Random question regarding engine sizes

[mikeyw64]

OK we all know that whatever the manufacturer calls it the actual engine size is frequently different


eg the 1400GTR has a 1352cc engine.

Now I can understand why they wouldn't want to call it a 1352GTR but is there any reason why they don't make the engines exactly 600, 1100,1400 etc?

Its not even as though 1352cc (for example) has an exact imperial equivalent (its actually 82.5041 cubic inches)

[mikeyw64]

answer received elsewhere makes sense

Short answer: Pi is an irrational number. 3.14159265.... etc etc

If they make the bore and stroke nice sensible whole numbers for ease of manufacturing, then the engine capacity (for a 4 cylinder engine) is 4 * (Pi * (bore/2) * (bore/2) * stroke) where the numbers for bore and stroke are expressed as cm rather than mm.

[Rhino]

It's just like TV's. No such thing as a 55" TV. Only 55" "class" TV.

[maxtog]

It's just like TV's. No such thing as a 55" TV. Only 55" "class" TV.

Very good analogy.

[MAN OF BLUES]

Uuuugh,
Fill up the bong, take a big toke... and hold it while pondering why gasoline costs $2.35.9 a gallon.. what does the $0.00.9 have to do in reality....?

Now refill the bong, and pass it over to me......

[mikeyw64]

Uuuugh,
Fill up the bong, take a big toke... and hold it while pondering why gasoline costs $2.35.9 a gallon.. what does the $0.00.9 have to do in reality....?

Now refill the bong, and pass it over to me......

This side of the pond fuel is currently an average of £1.18/US$1.44 per litre which works out at US$5.45 per US Gallon

[B.D.F.]

Yeah, and pounds (the mass measurement, not money) are getting smaller too. Egg noodles, coffee and a host of other things sold for centuries in pounds are often sold in 'pound' packages of 12 oz. I picked up a "pound" of Ramshot powder the other day and it too also weighed 12 oz. Fortunately, they were able to hold the price firm so that did not get any smaller though.... :-)

Brian

It's just like TV's. No such thing as a 55" TV. Only 55" "class" TV.

[jimmymac]

Bogart! Pass that bitch around now!

[Rhino]

Yeah, and pounds (the mass measurement, not money) are getting smaller too. Egg noodles, coffee and a host of other things sold for centuries in pounds are often sold in 'pound' packages of 12 oz. I picked up a "pound" of Ramshot powder the other day and it too also weighed 12 oz. Fortunately, they were able to hold the price firm so that did not get any smaller though.... :-)

Brian

What!!?? When did that happen? It's been way too long since I've done some reloading and bought powder. The last powder I bought certainly came in a 1 lbs (16 oz thank you very much!) can. Don't remember the brand but thinking it was Hogden.

[B.D.F.]

OFFTOPIC: but quick....

Not sure and it is only a couple of their specific powders rather than the entire line, which makes it even more tricky. Ramshot Competition, sold in the standard Ramshot '1 lb.' container, actually contains 12 oz. of powder. I believe that that was done because a full pound will not fit because the stuff have very low density. And once moving up to 4 lbs., the '4 lb.' container really does contain 4 lb. and is about the right price, maybe even a tad cheap at $82 or so. But the $20, 12 oz. "pound" of powder was a bit off- putting. All of that said, I absolutely love the stuff: a flattened spherical powder, it still meters fantastically, easily holding 0.1 grains, burns really clean and is the most accurate powder I have found for .45 ACP, or at least as accurate as CFE without all the fire and brimstone (my 1911's only work well with CFE if it is loaded to extreme pressures and they are really quite snappy, moving a 200 grain projectile at close to 1,200 FPS).

OFFTOPIC PET PEEVE: a 'pound' of egg noodles that weighs 12 oz. I absolutely refuse to cook or eat egg noodles unless a pound or more is cooked at one time. If we have one package of 12 oz. of egg noodles in the house, that means no egg noodles can be consumed until a trip to the store. When I or my wife does cook egg noodles from a 12 oz. package, I always open another package, weigh out 4 oz. and add it to the pot. Yes, I understand this is somewhat irrational behavior, and I am not on any kind of mission to 'fix the world' of egg noodle packaging but the first time it happened I was surprised and a bit offended- like someone hoodwinked me. So now I retaliate to their sneaky marketing practices by correcting such an egregious personal attack, at least in my own kitchen. What is even more irrational is that buying a 'pound' of coffee that is really 13 oz. does not bother me in the least; I guess because I never use the entire package of coffee at one time anyway but I do use the entire package (WHICH IS ALWAYS A POUND AT MY HOUSE!!!! ) at one time and altering the amount screws up the noodle / butter / beef tip recipe ratio. Probably all driven by the same reason dogs make two counter- clockwise turns before laying down on the living room floor.

Brian

What!!?? When did that happen? It's been way too long since I've done some reloading and bought powder. The last powder I bought certainly came in a 1 lbs (16 oz thank you very much!) can. Don't remember the brand but thinking it was Hogden.

[maxtog]

I think this is called "Downsizing" and it was/is a stupid marketing gimmick to try and trick consumers into thinking things cost less or that they are not paying more.

I see it all the time.  Things that used to be 100oz now 90.  Things that were 20 count now 18.  Sodas sold in a case of 10 instead of 12.  Some strange quart of something that is not really a quart.  Ridiculous.

[gPink]

...and if you use the propane tank exchange instead of getting a refill you're getting screwed too.

[Rhino]

...and if you use the propane tank exchange instead of getting a refill you're getting screwed too.

Yup! I resisted that one for a long time. It's gotten harder and harder to find a place that does a refill.

[B.D.F.]

Yeah, Blue Rhino used to exchange 20 lb. propane tanks that held 20 lbs. of propane (see how nice that works out). Then they went to only filling them to 17 lb., and now I believe they are filled to 15 lb. Price aside, I would really rather they filled the tank so I would not have to swap them out so often.

That is the nice part about the tank exchanges; they are available just about everywhere, at least in this area, and available 24/7. The propane filling places have very limited days and hours of operation and as you say, are few and getting fewer all the time.

Brian

Yup! I resisted that one for a long time. It's gotten harder and harder to find a place that does a refill.

[VirginiaJim]

Our BJ's store now has a propane filling station at about half the price of an exchange.   Although, the exchange price has gone down here lately by about $4.

[MAN OF BLUES]

Our BJ's store now has a propane filling station at about half the price of an exchange.   Although, the exchange price has gone down here lately by about $4.

Look closely at your tank next time, write down the "tare weight" shown stamped on the collar of the tank, and weigh it after it's filled, and subtract that number...
Or, simply look at the scale when the kid sets it on, and slides the weights to 13#...

as I was using propane the past couple years, I finally found a reliable filling post, but even they would not fill a tank to 20# unless they sold the tank... bastiches, and then they get prickly about checking the cert dates on the tanks you bring in, even on a tank with a good unexpired cert date, they would only pump 17#, unless I paid them $5 to re-cert and inspect the tank, and then they would apply a sticker, and begin filling it to 20# again, as long as the sticker was on it... amazing how that sticker made the tank so much more safe and viable to fill... just like their pockets...

I ended up taking all my old and expired cert tanks (which some of were unknowingly by me, at the time, trade tanks from a local source...) to a place and replaced them one by one with Blew Rhino tanks, of which I sorted thru and accepted nothing lesss than a tank stamped the current year... which was fine for a onetime shot... ditch your expired tanks at Blew Rhino, and get new ones.. or you will not get them filled when you need them, depending on location....( most gas station and convenience fillers never check the dates anyway...)

My whole take on this b/s, when having a conflict about re-certing the tank, was when told there may be an issue with the internal safety valves not working, I told them well, if you put 20# in, and it does'nt pop off and vent, its working... if you try to pump more in than 20#, and it vents... it's working... there is a 2x safety factor anyway...

[Nosmo]

Yeah and a "half gallon" container of ice cream is only like 1 and 3/4 quarts.

And for all you guys whining about inexact measurments, may I ask how many of you have said, "Six inches" when you knew full well you were talking about 4 1/2 ?   

[gPink]

six is actually eight

[maxtog]

And for all you guys whining about inexact measurments, may I ask how many of you have said, "Six inches" when you knew full well you were talking about 4 1/2 ?   

Yeah, framing lumber.  2x4 (really 1.5x3.5), 4x8, etc...  Probably one of the oldest examples of downsizing/measuring.

[jettawreck]

Yeah, framing lumber.  2x4 (really 1.5x3.5), 4x8, etc...  Probably one of the oldest examples of downsizing/measuring.

But at least it makes more sense than the old "standard" 2x4 which was 3 5/8" x 1 5/8".
Now why anything larger than a 2x 6 has been further downsized other than cost savings is hard to understand the logic.
2 x 8 = 1 1/2" x 7 1/4"
2 x 10 = 1 1/2" x 9 1/4"
Etc.
Before they dry and shrink some more.