Light Land Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 Alot of talk on here is about acres of land not hectares and but yeild is measured in tonnes?. Distance is miles not kilometers but the width of somthing is in meters? is England metric or imperial? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leakeyvale Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 A very good question, Ol. We are supposed to be metric in keeping with the rest of Europe. Retailers are oblliged BY LAW to use kilo as the weight. Retailers could /can be prosecuted if they used imperial. When I buy minced beef I can visualise a half pound but not 200 grammes without running conversion tables in my head. Most butchers label their goods in Kilos AND pounds which suits me to a tee. I can visualise a metre, and an acre (more or less) but tend to stick with imperial in the main as it is what I have used all my life and I am not alone. All very well going metric but when I bought a new bed after "metrication" I discovered that my fitted sheets would not fit the new mattress without a struggle. The new bed was metric standard and my sheets made for imperial standard. Only centimetres difference but enough. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niels Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 I think generally the young folk in the UK will be pretty much all metric and the older people more imperial? Some farmers still talk stones to the acre or bags of fert per acre. When I write an article in English I get banned from writing acres, always hectares like it is on the continent. I always stick to the golden rule that if your farm looks small in hectares, use acres. The big boys that have an impressive number left in hectares use that. . Have always been told it's the mummy's at the butchers and Tesco's that won't shift to grammes, kilo's etc.. However it doesn't seem the mile is going to be replaced with kilometres any time soon! Funny world.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catkom3 Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 I think generally the young folk in the UK will be pretty much all metric and the older people more imperial? Some farmers still talk stones to the acre or bags of fert per acre. When I write an article in English I get banned from writing acres, always hectares like it is on the continent. I always stick to the golden rule that if your farm looks small in hectares, use acres. The big boys that have an impressive number left in hectares use that. . Have always been told it's the mummy's at the butchers and Tesco's that won't shift to grammes, kilo's etc.. However it doesn't seem the mile is going to be replaced with kilometres any time soon! Funny world.. Spot on Niels,most folk under about 40 have no idea what an inch foot or yard is,where as older folk can generally work useing both units,if I'm watch "foreign" DVDs when I see speed limit signs in KPH I automaticaly convert those to MPH,so I understand them, Regards Joe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leakeyvale Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 Spot on Niels,most folk under about 40 have no idea what an inch foot or yard is,where as older folk can generally work useing both units,if I'm watch "foreign" DVDs when I see speed limit signs in KPH I automaticaly convert those to MPH,so I understand them, Regards Joe. Absolutely - I am a good example. (Glad you said "older" rather than "old") Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TM190 Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 Over here in N.I. It really depends what your talking about and who with really I think.. I'm only 22 and can work between both sets of measurements pretty well. Land is still in acres, distance is miles. I use cm/m and inch's/ft daily without any struggle but yes it can confuse other people! So being able to switch between both is handy! I don't think I've ever heard anyone say their height in metric always seems to imperial. I get asked all the time and I never say I'm 2.3m its always 6ft 8" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niels Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 Spot on Niels,most folk under about 40 have no idea what an inch foot or yard is,where as older folk can generally work useing both units,if I'm watch "foreign" DVDs when I see speed limit signs in KPH I automaticaly convert those to MPH,so I understand them, Regards Joe. My car doesn't do MPH and it's not digital so can't change it either. Always take 20 off as a rule of thumb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris.watson Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 And we still drive on the correct side of the road Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catkom3 Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 My car doesn't do MPH and it's not digital so can't change it either. Always take 20 off as a rule of thumb. Easier still Niels,100 KPH = 60 MPH,well 62 actualy, But 80 KPH is exactly 50 MPH,thats why our truck speed limit is 56MPH = 90 KPH Regards Joe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 KM to MILES Simples ...times 5 then divide by 8 80KM x 5/8 = 50 miles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan_coe2012 Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 Im an a/c engineer and the copper pipe i use is in imperial sizes 1/4" 1/2" 3/8" 5/8" 3/4" 11/8" etc but yet the lagging to go round it is metric with it either being 13mm or 9mm walled then 06,10,12,15,20 and 28mm for the pipe size this is very confusing when trying to teach the young'un at work. I wwere lucky as me dads always worked in old money with fila gauges and micrometers which therefore has taught me the ways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 Old money...... .pre-decimalisation around Spring 1971 one could have "spent a penny" 240 times for a one pound but post decimalisation one could only visit a public convenience 100 times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leakeyvale Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 My car doesn't do MPH and it's not digital so can't change it either. Always take 20 off as a rule of thumb. Mine shows both MPH and KPH and that's not digital either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stabliofarmer Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 I'm 16 and can use imperial to the extent of estimating dimensions in inches and feet, however I'm much more comfortable using metric and always model in mm. My 14 year old brother however is into steam where everything is still imperial so he can use inches to the extent of 1/16ths and is roughly as comfortable with metric and imperial. What's Oz Ol? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDFord Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 In this age of increasing globalisation I like the fact that we retain some things that are traditionally British like imperial measurements. I was only taught in metric at school, but on joining the world of work , engineering in my case, the older guys that I learnt from used imperial. There are advantages in both camps I think, and I'm glad that I am at ease with both. I really hope we never change all our motoring related measurements from mph to kph, or to driving on the right. What is the metric equivalent to the miles per gallon fuel economy reading by the way Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Light Land Posted November 25, 2014 Author Share Posted November 25, 2014 Thanks for reply's lady's and gents, interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smithy Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 We are supposed to be hectares but sometimes we slip back to acres as that was what we where brought up on machinery is measured in meters my sprayer is 20 meters and we put most of the chemical on at 200 litres a hectare and the foreword speed is 7-5km/h but on the road we drive in MPH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TM190 Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 KM to MILES Simples ...times 5 then divide by 8 80KM x 5/8 = 50 miles There's a easier way 80 / 1.6 = 50 50 x 1.6 = 80 As there is 1.6 Km in a Mile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerrabbit Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 I was raised in the age of Imperial weights and measures and still prefer this, there is something more than just weight and measure when you start talking yards, poles, chains, roods and furlongs. Bushels, pecks, hundredweights and tons. Gills, drams, pints and gallons. What does the metricated World have?, short legs, weak arms and basic units of ten. Funny isn't it, we sow 10 Hectares of barley, sell the harvested grain by the metric Tonne and get paid from the mill by the bushel weight. Most of the educated World speak English, why can't they also weigh and measure in English? The Americans are a bit weird as well, they speak English, measure distance in miles but drive on the right but their liquid measure, although in pints and gallons, is measured in a different quantity than the UK. As for till assistants at shop and supermarket checkouts, they cant even work out metric units of ten, if they had to do it in Imperial their heads would explode! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
convo Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 I know one thing a PINT of beer will always be a pint of beer to me ,, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CX820Joe Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 I am 39 but prefer to deal in inches, feet and yards, pounds and stones and pints - though I have to toe the line at crappy work and use mls for fluid charts and kilos when we weigh them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niels Posted November 26, 2014 Share Posted November 26, 2014 Mine shows both MPH and KPH and that's not digital either. Yes my BMW used to but new Fiat not. My father bought a new Kia recently that has both as well. Ah well I like England the way it is. Gives it his charm doesn't it When I was working and living over there I never had any trouble using metric and imperial but we'd be mainly metric anyway, as Smithy said. Metres, litres and kilo's in the field all the way. Luckily for me all the bolts, nuts and spanners were metric also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerrabbit Posted November 26, 2014 Share Posted November 26, 2014 There are things that will never change, it would be a rather weird World if these did, there will always be 60 minutes in one hour and 24 hours in a day and 365 days in a year (365 in a leap year), 28,29,30 or 31 days in a month and 12 months in a year, if time goes metric we'll all be on short time! Not quite the same but relevant I think, the BBC Breakfast presenter Steph McGovern was recently sent £20 by a viewer to 'help loose her Northern accent'. It's very interesting reading other peoples views on this. If we were all to speak the same as we are expected to weigh and measure we would all loose our identities completely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris.watson Posted November 26, 2014 Share Posted November 26, 2014 My mrs comes from Stockton on tees Tim, she has lived in Essex for 16 years and still sounds like a foreigner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerrabbit Posted November 26, 2014 Share Posted November 26, 2014 Don't want to bang on about regional accents but here in the summer we get a lot of tourists spending half a day in the local cattle markets just standing quietly listening to the farmers talking to each other, they love to listen and hear the broad local accents, when amongst our 'own' we tend to speak 'normal' to each other but when speaking to a 'vurriner' or an 'emmet', sometimes called a 'grockell', we all tend to moderate our accent and speak to them in our 'telephone' voice but for those that we know are listening to us we tend then to lay on the accent a little 'thicker'. Anyone watch Guy Martin the other night breaking the 'gravity' speed record? He was gone like a melted jelly when talking with the French girl. Accents can be quite powerful! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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