Metric and imperial diemnsions.

In Australia, we use metric of course but there is still alot of Imperial around eg rulers, tape measures, spanners, drill bits, socket sets etc. In general conversation , we would use both measurements hand in hand. This is probably disappearing with younger generations. I've never understood the American use of pounds, in weight, totally not using tonnes, eg. something weighs 100,000 pounds? Cheers.
 
Strange but no body has mentioned the number one imperial units that are used globally...
TIME !... Though I am informed that GPS Satellites do infact use decimal minutes and seconds to make the maths simpler in binary code.
 
HankReardon said:
Trevor,

I am in the process of drafting a Caravel (Santa Maria) for POF construction. The plans that I have were drafted in the metric scale. I struggled for three weeks trying to redraft everything in Imperial only to have the frames come out looking like a can of worms. I enlarged, reduced, scaled, skewed and distorted the plans in Photoshop and nearly consumed two entire bottles of good Scotch in the process (Single Malt, not that blended crap). Still couldn't get things to come out correctly. Then I thought, "I wonder how they would turn out is I just drafted everything metric?" After about the third frame, the clouds parted, a beam of sunshine showed through, and the sounds of heavenly angels softly singing in chorus was heard off in the distance.

Imagine my sheer amazement in discovering that everything was suddenly divisible by 10 and that all I needed to do was move the little "dot" to the left or the right and things scaled perfectly. An entirely new world opened up to me. Perhaps I'm on to something here.

I told my wife about my discoveries with the Metric System, to which she responded, "Duh!" (She's from France and believes the "American System" is just stupid) She asked me if I had fully embraced the metric system. I told her that I had gone through an experimental phase in college just like many others do when searching for themselves or taking Chemistry and Physics, but had given up on it as I believed if G_d had meant man to be on the metric system, there would have been only 12 Apostles. Then there was that summer at Band Camp. After all, the only TRUE way is the American Way and any country that didn't use the Imperial System was not only resisting the steady march of progress but was also demonstrating that they were rude and didn't have the common courtesy to measure things in 128th's and 32nd's the way NORMAL civilizations should.

I have now accepted the fact that I am bi-mensural (Mensural - adjective, of or involving measuring). I am no longer ashamed. I'm not quite ready to come out of the closet as a fully Metric as I fear my circle of family and friends are not quite ready to accept the life I have now chosen. I fear that I will be ostracized by members of the small North Carolina town in which I live. I will keep my new-found metric lifestyle to myself in the hope that at some time in the not too distant future, Metric people can walk proudly down any street in America without fear. I dream that someday we will even have "Metric Pride Day", maybe a parade, and perhaps our own flag (with little tick marks every 10 units across the front, of course). We could even protest against our oppression by loudly chanting, "What do we want? METRIC! When do we want it? NOW!" Maybe even "Down with the Imperialists!"

I've ordered a set of metric rulers and measuring tools from Amazon with specific instructions that they be delivered discretely in unmarked brown paper wrapping. I am excited and look forward to their arrival tomorrow (I'm a Prime Member, so I got free two day delivery going for me too).

If anyone is interested in forming a Bi-mensural Support Group, with possibly a 12-step program, please don't hesitate to drop me a line. Together let's rise up and fight the Imperialists who have persecuted we fun-loving, Scotch-drinking (Single Malt only), Metrics for far too long. Our victory is only a few inches centimeters away...

Literly Yours,

Hank Reardon
P.S I was being sincere when I told my friends their baby looks like a movie star...I just failed to mention that the kid looks like E.T.
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I vaguely remember seeing a b&w western movie about 60+ yrs ago where a rider passed a signpost marked in Kms. ??? Wondered where that was filmed?
 
Sarge said:
Strange but no body has mentioned the number one imperial units that are used globally...
TIME !... Though I am informed that GPS Satellites do infact use decimal minutes and seconds to make the maths simpler in binary code.
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The days would be longer if there were 100mins to the hour! ROTF ! 15 hours in a day?Redface
 
Sarge said:
Strange but no body has mentioned the number one imperial units that are used globally...
TIME !... Though I am informed that GPS Satellites do infact use decimal minutes and seconds to make the maths simpler in binary code.
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Satellites use precise timing as do satellite terminals. Each station typically has frequencies derived from a Cesium beam clock that is accurate to X10 ^ -31! (I was in SATCOM in the army)
 

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LuigiSoft said:
I suppose a bit of both. It is not easy to change something that is ingrained into everyday life. I experience this even now when talking to my sister in Scotland. She continues to speak in the imperial language, in the measurement sense of the word that is.

One example of a hybrid system is the diemensioning of tyres. Take a tyre size of say 235/75 R16. The first two numbers denote the width of the tyre in millimeters. The last two numbers reperesent the width of the wheel in inches, 7.5 in this case.

I found the following link on the internet, which demonstrates what can go wrong, in this instance during international collaboration on space technology, when different systems of measurement are employed:

www.vice.com

The Time NASA Lost a Mars Orbiter Because of a Metric System Mixup

Using the metric system onboard a spacecraft and imperial on the ground can have disastrous consequences.
www.vice.com www.vice.com

So, in a nutshell it makes sense to have one system of measurements only.
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I stand corrected. The number after the R indicates the diameter of the rim of the wheel in inches.
 
My two cents to this discussion. For as long as we model 17/18/19 century British ships we'll have to deal with inches/feet. To me 6.35mm is completely meaningless, but 1/4" in 1:48 (imperial scale btw - 1/4" represents 1') makes sense.
 
Gennaro said:
My two cents to this discussion. For as long as we model 17/18/19 century British ships we'll have to deal with inches/feet. To me 6.35mm is completely meaningless, but 1/4" in 1:48 (imperial scale btw - 1/4" represents 1') makes sense.
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A problem is, kits, made in countries using the metric system, are supplied with materials that cut to metric standards. Right? Things like deadeyes for instance are offered in metric diameters. As is wood sizes. So, scratch builders may build to imperial standards, but kit makers will want to stay with the metric system. It'll make life easier
 
jimmystratos said:
Well, it is the profile, but expressed as a percentage of the width, not in millimetres
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Interesting impression is that this lengthy and ranging conversation has not touched upon the units dividing a circle which most often in civilian life are degrees, minutes, seconds, and there are also radians, and yes, metric divisions for which there are more than one system depending upon who is using those metric divisions and for what purposes. I'll let that rest for others to engage. Just a thought. Rich (PT-2)
 
Talking about having both Imperial and Metric tools, with cars made by US manufacturers but built outside of US proper (Canada or Mexico), it is a US brand car with metric hardware.

Can really mess you up a bunch.
 
Kkonrath said:
Talking about having both Imperial and Metric tools, with cars made by US manufacturers but built outside of US proper (Canada or Mexico), it is a US brand car with metric hardware.

Can really mess you up a bunch.
Kkonrath said:
Talking about having both Imperial and Metric tools, with cars made by US manufacturers but built outside of US proper (Canada or Mexico), it is a US brand car with metric hardware.

Can really mess you up a bunch.
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Recalling back to the proposed US conversion to metric, in the construction side of things . . . even metrifying a door would require changes in everything: wood for the frame and skins, butts (hinges) screws, locksets and all of their components, keys, etc. . . the list goes on and on as to everything in a building that would be impacted. Changing to metric and dual metric/SI dimensioning and drawing is the easy part which the contractors and suppliers then have to respond on their own needs. I'm glad to let these matters in the USA continue into the future as some have begun to change and others not. Rich (A retired architect) (PT-1)
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Suzdal said:
As an amusing aside. The "imperial" unit of an inch has no independent existence. It is officially defined in terms of the metric system as being exactly 2.54 cm.

Richard

Edited on Saturday, 21 August 2021 at 16:48 (GMT + 2) à Paris, France;
sent later.
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Hallo @Suzdal
we wish you all the BESt and a HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Birthday-Cake
 
Suzdal said:
As an amusing aside. The "imperial" unit of an inch has no independent existence. It is officially defined in terms of the metric system as being exactly 2.54 cm.

Richard

Edited on Saturday, 21 August 2021 at 16:48 (GMT + 2) à Paris, France;
sent later.
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Imperial measurements are/were laid down by the British Imperial System. Originally 1 " was the width of a man's thumb, later of the length of 3 barley corns laid end to end. A mile derived from the distance of 1000 paces a Roman Legion marched. 2.54 cm is the modern definition. Or so I'm led to believe.
 
A couple of unit related points.
I gather that the US gallon is smaller than the imperial gallon because the nasty Brits sent a batch of reduced-size "standard gallon" measures to the colonies. That way they could extract more money on exported items that were taxed or charged by the gallon.
We are still using the Babylonian hexagesimal system for subdividing hours and angles and the Roman system of dividing the day in 12 hours.
 
Funny seeing a 2 year-old thread rehashed by a “Happy Birthday”, and the conversation picks right back up like it never left.
I’ve worked with both systems almost all my life, and I don’t have a problem with either. Dad was in the Army, and I spent most of my pre-adult life bouncing around Europe, so it was no different than learning a second language. In large scale, my brain is definitely Imperial, but when it comes down to small scale like modeling, I’ve always worked in metric.
 
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