A mirror fastened to the scale will increase the accuracy of the readings if the telescope is not used.

As in all tests on timber, the strain must be continuous to rupture, not intermittent, and readings must be taken "on the fly." The weighing beam is kept balanced after the yield point is reached and the maximum load, and at least one point beyond it, noted.
_Log of the test_: The proper log sheet for this test consists of a piece of cross-section paper with space at the margin for notes.

(See Fig.

32.) The load in some convenient unit (1,000 to 10,000 pounds, depending upon the dimensions of the specimen) is entered on the ordinates, the deflection in tenths of an inch on the abscissae.

The increments of load should be chosen so as to furnish about ten points on the stress-strain diagram below the elastic limit.
As the readings of the wire on the scale are made they are entered directly in their proper place on the cross-section paper.