Dr. Hillbilly
Aluminum
- Joined
- Dec 6, 2019
- Location
- Oregonia, Ohio
I acquired Vernier calipers and a height stand made in Japan in the 1920s. I have determined the following:
They are "three nation" instruments, meaning that there is a metric Vernier for export to Germany, an inch vernier for export to America, and a Vernier in Sun-bu which is the ancient Japanese measurement system.
After WWII the Japanese government wanted to globalize Japan's industry so Sun-bu was virtually outlawed, forcing all machinists and engineers to learn Inch and Metric.
Apparently Sun-bu is still used to measure batting averages in Japanese baseball, but nothing else!
The maker's mark may indicate that they were made by Fujiyama, but I cannot confirm this.
Here is the caliper (the inch side, both decimal and fractional, with metric and Sun-bu on the other side), and the maker's mark.
Does anyone have additional info on Fujiyama, Sun-bu, or other forgotten measurement systems?
They are "three nation" instruments, meaning that there is a metric Vernier for export to Germany, an inch vernier for export to America, and a Vernier in Sun-bu which is the ancient Japanese measurement system.
After WWII the Japanese government wanted to globalize Japan's industry so Sun-bu was virtually outlawed, forcing all machinists and engineers to learn Inch and Metric.
Apparently Sun-bu is still used to measure batting averages in Japanese baseball, but nothing else!
The maker's mark may indicate that they were made by Fujiyama, but I cannot confirm this.
Here is the caliper (the inch side, both decimal and fractional, with metric and Sun-bu on the other side), and the maker's mark.
Does anyone have additional info on Fujiyama, Sun-bu, or other forgotten measurement systems?