Side by Side Comparison of: Stanley vs Komelon

Best tape measures on the market for fighting the "floppy tape syndrome". The shape of the tape measure fits in my hand the way I like and I can reach long distances for measuring by myself. These tapes are the only ones I buy for professional use.

I live with a measure tape for work - every day. Fax Max reaches further, it's stiffer and easy to read. Over the many years I have tried all the others and none compare. Stanley's Fax Max cost a little more but very well worth it.

I'm a carpenter so I have a tape measure in my hand all day and this is easily my favorite. Most people use the 25' which I recommend but I aomething a little lighter and smaller so I go 16'.

This is the tape measure I carry around with me.. it is light and yet extendable.. and for the most part, 16 feet meets most of my measuring requirements. I have the 25 footer, but since it is heavier and a little more awkward in the hand I leave it in the box until I need it..

I have no complaints at all. It comes out very smoothly, the numbers are very easy to read because they're larger. Really nothing much to say about a tape measure, it's a great buy, it comes out smoothly, numbers are very easy to read, locks tightly and the construction is very strong and solid. I'd recommend it :)

Good+Sturdy+Rubber Grip+Wide easy-to-ready blade with good stand-out+FOURTY FEET!!!Bad-Huge-Will not fit small hands or small belt holstersI have tried many tape measures recently for use on large building jobsites. I need the longest tape measure possible to supplement my laser distance meter. The reel tapes go really far, but are really a two-person job and don't fit on a belt. This is the biggest and baddest tape that does fit on a belt... sort of.Fatmax tapes have the features I really need on a jobsite - sturdy construction, easy reading, and long stand-out. This is the longest Fatmax. I cannot stress enough how great it is to have FOURTY FEET on your belt at a big jobsite. Any tiny pocket tape can measure 3 inches, but only this tape can make the sort of distances between steel columns that we build with.This tape really doesn't stay on your belt unless you never run, bend over, or jump on the jobsite. The 'DEWALT DG5164 Heavy-duty Tape Holder' here on Amazon fits this tape perfectly, and makes sure it stays in place until you need it.

Well built tape measure, and I like the fractions on one side of the tape. Not bad for the price.

Quite a bulky tape in thickness. I really like the white color of the tape, marks are easy to see. Mechanical action is very good. Komelon is my go-to brand of tape, I have several models and sizes from them.

Most stable, strong and smooth working measuring tape, by far, that I've ever owned. I can pull this sucker out two yards or more, and it's not even thinking of bending, thanx to the wide design.Though so-called "cup" designs seem to be bad for smaller measures, on this thing, the solid weighty materials eliminate any problems.

IMO these tape measures work great, they accurate and its easy to read the fractions. Have a whole set in use and they are holding up extremely well, and cost much less than other brands.

Excellent measuring tape with fraction increments. Easy to read and very well constructed to take abuse from the work environment.

Solid tape. Very durable. Bright white tape with fractions is very easy to read. Should last a while.

I prefer these tape measures but the buy one get one free promo is not working.

I bought this to replace a Fat Max tape measure that I had for many years. These are very good tape measures, but this one only received 4 stars, because the print on it is not dark and crisp like my other ones.

I swear quality goes down every time I Buy a new one

They are great tape measures, just heavy!

I've used Stanley FatMax for awhile now which I use for business weekly. I found the FaxMax Xtreme Stanley 33-900 FatMax Extreme Short Tape 1-1/4-Inch by 35-Foot to be counterintuitively more breakable than the regular FatMax, probably owing to it being too stiff. It is bulky and heavy compared to lessor tape but worth it when I need to measure straight up or out.It probably shows my bias but whenever I see a contractor using a FatMax I instantly have more respect for them.

This FatMax extends 11 feet or so, unsupported, which is very handy. It says, "Made in the USA with globally sourced materials." Very solid. I carry a 25 foot tape, although a 16-footer is fine for trimwork. I think of tapes as throwaway items - it's rare to get more than a year out of one in daily use - but I still buy good ones, such as this Stanley 33-725 25-Feet FatMax. Very good quality.

Great tape measure easy to read

I was a bit disappointed because I thought (from the questions and answers) that this was, like many other from this brand, an auto lock type, unlike most other tapes. This means that you pull it out and it stays where leave it until you release it and cause it to retract. This one is conventional, so you need to explicitly lock it. Like most tapes, you can lock it first, then pull it out, but you need to be careful not to accidentally press the release, which is easy to do.I do like the fact that it has fractions of an inch marked for every inch.

12/06/16Fast shippingNeeded a tape that I could read better as my eye sight is worsening. I do visual for a big retail dept. store and needed a new one and a bigger one that 12 feet.Pros it's real real nice....very good quality......smooth retractor goes back inside smooth and easy to read.Cons....it's heavy!!!My 12 foot measuring tape at work is so light , this is like 4 x's as heavy and much bigger. For a "girl" it's too bulky for the size of my hands.Won't be able to use at work , giving to hubby to use around the house.

Bought this tape measure for my girlfriend who starting welding recently, one day she didnt have her welding supervisor and was able to read the prints and weld a piece with this tape. She said she would get another after it wears out! Would defiantly purchase again and great for someone wanting to learn to read and eventually not need the designated marks

Good value and feels like it is better quality when compared to other tape measures in the same price range. I like the rubber casing to protect it from drops etc. Would purchase this again over a Stanley. The numbers are printed clearly and easy to read.

I love that every increment is marked. That should be the industry standard for any full-size tape measure. The locking feature works well. The tape itself is heavy duty and can extend out a ways without bending. I really wanted the 12 footer, but that one costs $3 more for some reason. It doesn't make sense that the smaller tape measure would cost more.

Consumers, if considering buying other than just it looking cool, I would stick to the cheaper Stanley tape measure in the chrome case (PowerLock). Even after usage this thing recoils very quick and to strong; always ending up pinching my thumb & fingers. The chrome case Stanley has a good recoil and not make me cautious of hurting thumb and fingers. For a guy with big hands I prefer something tall like the Stanley PowerLock rather than this stubby & round Stanley FatMax.

Twisted near the end of the tape first week of usage.

Easy to read tape measure with a nice wide tape. Great stand out. However I have some gripes. It doesn't have magnets (I knew this when buying), the hook is not very wide, no vertical measurement on back of tape, and there is not a very strong retract. Sometimes I retracts like it's supposed to, sometimes it doesn't. Perhaps it needs to break in a little. I loved my Komelon Monster MagGrip and got really used to it and how it measured. I've had a few off measurements at work. I can tell the tape is a lot stronger than the Komelon, that tape only lasted a couple months, but I may end up getting another or trying the Milwaukee.

The tape measure is built great but both of these don't spring back like they should. I have had a bunch of these before and they work great but these don't. Going to call Stanley and see whats different or maybe these are bad. They look a little different than the ones in the store but maybe these are old model or something. We will see.

I've been using Stanley Fatmax tapes exclusively for about 10 years now, I lost one on a job site and bought this model as a replacement, This is the first FatMax i have had that explicitly states "Made In the USA" on the tape. Well, this thing is about 1/2 the tape measure of my old FatMax. It looks like the printer was half out of ink printing the numbers and lines on the tape. The spring also seems much weaker, and the tape itself just doesn't seem as sturdy. The Plastic/Rubber body of the tape measure unit is still of high quality however.In my picture you can see my 10+ year old tape on the bottom, crisp clean lines and numbers, and the brand new never used tape on the top that i just received from Amazon.

I have been in the trades for over 30 years and I have been buying FatMax tape measures for as long as they have been on the market. "Stanley" has once again changed the design and manufacturing specs on another one of their tools... and not for the better. This has been happening in several other tool lines as they now own many. The tapes are only slightly better than a standard tape now. The steel for the tape is thinner than it used to be and the clear protective coating on the first several inches has also been changed... it is just some clear tape that peels off unlike previous versions. WAY disappointing. It got 3 stars because it is still OK but I can see these tapes not lasting very long and there is no rebuild offered. I purchased a couple of these because I use them all the time.Stanley has definitely chosen to build with lower quality materials. We all know profit is important but it is really sad that companies think this is a good direction. Building with lower quality means profits can be increased because the materials used for production cost less and the product itself will not last as long. These tape measures are spendy as it is and when the quality declines so will my return business.

I Iike it except the width. The clip seems short. Get caught on seat belts .. sometimes it just works itself off my belt with normal movements in the shop I'm always having to pick it up...it is easy to read

I thought a 1" wide tape measure would be stiff enough to extend many feet. It could, but the 1" wide tape is bulky and heavy.

It works. I Wouldn't buy it again. The FatMax line seems more durable. If you need the fractional markings it is good. But seriously, grow a pair....

I agree with some of the other posts as far as quality with This newer version of fat max. I am a concrete carpenter and I've been using the 35' fat max since it came out. just until recently I purchased a replacement And noticed the tape itself had turned into a flimsy, less curved, tape that bends more often when extending the tape, especially when you try to hook your tape vertically as with columns or walls. That and the fact that the tape extends 11' before breaking was the reason I went with Fatmax. The exterior of the tape remains the same 5* quality but the tape itself has turned into your basic tape. Hopefully the company notices and returns back to the original version, no improvement has been made with this version NONE.

This has a weak recoil & fairly weak break-over point. I use a tape every day & fought this one all day the first day out & at 4:00 pm it went sailing in a pond. No contractor would put up using this beyond 4 or 5 feet. I used the Kobalt for many years which has still has recoil that will take your finger off but the tape itself now has turned to junk.

I love the length (insert off-color joke here) but I am constantly frustrated that it does not pull the tape back in consistently. I often have to struggle and feed the tape back in, and that's no fun when I'm standing on a roof and I've got 40 feet of tape spooled out.I have given myself a nasty "paper cut" twice now, with the edge of the metal tape, as I struggled to feed it back in. And that is only after using it maybe 20 times. Not a good ratio of injury to use.

Tape is made of thinner material than a fat max that you would buy in a store. This means the tape flops around and does not hold its integrity when you are taking measurements longer than a couple feet. It is frustrating, because tapes I have bought in the store for this much have been better quality.

I bought this tape and received a 35' and I'm really dissapointed I thought I was getting the new blade armour tape but got instead a Walmart looking version that is of a much lower quality that I've seen in a long time Stanley has given in to cheaper materials at a lower price and this is the last one I will be purchasing mine as well get a Kobalt that has lifetime replacement because this tape will barley out last it

Very heavy. Measurements are only on one side. There could have been numbers that read vertically on the other side. Calling out 1/2 or 7/8 would have been nice. Stanley went cheap on this one. It's rugged and grippy. That's about it's only redeeming quality.

I should have looked at photo closer. This in inches and I need tenths. It does hang out far before snapping. I bought it because when measuring patches along a highway and a semi goes by my old tape would snap. This one does the same thing. Retraction coil is horrible. I have to feed it in by hand until the last few feet when it finally takes over. Not worth returning.

1 star for bring unusable: if I need to hook it and keep light tension at more than a few feet's length, the plastic locking mechanism releases. Sometimes I need to anchor, lock, and take multiple measurements and it's just impossible. Also noticed after using for just part of one project that the tape itself was more prone to bending than staying straight: yes, it stays perfectly straight but I have to sort of play with it a little bit. They don't make them like they used to :(

First bad experience I've had with an Amazon order. It broke within the first week and is now useless. The one just like it that I ordered over a year ago still (barely) works , so I'm forced to use that

Had to replace a 20 year old 35 foot Stanley tape that broke. This Stanley tape terrible. The lock is hard to use, and the hook is way to small, will not stay "hooked" to anything. I will buy a different brand, this new tape will be an extra.

I lost a Stanley that was 15 years old...so ordered this fatmax. I'm so disappointed, It wont hold when clicked, so it's useless. I'm going to see if I can return. I didn't realize right away as I didn't need to use. So check out right away.

Pretty sure it's not an authentic Stanley FatMax tape measure. 12 feet out and it doesn't recoil plus the tape itself looks a lot cheaper than the FatMaxs I've seen.

blade guide hangs . still usable till i throw it away from wasting time with it.