Converting to Metric - Personal experiences only, Please

[Holmz]

...
On a side note, I met an Australian a few years ago, WWII vet, and wood worker, he said he'd never made the conversion to metric.

^He^ was likely a man of high calibre. [wink]

I everyday life I use both for distance. Nanometers to lightyears in metric. For estimated distance I usually think in yards and take 10% off for Meters or x3 for feet.

I can convert km/hr and mph in my head, but for meters/second it seems bewildering, so I generally think in feet per second and convert to m/s.

For torque I think in foot-pounds and need to convert.

HP and kW seem equally acceptable.

Acceleration seems easier in G-force than in either f/sec^2 or metric...

For temperature C seems easier. Certainly if one is choosing ski waxes or cold weather clothing.
I never worry if it is negative C, as I know I will not get wet. But at +5-15C I am sure I could die from hypothermia.

Our tape measures are spilt ~50/50. The smaller ones are generally metric and the longer ones imperial.
Anything sewing is metric, and conversions of diameter to circumference is a lot easier in homogeneous units.

Paper is mostly A4, but I keep a few 8-1/2x11 and legal size around.

 

[Max Fracas]

I converted to metric right after I bought by TS-75.  Right after I got it, I joined the FOG and remember seeing lots of messages about imperial scales for the tracksaws.  That struck me as an almost literal band-aid.  I had just gotten back into woodworking (ironically, after living 15 years in very metric Germany) and I decided it would be better to switch to metric.  Was easy.  I used (and still use) a Fastcap tape marked in metric and imperial.  That eased the transition quite a bit.  I bought an Incra LS for my old tablesaw and there was no question about going metric.  Now I do everything in metric.  I don't use Sketchup (paper instead), but I use a program called "Cut Calculator" that works with millimeters or inches and helps me optimize the use of sheet goods. 

All in all, it was much easier to convert than I expected, and I'm very happy with fewer calculations involving fractions. 

 

[Kev]

Not that I use it for conversion myself .. I have a couple of lovely old style wood and brass folding rules (Rabone, made in England)

One side is metric, the other imperial. Exactly 1 meter long with the scale for both metric and imperial starting at the same end. The short section on the imperial side following the 3 foot mark has a small conversion guide.

The centre of one also has a protractor.

These would be great tools for someone starting off into metric. Probably plenty on Ebay.

 

[Wuffles]

This all started when I bought my TS 55

Ahem, You mean your TS211⁄64

 

[Kev]

This all started when I bought my TS 55

Ahem, You mean your TS211⁄64

Every time I try to save this fact in my knowledge base I end up with an extra subdirectory [tongue]

 

[junk731]

Canada converted to metric over 30 years ago, the building industry and materials, for the most part is still imperial. Everyday is a constant mixture of imperial and metric. Personally I use metric very little in anything to do with building in wood, the brain was initially taught and conditioned in imperial and is a constant reference point. I fully understand metric measurements and can freely convert but only use them when necessary. IMHO neither system is better than the other they're just marks on a stick, its what your personally comfortable with using.

John

 

[Birdhunter]

There is an enormous segment of the US population that can't do even basic math without a calculator. Can you imagine the chaos resulting from speed limit signs or mileage markers being in metric?

On a recent trip, our Hertz car's GPS was speaking in some Asian language and showing kilometers instead of miles. I knew kilometers, but not whatever language was coming out of the GPS. It's still a funny memory.

 

[GhostFist]

Canada converted to metric over 30 years ago, the building industry and materials, for the most part is still imperial. Everyday is a constant mixture of imperial and metric. Personally I use metric very little in anything to do with building in wood, the brain was initially taught and conditioned in imperial and is a constant reference point. I fully understand metric measurements and can freely convert but only use them when necessary. IMHO neither system is better than the other they're just marks on a stick, its what your personally comfortable with using.

John

^^this

 

[Kev]

There is an enormous segment of the US population that can't do even basic math without a calculator. Can you imagine the chaos resulting from speed limit signs or mileage markers being in metric?

Time to give Darwin another swipe at cleaning up the gene pool?

 

[WarnerConstCo.]

125mm sounds so much bigger then 6 inches......

 

[Stephen B]

[size=13pt]If you want to stay imperial, use imperial measurement rulers/tapes. If you want to use metric, only use metric measuring tapes and rulers.

When Australia went metric in the early 70s, my carpenter father changed his rulers and moved on to metric. It helped that plans were all coming out in metric.

Also get used to measuring in mms, forget CMs. Ie. 5.4 metres is 5400mms rather than 540cms. Greater accuracy, less confusion and error. Most metric plans down here are in mms.
[size=8pt]
[member=3891]WarnerConstCo.[/member]
Warner you are obviously talking about Angle Grinder Discs.  [smile]

 

[Sparktrician]

I converted all my personal projects to metric 12 years ago, but those I do for paying customers will be done to the "house standard" or owner preference.  If I'm working in a house that has all the cabinetry done in Imperial, that's what I'll use.  I find it interesting that California Closets has used a blended system from the beginning, with partitions and such cut at the factory to metric standards, but customized by the individual dealer to Imperial standards.  System holes are bored to the 32mm standard.  The local designers are often barely capable of working accurately in Imperial, so to expect them to embrace and utilize metric standards would be total folly, despite the fact that metric is easier to use long-term.  Some franchises have adopted CNC processes for cutting products prior to installation, but many still cut using manual labor on sliding table saws. 

 

[bigarm]

I just went out and checked my table saw.  I'll be darned, the ruler has metric marks on the bottom half.  I never noticed those before.  That will make the change easier for me.   

 

[sancho57]

I've been converting to the metric system for a couple of years now. It is a lot easier then using imperial. The only issue I have is well remembering the standard dimensions. Such as 23 1/4 y wood sides for a f/f cabinet.
24" for a euro cabinet.
I have a converter on my IPhone so it makes it easier.

 

[clark_fork]

I build furniture so I can’t speak to any recent experience on 32MM cabinetry.

I work mostly from plans and these plans are in Imperial. Dimensioning, then, remains Imperial.
I have converted to metric when using the Domino and TS 55 track system. So for tenons, tenon placement, cutting depths, I have gone metric.

Here is my experience:

I made a template the exact width as the base plate on the Domino. This helps me measure for shim width and Domino placement

I made a guide and labeled all my Dominos so I could keep the sizes straight. Posted previously.

I rely on an electronic calculator that measures both Imperial and metric.

For dimensions, I use a Hultafors 3MM tape.

However, I found a metric folding rule more useful.

I use both a chart and an app ( Carpenter’s Calc) when I need to convert a series of measurements.

I use the Incra rule (Taylor Design) with the mm scale and mechanical pencil.

Goals: Learn Sketch-up and convert imperial plans and move to 100% metric.

Bottom line, then, is to make sure you have the right measuring  tools before switching to metric and yes you can use both metric and imperial on a non-32mm project.

 

[Neal W]

I'm an amateur and a hobbyist.  So I needed things to be easier.  Subtracting 3/16ths from 5/8ths is not my idea of a good time.  Reading 16ths on a tape is not my idea of a good time either, especially when I have to stop and think and say to myself a sixteenth more than 5/8ths. 

This spring I decided everything I was going to do all of my woodworking projects in metric.  I bought metric tapes.  I bought a 1281 square from woodpeckers in metric.  I also bought a 900mm rule with the hook stop from woodpeckers.  (My 26" framing square was ordered before I decided to make the switch, but I don't use it for measuring).  I bought metric rulers from Incra as well.

It has cut down on my math errors.  It has cut down on the time I spend figuring out fractional dimensions.  It has made the whole measuring and layout part of woodworking much more enjoyable.  I have no regrets for making the switch.

There is one caveat.  If you are talking to your spouse or friends about how big something is, they look at you kind of funny when you tell them something is 600mm as opposed to 2 feet.  They have no concept.  I have no concept of what 600mm "looks like" without a ruler or tape measure to see it.  If you tell me 2 feet, I can visualize it pretty quickly.  So even if you convert to metric to do your work, be prepared to explain it in imperial terms to others. 

 

[rmwarren]

Like many I started to convert when I got my TS55, thankfully before I started buying WP layout tools, which I now have a full complement of in metric. Love working in metric, it's just much easier. FastCap tapes, calipers in metric, etc. I do all my gadget design in metric now as well.

My problem is I still think in imperial, so I end up looking at/designing something and say to myself "that's about 4", so call it 100mm"... then I'm off to cut my 100mm part.

Apparently I have reach the Old Dog stage of life.

RMW

 

[Stoli]

I'm trying to go metric as well.  I still think in the big picture in imperial, but all the fine/relative details are in metric.

Re: sketchup: While you can simply change the measurement scheme from imperial to metric at any time, I would not recommend doing this.  Imagine a simple design where everything was done to 1/16 resolution because it really didn't matter.  When you simply change the measurement scheme, you will end up with fractional mm for no good reason.  Instead, start the design in metric.

Mistakes: I am much less likely to make stupid math errors in metric, like everyone else.  However, I have still found a repeatable mistake mode: sometimes I read the tape too quick and am off by 5mm because I don't notice the 5mm mark relative to the large CM values.

 

[Ajax]

I'm an engineer.  I don't see the big deal.  I'm fine with using inches and pounds.  I do it everyday at work.  For me it's more difficult to work in metric since I lose my frame of reference of what the numbers mean in a relative sense (mm, kg).

Plus, for most tools, Imperial and Metric, I don't trust their built in scales.  I pull out my gauges and rulers.

 

[stvrowe]

My shop is about as close to 100% metric as it is ever going to get and this conversion was accomplished over 8 years ago.  I use metric for all linear and thickness dimensions because it is simpler than dealing with fractions and a practical necessity for using the 32mm system. 

I did not throw away any 4/4, 5/4, 8/4 lumber or any tooling to convert to metric.  I still buy lumber by the board foot because that is the way it is priced.  I gave up using cubits, links and chains as units of measurement decades ago because they were just too coarse for woodworking.  I still use US Customary Unit degrees (both angular degrees and temperature) as well as time measurements (seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, etc.).  For pressure, I use whatever is on the gauge be it bars, psi, mm Hg, or inches of Hg vacuum.  I still weigh myself in pounds but completely understand that I would be much lighter if I used the metric kg measurement.  I am convinced that if I converted my weight to metric, my clothes and belt would no longer fit because they are in inches. 

When visiting Switzerland several years ago, I discovered router bits on the store shelves with 6.35mm and 12.7mm shanks.  I chuckled a bit since we call them something different in NA and hypothesized that for every metric dimension there must be an equivalent US Customary units dimension.  The bottom line is; it really doesn't matter what you use, just do what works for you, and don't be bothered what others think about it.