discussion Imperial or metric?

[Guest]

Nothing wrong with imperial in simplistic measurement. Even though I worked for 25 year in metric at the back end of my working life I still use imperial for carpentry jobs around the house. Daft but it is printed for ever in my brain.

But if you have worked in engineering, architecture or allied industries then in imperial you come up against massive time consuming problems. The main one is a calculator. May be there is one but I have never ever seen an imperial calculator. Metric are 10 a euro.

Try adding up 13 window lengths at 2feet nine & four 64th inches. Then taking that away for the length of a building 87feet 3 & three 32nd inches. Then calculate from the answer in brick sizes the piers between the windows. All worked out by the brain.

In metric you work with straight forward figures either side of the point so simple. Punch in a calculator the above in metric, job done in less than a minute. The brain is still as fresh as a daisy.

Imperial is doooomed.

Laurie

 

[BarryW]

Someone told me they were 1.85 tall the other day..... What on earth is that?

6 foot and I can picture it, 5'8" or whatever - easy-peasy. But 1.85 in meaningless, might as well be a dwarf or a giant for all I know!

 

[Guest]

Imperial is doooomed.

'fraid so

 

[stona]

Is that why such seemingly odd scales as 1/48 and 1/72 are used

Yes,they are only odd if you are metric.

I too use both systems at work. British and European companies are all now metric and supply everything from cable lengths to steel wire ropes in that format,despite the fact that stage sizes are almost always still given in feet! A 1T hoist means one tonne not our old 20cwt ton.

None of the Americans I work with are metric,everything still in feet and inches for them and weights always in pounds.

Cheers

Steve

 

[Guest]

But if you have worked in engineering, architecture or allied industries then in imperial you come up against massive time consuming problems. The main one is a calculator. May be there is one but I have never ever seen an imperial calculator. Metric are 10 a euro.Try adding up 13 window lengths at 2feet nine & four 64th inches. Then taking that away for the length of a building 87feet 3 & three 32nd inches. Then calculate from the answer in brick sizes the piers between the windows. All worked out by the brain.

The brain is still as fresh as a daisy.

87' 3 and 3/32" minus 35' 9 and 13/16" = 51' 5 and 9/32". If your bricks are 6" you'll need 103. If you need an imperial calculator find an old Lsd calculator, since shillings and pence are the same as feet and inches. And the brain is exercised. Took me longer to write it than to do it.

Edgar

 

[Guest]

:terrific:

A slow typer eh?

 

[stona]

87' 3 and 3/32" minus 35' 9 and 13/16" = 51' 5 and 9/32". If your bricks are 6" you'll need 103. If you need an imperial calculator find an old Lsd calculator, since shillings and pence are the same as feet and inches. And the brain is exercised. Took me longer to write it than to do it.Edgar

The problem for the old system is that whilst I,and I suspect many others on the forum,understand the Imperial system and its nomenclature if I was to show your little sum above to one of my daughters (both perfectly intelligent young women) they would have no idea what it meant. That is why,sadly,Laurie is correct and the old Imperial system is indeed doomed.

I wonder how long the Americans will hold out?

Cheers

Steve

 

[Guest]

Must say this thread has been entertaining whilst on the train! Maybe changing things should have been a warning for those who chose to go euro, fat lot of good that has done!