Previous job in packaging was slowly going metric. Plant I work in now was doing so until last upgrade where everything is US standard all F in temp control no C. New hires in their twenties I need to teach them how to convert C to F on "older" controls.

I know, always needing a metric crescent wrench.

That is a funny graphic. I can't explain it but I prefer the old ways. I have a few of the metric equivalents in my head - a cm is just under a half inch, about .4 inch. .3937 of an inch actually. I still remember that conversion factor sometimes but I discovered that all I needed to recall was 25.4:

Inches times 25.4 = mm; mm divided by 25.4 = inches. 1/25.4 = .03937 of course, if I ever forget and want it for some reason.

For quick thinking, I know of course that a meter is about 39 inches, a mile is close to 1600 meters. A km is about .6 of a mile.

For some reason I like the old English. It's what I know and metric seems cold and soulless. Not logical but oh well.

But speaking of tools, my '89 Chev van has about half and half metric and standard. Weird as hell. At least on my Benzes and Bimmers it's all metric.

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1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

19mm = 3/4", 13mm = 1/2". (in wrenches)....close enough usually.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

I too, prefer sae, for wrenching.
I'm a retired grade-checker, and we, (dirt work/water/sewer/drains) use feet and decimal (1/100ths) feet. It really simplifies adding & subtracting.
In dirt work, flagging (ribbons) are tied at 1 ft apart, colors denote the foot. Blue = grade, white = 1 ft, red = 2 ft, etc. (red + white = 3). The equipment operators cant read the numbers on the lath's but can see 'colors = numbers' "a foot is about as long as my foot". So eg: 'yellow = 4ft', they can hog it out, blow & go.
Caltrans does their own surveying & it has been metric since 1991. The operaters want an approximate one foot spacing between ribbons. So we go 300mm/600mm/900mm apart. so go to 100mm (next full meter) & only mark, no ribbon, then 200mm, (to get 300) then 600 etc. A real pita & easy to make mistakes. Underground guys take a foot/metric tape measure, pull out whatever meters is written, write the corresponding foot measure on the lath's, & go to the next lath.
The Caltrans inspectors go ballistic! over this! They get away with it but grading part they dont allow, at least since I retired.
I worked on the last Caltrans project using 'foot' measuring, San Diego Route 56 freeway.

This little bit is for anyone who might care, , , ,

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"I applaud your elaborate system of denial"

As far as industry goes English units are easier for some engineering calculations, but Metric makes everything else easier.

My industry won't go Metric in the US for fasteners even though my company orders enough fasteners of a certain type to have our name stamped on the head. The reason? Because marketing fears that some customers will think products aren't made in the US.

...and because technicians will have to buy another set of wrenches.

Its frustrating because besides making it easier for the engineering department, manufacturing, saving us a ton of money and having things consistent globally, we won't change to Metric fasteners because we're scared of our customer/service base.

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Onus probandi incumbit ei qui dicit, non ei qui negat

I recondition w123/w126/w124/w140/r107/r129/ steering boxes!


1984 300D "Elsa" odo reset 6/2011 147k
1983 300TD "Mitzi" ~268k OM603 powered
1995 E300 "Adelheid" 262k [Sold]

Peripheral note, pretty wild how many laborers would like to become carpenters but can't learn to add and subtract fractions.

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1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

In my line of work, when somebody asked, or refered to inches, we'd say, 'The only people who use inches, are carpenters and whores, and I dont see any nail bags on you'

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"I applaud your elaborate system of denial"

My dad (big woodworker) hates it when we're working on a project together and I tell him something like "35 and a third inches."

I do it just to get a reaction but it works every single time.

__________________
Onus probandi incumbit ei qui dicit, non ei qui negat

I recondition w123/w126/w124/w140/r107/r129/ steering boxes!


1984 300D "Elsa" odo reset 6/2011 147k
1983 300TD "Mitzi" ~268k OM603 powered
1995 E300 "Adelheid" 262k [Sold]

Charming. I prefer inches. When someone says something is x centimeters I have to do a quick multiply by .4 to get a feel for the size of it.

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1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

Hah!

I was on a job in SF and a young Jewish man came to us from the agency, Contractors Labor Pool, as an apprentice carpenter. He had a Jewish name and really looked Jewish. I only say that as I was astounded that he couldn't read a tape measure. We were doing a task, one of the lead carpenters was watching, I said how long does that piece need to be? He measured the opening and said 24 inches and some things. The lead carpenter said "some things?"

At the end of the day he told him "tomorrow I want you to show me what 13/16ths is on a tape measure." (pause) "You think I'm kidding don't you?"

The next day was his last day. Hard for me to figure where his education went wrong.

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1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

Unfortunatly you need to know both systems. When only metric is really usually taught today. At least in Canada.

You unfortunately still need some imperial measure tools for things you run into. With time the old system will continue to fade.

Actually good enough tools can be obtained today at reasonable cost. The problem at least to me is the ever increasing amount of them you need. Just a handful basically would cope with most issues on the first cars I owned.

I could not find the right cold chisel in my collection last week. You seldom use then as well today. I took a chance and purchased a Chinese one. Actually it was not too soft and still had a good edge when I was finished. Kind of suprising actually. As it was also cheap. The store had a few variations in the shelf as well. I will pick up a couple of almost specialty ones next time I am there.

Chinese steel has improved quite a bit from, I don’t know, 20 years ago. Little bit scary.

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1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

Hey, that’s pretty neat. I know next to nothing of Egyptian mythology so you have measurably increased it. Were ancient Egyptians base twelve, also?

Multi base. Duodecimal was the street standard for millenia before math was lost in the Dark Ages. Sexigesimal was used alongside duodecimal, mostly for scientific work. But this is natural, because 60 is five times twelve. And...binary. Binary is a natural enumeration system for business, because when you bargain, you meet in the middle. And as Xerxes demonstrated, you can approach any limit by halving. But that gets into calculus, and we don't like that either. Thus the stock exchange was binary until 2000, when for reasons that have nothing to do with math, good business or good sense, the entire market system was switched to decimal.

Decimal is really the unimproved stepchild of mathematics. It has no inherent advantage, other than it's an intuitive way to count on your fingers, but as we've seen, not an efficient way.

I wonder why nobody went base five? And why only integer bases? I don’t know enough to address the question but my imagination tells me a base(transcendental number) might make math interesting and simplifying in some instances. Like a base(pi) might be useful in radial math or base(e) in progressions.

Definitely out of my realm. But interesting.