Metric or Imperial

[joiner_sim]

I use metric when I'm doing anything that has to be a certain size, as I find metric is much more accurate.
I use imperial when it only needs to be a rough size, as I don't find it accurate enough.

 

[Mr Ed]

I use metric when I'm doing anything that has to be a certain size, as I find metric is much more accurate.
I use imperial when it only needs to be a rough size, as I don't find it accurate enough.

I would suggest that the accuracy lies with the person doing the measuring, not the measurement unit. Aircraft engines and spaceships can me made perfectly well in imperial so I suspect furniture can too

Cheers, Ed.

 

[Benchwayze]

I use metric when I'm doing anything that has to be a certain size, as I find metric is much more accurate.
I use imperial when it only needs to be a rough size, as I don't find it accurate enough.

I would suggest that the accuracy lies with the person doing the measuring, not the measurement unit. Aircraft engines and spaceships can me made perfectly well in imperial so I suspect furniture can too

Cheers, Ed.

Crikey! There's some real low-balls whizzing around here! But true. An inch is an inch and a millimetre is a millimetre. Mind you, being in a majority doesn't make you right. It just secured the vote to make us change. :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Gower]

When I was working with HGV's, I was getting used to metric sizes (spanners, nuts & bolts etc.) as the motor industry was almost 100% metric by the time I retired. When I took up hobby woodworking, I tended to use imperial until I had several bollockings from my son, who is in the building trade. Now, I use millimeters and meters (does anyone use centimeters?). I wonder how I ever managed with fractions etc. and have a chuckle when reading American mags describing 11 13/16ths. and the like. Still think in stones for weight and miles for distance though!
Jim :?

 

[RogerS]

I've been using metric although I was brought up on Imperial and like Paul Chapman have great difficulty in visualising metric - always have to stop and think. But also realised that during the renovation project I've been using both - often on the same piece of plasterboard (as in 33cm x 12 1.2") depending on what on the scale was closest.

 

[Mr Ed]

I use metric when I'm doing anything that has to be a certain size, as I find metric is much more accurate.
I use imperial when it only needs to be a rough size, as I don't find it accurate enough.

I would suggest that the accuracy lies with the person doing the measuring, not the measurement unit. Aircraft engines and spaceships can me made perfectly well in imperial so I suspect furniture can too

Cheers, Ed.

Crikey! There's some real low-balls whizzing around here!

I wasn't having a go at Sim, just saying that the accuracy is not a function of the unit, but how you apply it.

Cheers, Ed

 

[ike]

I can't vote as I use both. I started secondary the year of decimalisation. It just sticks with you for the rest of your life - I'm 'ambidextrous' with metric/imperial, and still switch (seamlessly) between them. An engineering bias helps. Just don't talk to me in cms - it grates on my nerves! :lol:

regds,

Ike

 

[markwuzere]

both for me as well, imperial is prefered though

 

[mailee]

Hmm interesting, I also work in both but prefer Imperial for large measurements and Metric for the small. I can visualise the length of something in Imperial but find I have to work in Metric due to the fact that all the timber merchants work in this. I do find measurements smaller than half an inch easier in Metric though. I was brought up on Imperial though being in my fifties. :?

 

[dewi]

I still love working with imperial rather than "metrickery" I hate the "dismal" system altogether - although I can convert in my head it's easy just 25.4 mm = 1" - see even the last bit of that - 25.4mm took 6 characters whereas 1" took just two - I rest my case

 

[BradNaylor]

In these discussions it is traditional to invoke the 'Bob'

http://www.whitechapel-ltd.com/hardware ... icle.shtml

Cheers
Dan

 

[Shultzy]

I see the "Bob" has been adopted in your avatar Dan :lol:

 

[dickm]

Wish I could use metric, as it's so much more logical and less prone to my arithmetic errors. BUT, mm are too small for most furniture work (what does 1140mm look like?) metres are too big, and cm just don't relate well to obvious bits of my anatomy. AND, all the dials on my Super 7 are imperial. BUT of course, most woodworking is done in inches plus 1/16ths.
WHAT A MESS.
I guess that all shows my age. We still learned about rods, poles and acres when I was in school. (though for what it's worth, one kilogram per hectare is almost exactly a pound per acre, which is handy for the agricultural amongst us)

 

[promhandicam]

Another vote (or not as you didn't give the option) for both. Whether you like it or not, unwittingly you use both as although material is sold in metric sizes they are usually just the metric equivalents the old imperial units. How many people seriously go into a builders merchant and as for a 2440mm x 1220mm sheet of 18mm mdf? Most yards would say something to the effect of 'sorry mate we've only got 8' x 4' sheets - if you want fancy sizes go to b&q!'

Steve

 

[Benchwayze]

Another vote (or not as you didn't give the option) for both. Whether you like it or not, unwittingly you use both as although material is sold in metric sizes they are usually just the metric equivalents the old imperial units. How many people seriously go into a builders merchant and as for a 2440mm x 1220mm sheet of 18mm mdf? Most yards would say something to the effect of 'sorry mate we've only got 8' x 4' sheets - if you want fancy sizes go to b&q!'

Steve

The place I usually got to, you wouldn't even get a 'Sorry'!

On the other hand, they offer free cutting of sheets to your drawing, using any 'currency' you like on a monster panel-dimensioning saw. So I don't care about manners!

 

[bugbear]

Sorry
I can't press either button as I use both a more or less equal amount.

John

I normally estimate in imperial, and calculate in metric.

Although for distances between 1-8mm I pretty much stick with mm, finding them more convenient than a pick and mix of binary fractions.

BugBear

 

[Krysstel]

Considering the current overwhelming lean in votes towards metric why do I always think I have to always talk in imperial when I place a post in this forum ?!
Growing up in the UK in the 60 and 70's I left still thinking only in imperial but confident I could convert since I'd been taught both at school. After 25 years in a metric country I can't believe we were ever taught anything else. At least in my head; imperial is dead and burried (or is it buryed?) and I'm glad

 

[promhandicam]

As I suspected the majority of people that have responded in the other poll use both. I'm sure that this topic like most has been discussed at length in the past with the general conclusion that for small measurements i.e. up to 300mm / 12" people woodworkers tend to use metric and over this size people tend to use imperial.

Steve

 

[jim_hanna]

I find I have to use both, I would like to use metric only (although I've routers with ½ and ¼ inch collets only, have built up a collection of ½ and ¼ inch shank router bits and wouldn't like to see these become unavailable)

My real grouse is with the way suppliers mark some tools, with ¾ being used to describe any dimension between 18 and 20mm (3/4 is actually 19.05)
I've seen chisels marked ¾ 18mm, can't be both.

When I was building my bench I wanted to drill ¾ dog holes so that I could use wonderdog type clamps.
I bought a drill marked ¾ to drill the dog holes, luckily I measured it before using and found it to be 18.5 mm.
I eventually found a proper 19.05mm drill and then found that the ¾ dowel I'd bought to make some homemade dogs wouldn't fit, the dowelling was about 19.5 mm.

 

[Krysstel]

You see what I mean ? If we all just dropped this imperial stuff and the whole world was in millimeters then no-one would have these problems !!