Almost immediately the band in the blade bends at about 8 inches. Because of this it's impossible to measure if you stretch it more than an arm's length as the hook doesn't stay engaged with the end of what you're measuring. I don't know if it was an accident or maybe the blade was made of lighter material than the older generation Lufkin 625. My 10 year old 625 still works well. The new tape is of limited use to me now