CALLING SPARKING CHIP

The feet and inches were fine, but then engineers, carpenters and builders digressed.


Engineers worked in tenths of an inch through to thousands of an inch.


Carpenters and builders  worked in halves, quarters and eighths of an inch, the manufacturer kindly put sixteenths on some rules, but carpenters and builders called them an eighth and a bit or bare, as in 7/8 and a bit or a bare inch.


But the carpenters also had their roofing squares which are graduated in inches and twelfths of an inch, because using a roofing square you are actually doing a scale drawing and there are twelve inches in a foot.


Then metrification was thrown into the mix leaving some of us with rules having four different sets of graduations to hand.


Though I also worked for a guy who owned a sawmill and we used Hoppus feet to assess the quantity of timber in a log, I actually have various editions of the Hoppus ready reckoner spanning several centuries on my book shelf.


Perhaps it’s not surprising that late night EBay purchases are frequently commented on.


I have never owned a Mears calculator, there used to be one under the counter at one of the local plumbers merchants, you went in with your notes then the Mears calculator was brought out from under the counter and    a group of plumbers would congregate to assist in the mystical process of selecting the correct size of radiator for the required purpose and invariably suggest using a size larger, “just in case”.


 Andy B.

The feet and inches were fine, but then engineers, carpenters and builders digressed.


Engineers worked in tenths of an inch through to thousands of an inch.


Carpenters and builders  worked in halves, quarters and eighths of an inch, the manufacturer kindly put sixteenths on some rules, but carpenters and builders called them an eighth and a bit or bare, as in 7/8 and a bit or a bare inch.


But the carpenters also had their roofing squares which are graduated in inches and twelfths of an inch, because using a roofing square you are actually doing a scale drawing and there are twelve inches in a foot.


Then metrification was thrown into the mix leaving some of us with rules having four different sets of graduations to hand.


Though I also worked for a guy who owned a sawmill and we used Hoppus feet to assess the quantity of timber in a log, I actually have various editions of the Hoppus ready reckoner spanning several centuries on my book shelf.


Perhaps it’s not surprising that late night EBay purchases are frequently commented on.


I have never owned a Mears calculator, there used to be one under the counter at one of the local plumbers merchants, you went in with your notes then the Mears calculator was brought out from under the counter and    a group of plumbers would congregate to assist in the mystical process of selecting the correct size of radiator for the required purpose and invariably suggest using a size larger, “just in case”.


 Andy B.