Subject:
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Re: 8 millimeters or 5/16 inches? (was Re: Scales)
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.general, lugnet.faq
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Date:
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Thu, 22 Jul 1999 18:02:54 GMT
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Okay, I've done the experiment. The interstud spacing is 7.986 millimeters +- 2
microns.
I built a 1 x 100 x 2 "wall" out of long Technic beams, and it measures 798.5
+- 0.2 millimeters (to which I added 0.1 millimeters to account for the fact
that bricks are always made a little shorter on each end to fit better). All
the pieces are in nearly mint condition and all were manufactured in 1996-1998.
The "wall" was built from 9 1 x 16 beams, joined so they overlap by 6 studs at
each overlap, one 1 x 10 beam to extend the total length from 96 to 100, and a
bunch of 1 x 4 beams to fill in the gaps.
The beam was laid on a coffee table and I used metal rulers to verify that the
surface was flat and that the LEGO construction was straight.
Because of the 6-stud overlap, errors caused by marred studs should be canceled
out by averaging. All the pieces were at about 25 degrees C (77 degrees F) for
a day before the "experiment". The measurement error from the tape measure is
+- 0.2 millimeters. I used a dual standard (5 meters / 16 feet) steel
retracting tape measure, the type used by carpenters.
There were two answers I was expecting to find. If the stud spacing standard
was 5/16 inches, the total length should have been 31.25 inches, or 793.75
millimeters. If the stud spacing standard was 8 millimeters, the total length
should have been 800 millimeters, or 31.496 inches.
My actual measurement of 798.5 +- 0.2 millimeters differs from both of the
expected values by significantly more than the measurement error and enough to
show that the standard is neither 8 millimeters nor 5/16 inches. I actually
tried to stretch it by pulling on both ends to see if could be "deformed" to
match 800.0 millimeters, but it didn't stretch enough to notice any difference
in length.
In lugnet.general, Robert Munafo writes:
> [...] In any case, the difference between 8 millimeters and 5/16 inches
> is about 1 percent, so it should be easy enough to resolve any such
> debate just by measuring. [...]
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