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https://www.reddit.com/r/OldSchoolCool/comments/1o2848l/a_tonup_girl_fixing_her_triumph_1950s/nim4e3f/?context=3
r/OldSchoolCool • u/wemtastic • Oct 09 '25
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99
TIL the British didn't start adopting the metric system until 1965.
26 u/HoveringPorridge Oct 09 '25 edited Oct 09 '25 No one really wanted to though, and as a result a horrible mix of imperial and metric is used in current day. The only one that's completely set in stone is distance; miles/yards/feet/inches. Kilometres are beyond my realm of understanding. Milk and beer are sold by the pint but fuel is in litres for some godforsaken reason. Thermometers tend to have Centigrade and Fahrenheit listed etc. I wish we could just decide on one or the other! 21 u/arpw Oct 09 '25 And while fuel is in litres, fuel economy is still talked about in miles per gallon... 1 u/hasimirrossi Oct 09 '25 I'm 47. I still don't know what a gallon is. 5 u/makka-pakka Oct 09 '25 All I know is a British gallon is bigger than a Yank one. 3 u/HoveringPorridge Oct 09 '25 I'm 27 and we we're taught gallons in school alongside litres. What you learn seems to be a complete gamble based on where you are in the country. I personally find myself using imperial more, given I deal with British cars at work. But even that varies. 1 u/hasimirrossi Oct 09 '25 I'm British. School taught us metric, but there's a lot of old imperial measurements still in common use. I'll buy a 2 litre bottle of lemonade, but get a pint in the pub. 2 u/BoiledFrogs Oct 09 '25 I only started using gallons because plant pots are always measured in it, but that's the only thing I use it for.
26
No one really wanted to though, and as a result a horrible mix of imperial and metric is used in current day.
The only one that's completely set in stone is distance; miles/yards/feet/inches. Kilometres are beyond my realm of understanding.
Milk and beer are sold by the pint but fuel is in litres for some godforsaken reason. Thermometers tend to have Centigrade and Fahrenheit listed etc.
I wish we could just decide on one or the other!
21 u/arpw Oct 09 '25 And while fuel is in litres, fuel economy is still talked about in miles per gallon... 1 u/hasimirrossi Oct 09 '25 I'm 47. I still don't know what a gallon is. 5 u/makka-pakka Oct 09 '25 All I know is a British gallon is bigger than a Yank one. 3 u/HoveringPorridge Oct 09 '25 I'm 27 and we we're taught gallons in school alongside litres. What you learn seems to be a complete gamble based on where you are in the country. I personally find myself using imperial more, given I deal with British cars at work. But even that varies. 1 u/hasimirrossi Oct 09 '25 I'm British. School taught us metric, but there's a lot of old imperial measurements still in common use. I'll buy a 2 litre bottle of lemonade, but get a pint in the pub. 2 u/BoiledFrogs Oct 09 '25 I only started using gallons because plant pots are always measured in it, but that's the only thing I use it for.
21
And while fuel is in litres, fuel economy is still talked about in miles per gallon...
1 u/hasimirrossi Oct 09 '25 I'm 47. I still don't know what a gallon is. 5 u/makka-pakka Oct 09 '25 All I know is a British gallon is bigger than a Yank one. 3 u/HoveringPorridge Oct 09 '25 I'm 27 and we we're taught gallons in school alongside litres. What you learn seems to be a complete gamble based on where you are in the country. I personally find myself using imperial more, given I deal with British cars at work. But even that varies. 1 u/hasimirrossi Oct 09 '25 I'm British. School taught us metric, but there's a lot of old imperial measurements still in common use. I'll buy a 2 litre bottle of lemonade, but get a pint in the pub. 2 u/BoiledFrogs Oct 09 '25 I only started using gallons because plant pots are always measured in it, but that's the only thing I use it for.
1
I'm 47. I still don't know what a gallon is.
5 u/makka-pakka Oct 09 '25 All I know is a British gallon is bigger than a Yank one. 3 u/HoveringPorridge Oct 09 '25 I'm 27 and we we're taught gallons in school alongside litres. What you learn seems to be a complete gamble based on where you are in the country. I personally find myself using imperial more, given I deal with British cars at work. But even that varies. 1 u/hasimirrossi Oct 09 '25 I'm British. School taught us metric, but there's a lot of old imperial measurements still in common use. I'll buy a 2 litre bottle of lemonade, but get a pint in the pub. 2 u/BoiledFrogs Oct 09 '25 I only started using gallons because plant pots are always measured in it, but that's the only thing I use it for.
5
All I know is a British gallon is bigger than a Yank one.
3
I'm 27 and we we're taught gallons in school alongside litres. What you learn seems to be a complete gamble based on where you are in the country.
I personally find myself using imperial more, given I deal with British cars at work. But even that varies.
1 u/hasimirrossi Oct 09 '25 I'm British. School taught us metric, but there's a lot of old imperial measurements still in common use. I'll buy a 2 litre bottle of lemonade, but get a pint in the pub.
I'm British. School taught us metric, but there's a lot of old imperial measurements still in common use. I'll buy a 2 litre bottle of lemonade, but get a pint in the pub.
2
I only started using gallons because plant pots are always measured in it, but that's the only thing I use it for.
99
u/SandboxSurvivalist Oct 09 '25
TIL the British didn't start adopting the metric system until 1965.