joris Posted January 30, 2004 Report Share Posted January 30, 2004 Hy, As I'm living in belgium, we do all our calculations in mm instead of inches. If any of You guys have the same problem, here's a splendid tool that can help you out. http://www.onlineconversion.com/length_common.htm At least it helped me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarMaestro Posted January 30, 2004 Report Share Posted January 30, 2004 I know what you mean....All those countries still working with inches should be forced to change that. Measuring in mm is much more handy and avoids all headaches....All that 1/x crap is soooo annoying. Working with inches will die out sooner or later anyway, because it is much more complicated and it really has no advantage I know of. Additionally a big majority on the world uses the metric system. Nice tool, btw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darren wilson Posted January 30, 2004 Report Share Posted January 30, 2004 The big problem isn't with the metric conversion. That's an easy calculation: 1 inch = 25.4 mm. The problem is with the damned fractions! You have to do a whole other set of calculations just to figure out what 7/32 of an inch is in decimal form. The reason why the US hasn't gone to the Metric system yet is 1) stubbornness; and 2) EVERY industry from forestry to paper to tool and die making, etc. would have to re-tool, purchase new machinery, reprogram their software... everything. That's why a lot of industries in Canada (which officially uses the Metric system) still have to go by old English measurements for compatibility with North America-wide industry standards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joris Posted January 30, 2004 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2004 I know. It's the fractions that give me a headake (hope this is spelled correctly). Like the 7/32. Am I correct if I divide 7 ty 32 and then convert it to mm ?? would be 0.22 multiplied by the number of mm for a inch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darren wilson Posted January 30, 2004 Report Share Posted January 30, 2004 Yeah, divide 7 by 32 to get the decimal equivalent, which is 0.21875 in. Multiply that by 25.4 and you get the millimetres: 5.55625 mm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob Posted January 30, 2004 Report Share Posted January 30, 2004 hmmm it's strange, I used to hate mm, but ever since i got in to guitars and there workings I've started using inches loads! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveq Posted January 30, 2004 Report Share Posted January 30, 2004 This one is my favorite - quick and simple! Metric Conversion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southpa Posted January 30, 2004 Report Share Posted January 30, 2004 I don't know, the last guitar I built was a non-metric guitar. I'm still stuck in the old system although the rest of the country is metric. When someone tells me the temperature is 13 degrees Celsius outside, I have no clue as to what that feels like. Is that relatively hot or cold? But if they said 55 degrees F then I know that I should wear a sweater. I guess it depends on what you grew up with. My truck speedometer reads mph although all the signs on the road read kph. I just multiply by 6 and take off the last digit to see if I'm going too fast. All my drill/router bits are in standard sizes, however I might use both systems as it suits me. If I find my standard measurements getting a little too small, like into 32's of an inch, I might use the more rounded off metric equivalent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbkim Posted January 30, 2004 Report Share Posted January 30, 2004 I still have my trusty Hewlett-Packard 48GX which has great unit conversion faculties . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Bell Posted February 1, 2004 Report Share Posted February 1, 2004 I think inches are good for big things like measuring planks of wood but for precise measurements you can't beat mm. I think there is nothing worse than trying to work out what 7/32 of an inch are. Jon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted February 1, 2004 Report Share Posted February 1, 2004 sure there is...trying to find .023" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted February 1, 2004 Report Share Posted February 1, 2004 Seem's all the plumbing I ever saw in Europe was still in inches Can you tell I've had to work on the kitchen sink more then once Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john Posted February 1, 2004 Report Share Posted February 1, 2004 Seem's all the plumbing I ever saw in Europe was still in inches very true brian. over here in ireland there is lot of both systems used: plumbing : inches speed limits : mph (but distances are measured in km`s, go figure ) temperature : celsius ( or kelvin on a really cold day! ) land : acres weight : Kg`s ( but when we talk about weight of a body, its stone not kg....) as you can see its a mixed bag, a bit head wrecking at times. i blame the english! . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.