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kaffine · Joined: 13 Jun 2003 Posts: 644 Location: Las Vegas

Since I didn't get into tools until I was state side again (lived in spain for 3 years my dad was in the USAF) . In the US ratchets come in 1/4" 3/8" 1/2" 3/4" and 1" square drives. What does the rest of the world use for ratchets? Thanks.
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80 924
80 931

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Khal · Posted: Wed Oct 27, 2004 4:36 pm Post subject:

Same here, mate. 1/2" would be the most common.
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'80 924 Turbo

tj924 · Posted: Wed Oct 27, 2004 4:46 pm Post subject:

Saw lots of 3/8" & 1/2" stuff when I was looking recently. Some 1/4" stuff but I can't recall seeing 3/4" or 1"
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TJ
Silver '82 924 NA 5-Speed Manual

924guy · Posted: Wed Oct 27, 2004 11:24 pm Post subject:

seems odd doesnt it? the whole world is spinning 12mm sockets on 1/4 inch spec'd wrenches...standarization is good, but youd think non-standard (another funny thing because most of the world uses metric, though we still refer to non metric measuring as "standard" ) would adapt the metric system to rachets as well (6.xxx mm socket driver??)
the world is a funny place....

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Eric
78 924
82 931 SE "smokey"
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My924gtc · Joined: 14 Aug 2004 Posts: 1362 Location: 248

I find that I use my 1/4" ratchet more than anything else on the 924. Occasionally the 3/8" but hardly ever use the 1/2".

I agree on the oddness of the metric system not being refered to as the "standard" but that is because we in the US act like everything we do is "normal" and everyone else needs to adapt to our way of doing things. Our units of measure being a small example.
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MJ
'81 924 2.0L T
'82 924 2.3L SC/EFI <---online fall '06

Sponsor of the 944 Cup and Super Cup
Sponsor of the "2006 Battle in the Badlands"

procon · Joined: 22 May 2004 Posts: 326 Location: WNC

Come on now.
I'm a carpenter & would be completely lost trying to measure everything out in centipedes & millipeters!

Smoothie · Posted: Thu Oct 28, 2004 3:31 am Post subject:

Yah - and we'd have to rename "inchworms" to "twentyfivepointfourmillimeterworms" or "twopointfivefourcentimeterworms" or "zeropointzerotwofivefourmeterworms" or "twopointfivefourtothenegativezerofivepowerkilometerworms".
So you see the inches/feet system's more efficient by far.

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"..it's made in Germany. You know the Germans always make good stuff."

'82 924T, US version, dark green metallic, 5 speed Audi 016G gearbox

kaffine · Joined: 13 Jun 2003 Posts: 644 Location: Las Vegas

Thanks.

Another problem with the metric system. When you put your best foot forward would become your best 0.3048 meters forward.
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80 924
80 931

The best desciption of an atom boils down to something unknown is doing we don't know what.
Sir Arthur Eddington

Sleykin · Posted: Thu Oct 28, 2004 8:43 am Post subject:

You can thank (or curse) WWII for the SAE becoming "standard". The US had the most manufactuing ability and the allies were having trouble working interchangeably on equipment. There were a LOT of systems in use ... even the thread forms were different. The US shipped a lot of machining tools to England and British Standard Whitworth was created for some compatibility.
It was far more expediant and cheaper to develop a socket type wrench set with one handle that could be used on many fasteners by interchanging the sockets. Even the metric fasteners were different ... a Japanese 7mm bolt would not fit a german 7 mm nut. ... and the Italians

(the US had the manufacturing capability to supply the wrenches so they got SAE drives)
Can you imagine the frustration of the guys tasked with reverse engineering say the Japanese Zero? They didn't even have a wrench they could take it apart with!
Anyway if you look hard enough you can find ratchet wrenches with strange hex sockets and sockets with a hex protrusion for fitting to the ratchet... you flipped the ratchet over to reverse it.
Sorry for the long dribble ... the history of fasteners is facinating to me

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Glenn Neff
Medford, OR
87' 924S

numbbers · Posted: Thu Oct 28, 2004 9:34 am Post subject:

Well, keep in mind guys, the US did not invent the foot/inch system of measures, we inherited it from the Brits. Yes, it is true we were once a colony.
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1980 924 Turbo

jpab924 · Posted: Thu Oct 28, 2004 12:19 pm Post subject:

Buy yours today!

http://www.tv-showroom.com/html/Metrinch.htm

My924gtc · Joined: 14 Aug 2004 Posts: 1362 Location: 248

Oh yeah speaking of tools... hey jpab

BTW I have two of those...thanks anyway. I have a wonder socket too...you know the one with the pins inside the socket that "adjust" to any size bolt head...yes I am kidding...except the part about you being a tool.

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MJ
'81 924 2.0L T
'82 924 2.3L SC/EFI <---online fall '06

Sponsor of the 944 Cup and Super Cup
Sponsor of the "2006 Battle in the Badlands"

Vince Ponz · Joined: 02 Nov 2002 Posts: 3581 Location: Florida

How do you guys measure things with centipedes. They are so squiggly and short.
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77.5 924 modified track car
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Khal · Posted: Thu Oct 28, 2004 1:49 pm Post subject:

A good mate of mine has a set of those Metrinch tools. They seem pretty good, actually. Decent quality.
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'80 924 Turbo

kye · Posted: Thu Oct 28, 2004 4:30 pm Post subject:

my ex, my dad and I visited my grandparents a couple of years ago and because my ex hadn't been there before, we went on a tour of the open cut coal mine there..
earlier on in the stay we'd gotten into a conversation about imperial to metric conversions (my grandfather was a civil engineer) and had spun my ex's head around several times with the complexity of it.

anyway, so there we are in the tour bus looking into the open cut mine and the tour operator is telling us all about how big stuff is etc, and he mentions how much water they're pumping out of the hole all the time.. some kilo-litres per day, and my grandfather chips in with the question "that seems like a lot of water, what's that in hectare-feet per hour?"
the guys blank look was priceless!
(I can't remember exactly, but it's something like 12 conversions to convert between the two of them..

)
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