Imperial or metric for lathes and mills?

[tkay11]

This may well be a pointless question. Nevertheless, and just in case there is someone willing to humour me, I'll ask.

 

It's whether for ship modelling there's any advantage to use a lathe or a mill in imperial rather than metric, seeing that the original plans are mostly in imperial measurements. An alternative to this question is its complementary one: why would one choose an imperial-based lathe or mill over a metric one?

 

My suspicion is that it wouldn't make much difference, especially as scaling down by 1/48 or 1/64 will mostly involve decimals in either of the two systems.

 

Any takers?

 

Tony

[shiloh]

My preference would to be to use plans in decimal feet or metric, I would probably convert inches and fractions directly to decimal feet from plans before I did anyththing with them.

Generally when you are dealing with machine tools, you are working in decimals of something, ' inches or metric', as long as you are using base 10, it should make little difference when you setup the machines. Having been a Surveyor I like to work in decimals, that is what the slide rule, calculator and computers use anyway. Fractions are converted to decimals by those machines in order to work with them, if asked some will convert them back.  I don't really care for imperial numbers, an awkward way of manipulating numbers if there are any calculations involved. Mills is a much better way of measuring and displaying angles than degrees, Minutes and Seconds, unless you convert to Decimal Degrees. Any machine you will have available to you, will be using decimals, make a choice or take pot luck, they all will do the job, mine uses decimal inches, it's the 12 inches equals a foot and fraction inches that is a problem and only then when manipulating them for a math problem.

jud

Edited December 3, 2015 by shiloh

[tkay11]

Thanks, Shiloh. Nice answer.

 

Tony

[grsjax]

What ever you are comfortable with.  Easy enough to convert from one system to another.  It doesn't take much time when done by hand but most calculators can do it even faster.

[Redshirt]

It should be kept in mind that even imperial units do not always correspond to the current imperial system. (english foot to the french pied de roi is an example which might be important for french ships).

[dgbot]

Buy what will be easiest and comfortable for you.  Metric is European and Empirical is here in the states,  If the plans and scales you are working with are standard go standard.  If metric go metric.  Where I used to work we always converted to decimals for measuring and set ups.  But errors could always creep in.  I think you will be happy going the metric route.  Less converting and easier to scale.

David B 

[robnbill]

My current model is a 1:48 of the Brig Eagle. For me, I  find it easier and more accurate to work in Metric. That said most of my dimensions are in both, but when it comes to cutting wood, I go to metric.

[tkay11]

Thanks grsjax, redshirt, David and Bill. I'm relieved at the answers as I work entirely in metric, but thought I'd better check in case there was something I was missing.

 

Tony

[mtaylor]

I have digital readouts on the lathe so I can use either/or.   The mill is inches.  But.. I use measurements from plans or take the dimensions offered on the plans.  Convert as needed.

[tkay11]

Neat idea, Mark. One that I'll likely follow. Thanks.

 

Tony

[pompey2]

My opinion - conversions are easy, buying tools, accessories etc. is not so easy unless they are local(ish) and current.

So going with the system that gives better choice, price and availability in the future has to be preferable.

So metric for Europe/UK.

 

Nick

[tkay11]

Yes, I do agree, Nick. When I have to make conversions it'll be for use with metric-based systems -- which I'm already into, certainly in my head.

 

Tony