was not a manufacturing or printing error. The reason is, that the back is NOT trying to simply be a reversed version of the front. But it rather is a completely different system for measuring. The BACK’s measurement numbers reflect the length of the rod in its current extended length. You have to start with the thinnest top extension, while the front starts with the thickest lowest extension first. The BACK can be used for measuring distances with the length of the rod by extending the rod (like the height from floor to ceiling, the height, width, depth, length of something, etc). You read the number on the extension, that is just about to disappear into the base of the rod. And that is the length of the rod at that moment and therefore the distance you just measured. You can test this by checking it with a measuring tape. And you’ll find that it is precise. Yes, by just looking at the numbers you’ll find it questionable how it could be accurate at all, but it is correctly reflecting the length of the rod. Reminder: DON’T make the mistake and extend the bottom extension as you would use it with the FRONT measurement and then simply turn it around and read the numbers on the BACK. Those are two different systems of measuring and are NOT synchronized. It would be nice if they were, but that would probably cause other complications. I hope this helps to understand the BACK side measuring system a little better. All the best, and be safe!