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Old 10-11-2014, 13:43   #136
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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I used to work for a state transportation department. We spent 5years converting all the plans, specifications and standards to metric....but the contractors would take the plans and convert them back to English units.

Eventually, the powers that be came to their senses.
On a similar theme, I learned in imperial in school growing up in NZ, but like Canada we switched to metrics somewhere in the mid 70s, as I remember it, we didn't dick around like some countries trying to phase it in but just switched, which i think is why it stuck. In 1979 i was brought to the US along with 3 other Kiwi boatbuilders to build a 64ft ketch that was designed in NZ in metrics. We had a team of workers who came from all over the country to work on the project and learn the trade. After watching them waste all kinds of time trying to convert back to the imperial we had to confiscate all measuring implements and give them metric only tapes and rulers and then everything went smooth. I also find it much easier lofting out hulls designed in metric even though i learned in imperial and have spent much more of my life working in imperial. I really don't understand why we have not change to be in line with the rest of the world, massive national ego maybe. Most of our industry works in metric and have for decades.

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Old 10-11-2014, 13:55   #137
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

Thanks. I almost mentioned the Royal-al with/cheese...
Cool movie...

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Old 10-11-2014, 13:59   #138
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

With all this talk about different sizes of tools, I'm surprised no one has mentioned that Crescent makes a metric adjustable wrench.
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Old 10-11-2014, 14:02   #139
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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With all this talk about different sizes of tools, I'm surprised no one has mentioned that Crescent makes a metric adjustable wrench.
Yeah... why do you need than that and a pair of Vise Grips???
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Old 10-11-2014, 14:05   #140
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

The Correct name is not adjustable wrench - its NUT F***ER
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Old 10-11-2014, 14:05   #141
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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A 2x4 is the rough unplanned cut size. Planing it gets it to the finished size.

I used to handle those 2x4 in a planing mill back in university in summers. Some old houses still have the full sized dimensions.. in other words, unplaned.
Actually, the old 2x4's were planed and still 2 x 4. At least in my old house they were..I had an old (1917) craftsman house, tore out one wall to change the layout. The 2 x 4's were CVG clear fir, smooth and a full 2 x 4! Now how do you add onto that wall with 3 1/2" 2 x 4's?
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Old 10-11-2014, 14:10   #142
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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With all this talk about different sizes of tools, I'm surprised no one has mentioned that Crescent makes a metric adjustable wrench.

Heck, last time I was in the US I stopped by a Sears Outlet and they had a complete assortment of metric hammers, too. Ball Pein, claw, mason...But I noticed my favorite hamburger maker is still a 22 Oz framing hammer.
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Old 10-11-2014, 14:10   #143
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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On a similar theme, I learned in imperial in school growing up in NZ, but like Canada we switched to metrics somewhere in the mid 70s, as I remember it, we didn't dick around like some countries trying to phase it in but just switched, which i think is why it stuck. In 1979 i was brought to the US along with 3 other Kiwi boatbuilders to build a 64ft ketch that was designed in NZ in metrics. We had a team of workers who came from all over the country to work on the project and learn the trade. After watching them waste all kinds of time trying to convert back to the imperial we had to confiscate all measuring implements and give them metric only tapes and rulers and then everything went smooth. I also find it much easier lofting out hulls designed in metric even though i learned in imperial and have spent much more of my life working in imperial. I really don't understand why we have not change to be in line with the rest of the world, massive national ego maybe. Most of our industry works in metric and have for decades.

Steve.
Maybe we need it as a reminder of whence we came.
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Old 10-11-2014, 14:13   #144
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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Yeah... why do you need than that and a pair of Vise Grips???
Absolutely. And if you go with the combination metric/SAE pipe wrench, pretty soon everything on the boat will fit that one single tool.
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Old 10-11-2014, 14:18   #145
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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Absolutely. And if you go with the combination metric/SAE pipe wrench, pretty soon everything on the boat will fit that one single tool.
And it will be round!
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Old 10-11-2014, 14:25   #146
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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Absolutely. And if you go with the combination metric/SAE pipe wrench, pretty soon everything on the boat will fit that one single tool.
And with enough duck tape(in yards) and bailing wire(in gauge) we can fix almost anything.

and don't forget the super glue(in ounces)...

now where did I put that 8 lb. maul
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Old 10-11-2014, 16:45   #147
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

Hey, come come when born the United States went immediately and officially from 12 based pounds, shillings and pennies to decimal (and Spanish coin) based dollar and cents? Why they didn't extend it to every other measure is beyond logic.
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Old 10-11-2014, 16:49   #148
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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Hey, come come when born the United States went immediately and officially from 12 based pounds, shillings and pennies to decimal (and Spanish coin) based dollar and cents? Why they didn't extend it to every other measure is beyond logic.
You forgot the quarter, the ever poplular $2 bill, the $5 bill ....
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Old 10-11-2014, 16:57   #149
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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Originally Posted by Mike OReilly View Post
As a Canadian who was in school during our transition to metric, I can reasonably move between the two systems with some ease. There is no doubt Metric is far easier to work with when making any sort of calculation beyond the most basic.

For me, some measurements for me are more natural in Imperial (person height or keel lengths), and some are clearer to me in Metric (0 degrees Celsius vs 32 Fahrenheit). A cm is as useful as an inch, a meter is as good as a yard, and a litre works for quart and pints. Millimetres are far better that fractions of inches for machine bits, and km are more obvious to me than (statute) miles. However, I still think more in pounds when it comes to human and boat weights.

Neither system is inherently more "intuitive" than the other. It depends on what you've been brought up with. But there's no way you can argue Imperial is easier to work with for complex measurements or calculations than Metric. Its no accident that even in the USA, scientists have long operated in Metric.

It's only a matter of time before Liberia, Myanmar and that other hold-out country will join the rest of the modern world .
I also had to put up with both systems & teaching metrics was required, however, all our texts were predominantly inch, foot, slug, pound etc. BTW, I noticed that in cruising the North Channel (Lake Huron, Canada) that some soundings are in feet other chart soundings are in meters. All distances are nautical miles (statute miles X 1.15) not KM (Kanadian miles??) In the instance of map distance, metric would be a ridiculous measure. The concept of seconds of arc is way more intuitive & useful as long as we divide a circle into 360 parts. The tower of Babble is preserved.
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Old 10-11-2014, 17:00   #150
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Re: Convenience of the metric system

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Your bible states that your god was going to destroy all humanity but took an exception with Noah. The bible couldn't possibly be wrong? It rained for 40 days and 40 nights and the flood waters covered the highest mountains on earth. Only Noah and his family survived. Then his sons were commanded to repopulate the earth but was the only woman left Noah's wife? Incest. Eeewwww.

Or the more logical approach is that the species evolved through evolution and the darker skinned people developed a natural pigment to safeguard the skin from the sun. As humans migrated from these tropics to colder lands they lost the darker pigment because they wore more clothes.

And by the way the ark was alleged to be 300 cubits long. A cubit is the length from your elbow to the tip of your middle finger or about a foot and a half so the ark was 450' long and 75' wide and 3 stories high. Now that's a lot of wood!
Sand Crab, you have not read your Bible carefully. Noah, his wife, and his three sons (Shem, Ham, and Japeth) AND their wives with them were saved in the ark. So there was a better gene pool, at any rate, than when Adam and Eve got started. What was to stop people groups from developing different physical traits AFTER the flood and the diaspora succeeding the Tower of Babel debacle? Also, the ark took several decades to build; plenty of time to cut down lots of wood.
I have ONE socket that is not SAE: it removes the carburetor of my Yamaha outboard. Otherwise, I eliminated the need for multiple systems of tools by building my own boat. Nothing metric or abominable was allowed in the construction, so I can cruise with one set of tools.
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