Another Of Life's Mysteries

Mike Finley

You drive to Canada and you have to drive by Kilometers per hour, you pump your gas and it's liters. Okay, so it's obvious Canada is on the metric system.

So why do Canadian carpenters use tape measures that read in inches?

Huh?

mdshunk

Because they want, very much, to be like us. Don't you think, eh?

Leo G

I'm sure the Canadian government forced the metric system on their citizens like the US tried but failed. Or maybe the local hardware store is run by foreigners (US Mom & Pop) and that only what they carry.

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oldgoat

In many areas the metric system is in use though. Actually I liked the metric system when I was using it a long time ago. I think the US is the only major country to still use the inch system yet. If it would have changed over a long time ago we could have done away with a lot of duplicate items.

Patty

Sounds like the perfect question for, none other than, our very own outspoken Canadian resident......(drum roll, please).....

Mr. Ron Shenker!!!!!!

What do you think Ron?

ABLE1

Not only that but did you hear that nightly news blurp a couple of years ago that indicated all of Canada was to switch to Metric Time next year??. Up there they are to get 26-1/2 hours per day. Some days I wish I had a couple of extra hours.

Those lucky CaNADiannnnnns must be doing something different.

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ABLE1

DecksEtc

I can't really shed any light as to the "why" we still build in imperial measure as the switch to metric was when I was in something like grade 4.

However, all the lumber comes in imperial measure and everything I build gets designed in imperial mesuare so, I need a tape that has inches on it

One thing that is a pain is the fact that all the land surveys are done in metric so I keep a metric tape on hand for when I have to stake out fences and such.

By the way, all our vehicles have both KPH and MPH on the speedometer...

Try to figure that one out Mike

theworx

In carpentry school they taught us both with an emphasis on imperial because all our material comes in imperial measurements. Even the stuff made in Canada... Actually, metric would be an easier system to use based on tens (as opposed to 16 or 12 making a full unit - ie: sixteenths of an inch or 12 inches to a foot)...

The only drawings we get for jobs that use metric measurements are Government jobs. The first thing I do is convert the metric into imperial and work on an estimate from there. Otherwise I'd be lost. I couldn't imagine pricing a job for drywall based on square meters or square millemeters etc... I wouldn't even have a clue how to order the material (and I'm sure the suppliers would think I was nuts ordering material in metric)...