Quoted message said:From "Machinery's Handbook" 21st edition, 1980 p463:
"WIRE AND SHEET METAL GAGES
"The thickness of sheet metals and the diameters of wires conform to
various gaging systems. These gage sizes are indicated by numbers and
the following tables give the decimal equivalents of the different
gage numbers.Much confusion has resulted from the use of gage numbers
and in ordering materials it is preferable to give the exact
dimensions in decimal fractions of an inch... [millimeters preferred
nowadays-SB]
"...the decimal method of indicating wire diameters ...has the
advantage of being self-explanatory, whereas arbtrary gage numbers are
not. The decimal system of indicating gage sizes is now being used
quite generaly, and gage numbers are gradually being discarded.
Unfortunately there is is considerable vaiation in the use fo
different gages. For example a gage commonly used for copper, brass
and other non-ferrous metals may at times be used for steel, and vice
versa...
"The wire gage system used by practically all the steel producers in
the United States is known by the name Steel Wire Gage or to
distinguish if from the Standard Wire Gage (S.W.G.) used in Great
Britain it is called he United States Stee Wire Gage. It is the same
as te Washburn and Moen, American Steel and Wire Company, and Roebling
Wire Gages. The name has the official sanction o fthe Bureau of
Standards at Washington, but is not legally effective. The only gage
which has been recognized in Acts of Congress is the Birmingham
Gage...the Birmingham Gage is, however, nearly obsolete both in the
United States and in Great Britain, where it originated...
"In Great Britain one wire gage has been legalized. This is called
the Standard Wire Gage (S.W.G.), formerly called Imperial Wire Gage."
The U.S. system, S.W.G. and Birmingham gages are all the same for 15
gage, 0.72" (1.8288 mm.)
I have added this infromation to my Bicycle Glossary at: http://
sheldonbrown.com/gloss_g.html#gauge
I have also added an excerpt from the detailed chart with higher
precision, for those who are interested.
Sheldon "Numbers" Brown
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
| Want of care does us more damage than want of knowledge. |
| -- Benjamin Franklin |
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com
Hard-to-find parts shipped Worldwide
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