Old measuring system

[David Waldmann]

I know this is far from "modern" tech, but it is technology...

For those that think the imperial measuring system is antiquated and inferior to the metric system (OK, it is) I recently came across a couple even more outdated.

I bought a folding rule at an antique store in Maine. My brother in law collects old Stanleys and so I am always on the lookout for them. This was not a Stanley, but I was intrigued by two things about it. For one, it had two words in what appeared to be Cyrillic letters. Secondly, while one side had what seemed to be imperial and metric measurements, the side with the Cyrillic letters had scales that I couldn't figure out. I thought maybe they were architectural or engineering scales but didn't have anything to compare at the time.

I sent a picture of the side with Cyrillic on it to Mr Google and got the following:

AI Overview

The image shows a wooden folding ruler with markings in the pre-revolutionary Russian units of measurement, the sazhen and vershok.

• The ruler is a traditional measuring tool made of wood with metal joints, designed to fold for portability.
• The top scale is marked in sazhen (сажень), and the bottom scale is marked in vershok (вершокъ).
  
• These folding rulers were historically used in various trades for measurements where a rigid tool was advantageous over a tape measure.
  

---

Translation

• САЖЕНЬ: Sajen
• ВЕРШОКЪ: Vershok

I also posted this on a FB woodworking group and received the following additional information:

Вершок is indeed old Russian length and should be equal 1.75 inches - exactly 1U in telecom scale! Spelling with Ъ at the end points to a pre 1917 orpho reform.

and

...the metric system was mandated by the Soviet government in 1918.

 

[wpfay]

Somewhere back in my education I was using similar scales with inches and feet, but the subdivisions of the inches were in tenths, like this scale, though I can't remember the practical application.

 

[wpfay]

More on track with the subject, I have 2 24" cabinetmaker's folding stick scales.
One is a Stanley that came down to me from my father's family from New England.

 

[Bruce Papier]

We received a couple of orders from architects with the specs in 1/10 of inches. Apparently, they use that scale sometimes.

 

[Rick Granick]

Architect's Scale rulers often have a scale in tenths.

 

[wpfay]

Engineer's Scales!
I used them in drafting class in the 10th grade.

 

[Bruce Papier]

I get that they use them for 1" = 10 feet in their drawings, but you can't get a tape measure using that scale. We ended up converting everything to decimal, finding the closest imperial measurement, and then trimming to hit the proper 1/10". All that made the metric system seem a lot easier.

 

[Rick Granick]

Engineer's Scales!
I used them in drafting class in the 10th grade.

I didn't take drafting until my freshman year of college (industrial design major). I still have a couple of those from that time, as well as triangles, t-squares, drafting pencils and pens, etc. I love school supplies.
Rick

 

[David Waldmann]

...the subdivisions of the inches were in tenths, like this scale, though I can't remember the practical application.

Did you notice that while one was in 10ths, the other in 8ths/16ths?

 

[Grey Owl]

I didn't take drafting until my freshman year of college (industrial design major). I still have a couple of those from that time, as well as triangles, t-squares, drafting pencils and pens, etc. I love school supplies.
Rick

Rick , engineering drawing, in 11th grade. In 1960, still have slide rule too.

 

[David Waldmann]

...still have slide rule too.

But do you remember how to use it?

 

[wpfay]

Did you notice that while one was in 10ths, the other in 8ths/16ths?

Yes, I did.