Convert rod (US survey) to nail (cloth) Online | Free Length Converter

Rod (US Survey)

The US survey rod is a unit of length used in U.S. land surveying. It is defined as exactly 16.5 US survey feet, which is slightly longer than the international foot. Since one US survey foot equals approximately 0.3048006096 meters, the US survey rod measures about 5.0292 meters.

The survey rod, also called a pole or perch, is historically significant in the U.S. Public Land Survey System and is used to measure land boundaries and distances.

Key facts:

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  1 US survey rod = 16.5 US survey feet

  
  
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  1 US survey rod ≈ 5.0292 meters

  
  
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  4 US survey rods = 1 US survey chain

  
  
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  40 US survey rods = 1 US survey furlong

  
  

Though the US survey foot and related units are being phased out in favor of international units, the US survey rod still appears in legal land descriptions and older surveying documents.

Nail (Cloth)

A nail is a traditional unit of length used in cloth measurement, equal to 2¼ inches or approximately 5.715 centimeters. It was commonly used by tailors and fabric merchants in England to measure small lengths of fabric.

The term “nail” likely originates from the practice of marking lengths on a measuring stick with notches or nails, making it easy to measure fabric quickly. The nail was a convenient subdivision of the yard, with 1 yard = 16 nails.

Though obsolete today, the nail remains an interesting part of historical textile measurement systems.

Summary:

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  1 nail = 2¼ inches (5.715 cm)

  
  
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  1 yard = 16 nails

  
  
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  Used historically in tailoring and fabric trade

  
  
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  Originates from notches or nails on measuring sticks