Problems

[dbroada]

that's it. Once you start drawing you MUST stay in that system for as long as possible unless you really don't mind constantly scaling your drawing - and keeping track of your current system.

As I tried to say earlier I find it easy to draw in units and just visualise what those units represent but I have watched other struggle with the concept - especially the "unitless" one. If I have drawn in metric (as I prefer) and the USA insist on imperial drawings I scale every thing and change the dimstyle. Our current project has been asked for in metric but dimensioned in imperial (without metric equivalents!) so its all down to dimstyle scaling again.

[brassworks]

When I was working in Virginia, some counties required that civil engineering drawings be submitted in metric units. Within a year, those counties converted back to English measurements. They found that the metric measurements could never be "pure," because all of the previously designed and built stuff was in English units - the nominal inside diameter of a 24-inch RCP drain pipe, for example - and no manufacturers were making metric materials that matched the English sizes. A metric-sized pipe might be manufactured as a 500-mm nominal inside diameter. What we needed to tie real proposed drains into real existing drains was a 457-mm diameter pipe. Who's making that?

In the meantime, the requirements became a drafting hell, since we ended up having to put text and labelling for both systems onto the plans. Talk about clutter! And who really wants to deal with a proposed utility easement across a piece of property that is 7.33 meters? It was a paltry effort to keep close to the English equivalent requirements. It failed for practical reasons, and these counties soon changed their requirements back to English.

Personally, I only prefer the English measurements because that's what I've worked with most. But when I have had to do metric, I'm fine once I get into it. Mixing the two in a project is an abomination.

[Bespoke]

Hi Team

Way back in the mist of time around 1968 here in the Uk we went metric and I think it’s one of the best things that as happened in my life time calculations easy-peasy etc, etc, etc. Hence I am very pleased that I live in the part of the world that is metric. I must confess that I forget when sending drawings across the pond to the colonies to make alterations to the dim style so it contains pound shilling pence [ old money ] and metric so my clients can make sense of the drawings.

Is it only the USA and Canada that uses old money measurements ?

Alan

[dbroada]

ah the good old days

somebody I worked with back then said he went to buy some wood at the weekend.......

"can I have some 2 x 4 please"
"don't do inches anymore"
"can I have some 50 x 100 then"
"certainly, how much"
"2 meters"
"what's that in feet?"

[Bespoke]

Don’t Look Back Keep Looking Forward

Look where you are going not where you have been

Sod the good old days

Alan

[Alan Cullen]

We turned money metric (dollars and cents) back in the mid 60's. We then turned totally metric around 1972 (I think). The problem is (in my case) that all the existing survey plans (title plans) were in the old imperial system. e.g. road reserve widths were 1 chain, or 1.5 chains, etc. Typical allotment size was 1 chain wide x 2 chains deep.

Even today we still have to deal with imperial survey title plans, re-survey them in metric, and re-submit them to the Titles Office (in metric). Then do all the engineering design based on metric. So we still have the situation were we deal with an existing road reserve width being 1 chain...or 20.117 metres. Ideally the reserve width should be 20 metres.

I can't see this changing for another hundred years.....so our next generation will have to understand both systems for a long time to come.

Then there's the other survey problem that started in Australia a hundred years ago......before EDM (or total station) gear.....all the surveyors used to add 1 link for every 100 links they surveyed.....they would record a distance of 100 links, but in actual fact it was really 101 links. So we used to have to go out, re-survey the surround, then do an adjustment to get it all back to what it really is.

Yeah...metric is great.....but it really does have some ongoing problems.

[dbroada]

I think this is heading towards Chat rather than General

I don't think the younger (UK) children really understand imperial measurements. We are now a couple of generations into metric and fewer hear their dads talk about feet and yards. They wonder why things are based on a 2,5 and a bit cm system (for some reason schools favour a cm base) but don't understand why.

Many years ago I was a 10 pin bowling coach. When I first started out I would take the kiddies out onto the lane saying "the lane is 40" wide and 60' long". I changed my patter after I was asked what feet and inches were.

[Bespoke]

Hi

I agree this as gone into chat and may be time to finish and continue it in the chat room if members wish too.

Alan