pints are a measurement too

[javacontour]

It's a convention. Convention is how people commonly refer to something.

After all, you don't buy two quarts of milk, you buy a half-gallon container. Or a quart, or pint or half pint. But I've never heard someone refer to milk in terms of buying a two quart container.

Ditto for oil. Since it's commonly sold to the consumer in terms of quarts, that's the convention when referring to a volume of oil.

Even the gallon containers of oil are frequently referred to as four quart containers. Ditto for the 1.25 gallon containers, they are referred to as 5 quart containers by most folks.

So while pint may be correct, it will not be a commonly used term.

So do you ask for 4oz hamburger patties, or do you get a quarter pounder?

One gets a quarter pounder.

When the oil is half way down, most folks are going to say it's a half quart low since they can't run down to the parts store and buy a pint of oil.

 

[mechtech2]

What term should we use when we are only a 'turd' of a qt. low?

 

[ItsuMitsubishi]

It's psychological.


Originally Posted By: javacontour
After all, you don't buy two quarts of milk, you buy a half-gallon container.


Exactly. No one buys 2 pints of oil, they grab a quart.

Adding 'half a quart' is a visual suggestion of one half of a 1qt bottle of motor oil, as opposed to an odd visual suggestion of a pint glass of draught beer. No biggie.

 

[paulo57509]

I find it more irritating when people call them, "calibers" when they really mean, "calipers".

 

[antonmnster]

+1 for metric. It will solve of the world's problems.

 

[ItsuMitsubishi]

Originally Posted By: antonmnster
+1 for metric. It will solve of the world's problems.


True.

Then we'll have someone complaining about adding "half a liter" of oil, instead of adding 500 milliliters, or 50 centiliters, or 5 deciliters... can't please the whole world.

 

[Spyder7]

When the OP wants two pints of beer, does he ask for a quart?

-Spyder

 

[kb01]

Originally Posted By: Garak

Reminds me of Grant on Mythbusters. Isn't he an engineer? Seeing him use all those imperial measurements in his calculations must make his former professors tear their hair out.


I think it depends on an engineers particular sub-field.

I spend a good portion of the day working with engineers and they always default to the standard system. The closest to the metric system they get is when they use engineering feet. Standard measurements are so cumbersome, I really don't understand why they still use such an archaic system. I guess they just really like overly complicated math.

At my job (biologist, environmental sciences), we use the metric system for all calculations but indicate both when writing measurements in reports -- eg, X m (Y ft).

 

[gathermewool]

Originally Posted By: mechtech2
What term should we use when we are only a 'turd' of a qt. low?


A turd quart low? That's approximately dirty tree and one turd tablespoons, IIRC.

 

[Rhymingmechanic]

Some service and owner's manuals list capacities in pints for differentials and manual transmissions.

Did ATF used to be sold by the pint? I'm pretty sure I've seen auto trans dipsticks marked with something like "Add one pint."

 

[Torino]

+1 for the metric system. However, a good approximation is as ' a pints a pound the world round' John--Las Vegas.

 

[Silk]

Originally Posted By: kb01
default to the standard system.


Uh...SI (metric) is the standard system - for the rest of the world anyway.