Inflation and the slide rule
Apr. 27th, 2013 09:05 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
altivoNo, I'm not talking about pool toys here.
This week I spent $13 to buy an old Versalog slide rule off EBay. I've wanted one for years, in fact since they were actually still being made. That would be around 1969 or 1970, when I was still in college. (For any readers too young to remember what a slide rule is, it's a mechanical calculating tool that works on logarithms. The slide rule was used by engineers and scientists through much of the 19th and 20th century and many of our architectural monuments and mechanical achievements were based on slide rule estimates and calculations. This includes early space flight experiments as well as things like the Empire State building and the Golden Gate bridge. Though it looks crude in comparison to a modern digital computer, the slide rule is still a useful tool. Unfortunately they aren't made any more (other than as novelty items perhaps) and no one learns to use them.
Anyway, the Versalog I acquired still has the leather protective case with the name of a former owner inscribed under the flap. The rule was very dirty, but it cleaned up well and I realigned the scales and cursor so it is usable. Then some historic research. This rule was made in April of 1962, so it is 51 years old this month. It sold new for about $29.95, which was a lot of money back then. Versalog was the "Cadillac" of slide rules according to most of the guys in my undergraduate classes. In fact it is a very good tool, well made and precise, and built to last with very little maintenance.
After a discussion with Gary about the equivalence of that $29.95 price in modern dollars, I went to an online calculator to figure the actual inflation rate. It turns out that $30 in 1962 had the same purchasing power as $231 today. Now I understand much better why my dad was so protective of his "good" slide rule that he kept in his work brief case and wouldn't let me or my brothers touch, let alone use.
Today that $231 is enough to buy groceries for Gary and myself, plus the food for our two dogs and three horses, for about two weeks. Because the inflation calculator is based on the Consumer Product Index, I assume the $30 in 1962 would have gone about as far. A professional grade slide rule was a substantial purchase back then, much more than a pocket calculator, even a scientific one, is today. In fact, you can buy a low end tablet computer for $200 now.
I do intend to use the Versalog for radio and electronics type calculations. I'll be treating it with a great deal more respect in light of this new awareness. It is a pleasant tool to handle, with a nice heft to it. The slide and cursor operate smoothly now that it has been cleaned, It is more than sufficiently accurate for analog electronics. In fact, we used slide rules in my college physics and astronomy classes to calculate much more complex equations. I could use a calculator of course, or a computer, but I like the connection to historic principles and the awareness of mathematical concepts that a slide rule engenders. And... no batteries required. No charger, no solar panel, nothing but a steady hand and a sharp eye.
This week I spent $13 to buy an old Versalog slide rule off EBay. I've wanted one for years, in fact since they were actually still being made. That would be around 1969 or 1970, when I was still in college. (For any readers too young to remember what a slide rule is, it's a mechanical calculating tool that works on logarithms. The slide rule was used by engineers and scientists through much of the 19th and 20th century and many of our architectural monuments and mechanical achievements were based on slide rule estimates and calculations. This includes early space flight experiments as well as things like the Empire State building and the Golden Gate bridge. Though it looks crude in comparison to a modern digital computer, the slide rule is still a useful tool. Unfortunately they aren't made any more (other than as novelty items perhaps) and no one learns to use them.
Anyway, the Versalog I acquired still has the leather protective case with the name of a former owner inscribed under the flap. The rule was very dirty, but it cleaned up well and I realigned the scales and cursor so it is usable. Then some historic research. This rule was made in April of 1962, so it is 51 years old this month. It sold new for about $29.95, which was a lot of money back then. Versalog was the "Cadillac" of slide rules according to most of the guys in my undergraduate classes. In fact it is a very good tool, well made and precise, and built to last with very little maintenance.
After a discussion with Gary about the equivalence of that $29.95 price in modern dollars, I went to an online calculator to figure the actual inflation rate. It turns out that $30 in 1962 had the same purchasing power as $231 today. Now I understand much better why my dad was so protective of his "good" slide rule that he kept in his work brief case and wouldn't let me or my brothers touch, let alone use.
Today that $231 is enough to buy groceries for Gary and myself, plus the food for our two dogs and three horses, for about two weeks. Because the inflation calculator is based on the Consumer Product Index, I assume the $30 in 1962 would have gone about as far. A professional grade slide rule was a substantial purchase back then, much more than a pocket calculator, even a scientific one, is today. In fact, you can buy a low end tablet computer for $200 now.
I do intend to use the Versalog for radio and electronics type calculations. I'll be treating it with a great deal more respect in light of this new awareness. It is a pleasant tool to handle, with a nice heft to it. The slide and cursor operate smoothly now that it has been cleaned, It is more than sufficiently accurate for analog electronics. In fact, we used slide rules in my college physics and astronomy classes to calculate much more complex equations. I could use a calculator of course, or a computer, but I like the connection to historic principles and the awareness of mathematical concepts that a slide rule engenders. And... no batteries required. No charger, no solar panel, nothing but a steady hand and a sharp eye.
no subject
Date: 2013-04-28 03:08 am (UTC)I hope you understood I meant "How?" as jest :o)
When I worked in a machine shop in the late 70s it was fun to watch the 'old guys' work metal within 0.0001" and finer, measuring with calipers (not the dial ones), micrometers, and even with optical flats. These men were responsible for fabricating parts for the Space Race, the Arms Race, and for the Black Fleet, and all was checked against said instruments along with a bit of help from Machinery's Handbook. A lot was lost as these fellows slowly disappeared from the workplace.
no subject
Date: 2013-04-28 10:58 am (UTC)On that particular subject, I have two sewing machines. One was made in the USA around 1950, the other in Japan around 1975. The older one is built of precision made parts, machined from steel and cast iron. the newer one is all plastic and pressed metal. I'm sure you can guess which one works better in spite of its age. Both have the same trademarks and maker's name, but by 1975 the company had already exported all its production to take advantage of cheaper labor. Sewing machines, one of the first American products to be mass manufactured, were also one of the first to be dumped on Asia and converted from durable goods to disposables.