Imperial socket sets still being sold?!

That just shows they have no numeracy skills. Either that or they change things to suit their heavier fat bodies.

I've had a 1989 Rover Maestro and a 1988 Range Rover. They took metric sockets.

Correct, but irrelevant when you're trying to fit it onto the bolt on the car. And actually they're also quoted in mm.

Apparently, way back, we had numerous gallons: There were at least 4 different corn gallons, one ale gallon, a wine gallon, a London 'Guildhall' gallon, a Jersey gallon and a Guernsey gallon. I am sure there were probably far more!

We simplified things by taking the imperial gallon (which equals 10lb of water), while the Americans have standardised on the Queen Anne (wine) gallon. So it seems we both simplified the existing system, but in different ways.

SteveW

Only because Maudslay invented the screwcutting lathe and enabled standardisation and interchageablity. He also used his newly accurate threads to make a micrometer accurate to 1/10,000th of an inch for checking.

SteveW

And then the more forward thinking of us discarded all that s*it and went metric.

If your 1988 Range Rover had the V8 engine, you're wrong. The engine remained unified. Although the later bits like the injection system had some metric.

I remember my metalwork teacher explaining that not only did he invent (more properly, perfect) the screw-cutting lathe, but his design enabled him to cut increasingly accurate screw profiles. A clever chap.

Try reading the 2 reviews.

The metalwork teachers I had were not inventors. One of them looked precisely like Roseanne Barr. When I pointed this out to her, she laughed hysterically, exactly like Roseanne Barr.

Close enough probably is good enough for you. In which case some of the AF sockets in your new set will be 'close enough' too.

But then anyone who can't identify a Unified or Metric bolt head by looking at it would be best to stick to Lego.

If it's rusty (Ranger Rover remember?) then there won't be a marking left on it. Also due to rust, they always change size a little too.

Prick.

So, Mr all knowing, how do you tell the difference?

Thanks for confirming you've never looked at a bolt head.

I did no such thing. All bolt heads to me are just a hexagon, like this: